Musical acts who were really big at on time but eventually vanished from mainstream p

[Lencoboy]

I was actually thinking about Susan Boyle the other day and how she was all the rage back in 2009-2010 and still even managed to reach #1 with her third album in late 2011.

Although she recorded and released 4 further albums during the rest of the 2010s (plus her last one that's a semi-'greatest hits' release titled 'Ten' in 2019), she seemed to pass largely unnoticed post-2013.

According to Wikipedia, she still remains active overall as a singer/performer, but hasn't actually recorded or released any new material since 2019.

I also remember Frankie Goes To Hollywood, who were mega popular and successful during 1984-early 85 suddenly dying a death when they released their second album in 1986, and they were barely heard of again after. Ditto for Paul Young whose first 2 albums were mega successful back in the mid 80s, was already mostly forgotten about from about 86 onwards when he released his third album.

Can anyone think of any others over time?

[Carnation]

This could end up a very long list Lencoboy.
Especially as bands split, music taste changes, musicians get older.
It's good to see some bands are still going like Madness, The Rolling Stones, PIL, Blondie, Tom Jones and many more.
Some bands take a break or go solo.

Here's some that have disappeared from the limelight...
Leona Lewis
Cheryl Cole (or whatever her sir is these days)
Kylie Minogue
Celine Dion

But Cliff Richard still going and with a new single, lol.

[Lencoboy]

This could end up a very long list Lencoboy.
Especially as bands split, music taste changes, musicians get older.
It's good to see some bands are still going like Madness, The Rolling Stones, PIL, Blondie, Tom Jones and many more.
Some bands take a break or go solo.

Here's some that have disappeared from the limelight...
Leona Lewis
Cheryl Cole (or whatever her sir is these days)
Kylie Minogue
Celine Dion

But Cliff Richard still going and with a new single, lol.

Actually Kylie has had a bit of a resurgence recently, including a Top 10 hit single during the summer of this year called 'Paddam-Paddam'. She's always been a bit hit-and-miss for me generally; some of her stuff has been OK, other stuff of hers rather unmemorable.

IIRC Leona Lewis and Cheryl Cole were both part of the X-Factor thing, so hardly surprising they were both dropped like hot potatoes by the pop music-buying public by about late 2009 and beyond.

As for Celine Dion; again, she's always been a bit hit-and-miss for me, and I recall her popularity suddenly seemed to wane rapidly after that mega smash theme tune from Titanic she did in 1997. I also remember Mariah Carey being really popular from around 1993-96 with big hit singles and mega million selling albums and then largely pooh-poohed thereafter, apart from her 1994 festive smash which seems to be what she's best known and remembered for of late.

ISTR a lot more acts back in the 90s in particular who were mega successful and famous for just a couple of years then pooh-poohed off the face of the earth in favour of the next big 'sensation', of whom also often ended up going the way of the dodo in terms of high chart positions and general commercial success, ad nauseum.

[Lencoboy]

On a similar note, I also remember quite a few albums from more 'established' acts that were released during the first half of the 90s that were mega successful at the time but are hardly ever discussed these days nor are the big hit singles from those albums played on the radio very often either nowadays.

Some of those albums are as follows, although I don't have all of them in my collection as I weren't overstruck on every single one of them.

Michael Bolton 'Time, Love And Tenderness (1991).
Enya 'Shepherd Moons' (1991).
Simply Red 'Stars' (1991).
Genesis 'We Can't Dance' (1991).
Def Leppard 'Adrenalize' (1992).
Sting 'Ten Summoners Tales' (1993).
UB40 'Promises And Lies' (1993).
Mariah Carey 'Music Box' (1993).
Meat Loaf 'Bat Out Of Hell II; Back Into Hell' (1993).
Pink Floyd 'The Division Bell' (1994).

The above titles are to name but a few.
Some of those releases I quite enjoyed myself at the time but would probably consider a borefest if I listened to them now.

[Carnation]

It depends what radio station you listen to.
I tend to go for non mainstream, only because I don't like the current music.
Good to hear Kylie still going.
I know Celine Dion is poorly.
UB40 are still performing. I love that track by the way.
I noticed your list was during the 90s. Is that your preferred era Lencoboy?

[Lencoboy]

I noticed your list was during the 90s. Is that your preferred era Lencoboy?

Not necessarily. More the 80s for me, especially as most of the acts whose monumental 90s album releases I listed above were largely hangovers from the 80s despite some of them actually having their roots in the 60s and 70s.

Generally speaking, I actually struggled to gel with much of the popular cultural trends that were more specific to the 90s, let alone those of today, be it musical and otherwise.

A lot of it seemed to be largely about brashness, outrageousness and excessive OTT-ness (especially the hellraising antics and general challenging attitudes of the Gallagher Bros of Oasis and many others of similar temperament) plus seemingly endless competitions of raucous debauchery on live TV (a la TFI Friday, Brit Awards, etc), plus the serial binge drinkers and associated late-night disorder plaguing our town/city centres really seemed to explode as the decade wore on; sometimes even infiltrated by career criminals/ gangsters'. Some of those things have continued into the present day, though the likes of the Brit Awards is reportedly tamer these days and I don't think the nightlife thing is as big now as it was in the 90s and 2000s, hence lesser opportunities for booze-fuelled late night aggro in public places.

Once again, as for the albums I mentioned above (which is mostly an arbitrary list of some popular albums of that era) there's no real right or wrong as to whether or not they're more overlooked today than at the time of their original release, especially as people's tastes can change over time (including my own).

While I still sometimes listen to and enjoy about a third of those releases today, the one other third (like I said upthread) I rather enjoyed at the time but not really too bothered about nowadays, while the remainder (those that I've never owned copies of) I couldn't really care less.

[Fishmanpa]

Agree with previous posts. The list could be pages and pages. I also agree about living in the past based on the subject matter of the threads. What was compared to what is. It really doesn't matter as we can't change the past nor predict the future

FMP

[Peter A]

Jessie J is a mother now, but she was huge about 10 years back.

[Lencoboy]

Jessie J is a mother now, but she was huge about 10 years back.

Yes, I recall her name being bandied around a lot back in the early 2010s, but seems to be more low key of late.

There were quite a few rap artists (ouch) whose names were in lights back then (e.g, Tinie Tempah, Kid Cudi, Professor Green, Plan B, etc); most of whom seem to have faded into relative obscurity of late.

Going back to the 90s once again, ISTR Robson & Jerome being really massive around 1995-96, but suddenly going the way of the dodo from around 1997 onwards, and feeling mega disappointed that their then-current debut album kept The Beatles Anthology Vol 1 from the top spot in the UK album charts. Ditto over on the singles charts for Michael Jackson's 'Earth Song' keeping 'Free As A Bird' from #1 at the same time.

That period must truly have been the absolute heyday of 'bought' CDs, especially as it was at least another 2-3 years or so when CD-Rs and burning devices first entered the consumer mainstream, and then of course, online piracy.

[Lencoboy]

I remember a band called T'Pau who were massive around 1987-88 (probably best known for their late 1987 mega hit single 'China In Your Hand'), who seemed to had vanished from the pop mainstream by the early 90s and beyond.

I also remember Belinda Carlisle being really popular around that same era whose mainstream success lasted into the very early 90s, but then also rapidly faded into obscurity thereafter.

I was more 'take them or leave them' about both acts; neither mad on them nor disliked them.

Fleetwood Mac also released a studio album back in 1987 called 'Tango In The Night' (following a bit of a 'wilderness' period) that was mega successful at the time, but now seems largely forgotten compared to the evergreen 'Rumours' that was released a decade earlier, and I'm sure I've heard that 'TITN' has become much maligned by many 'Mac fans over more recent times, who believe the band were trying to 'sell out' a bit too much to the MTV Generation at the time, especially with all the lavish dress and make-up of the time.

Mind you, there's no doubt also a certain proportion of longer-term 'Mac fans who probably in turn feel that 'Rumours' is vastly overrated and over-represented compared to many of the band's earlier efforts that came before it.