| One Headlight | |
| Cover: | One Headlight.jpg |
| Type: | single |
| Artist: | the Wallflowers |
| Album: | Bringing Down the Horse |
| B-Side: |
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| Recorded: | 1996 |
| Genre: | |
| Length: |
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| Label: | Interscope |
| Producer: | T Bone Burnett |
| Prev Title: | 6th Avenue Heartache |
| Prev Year: | 1996 |
| Next Title: | The Difference |
| Next Year: | 1997 |
"One Headlight" is a song by American rock band the Wallflowers. The song was written by lead singer Jakob Dylan, and produced by T Bone Burnett. It was released in January 1997 as the second single from the band's second studio album, Bringing Down the Horse (1996).
The song is notable for being the first single to reach No. 1 on all three of Billboards rock airplay charts: the Modern Rock Tracks chart, the Mainstream Rock Songs chart, and the Triple-A chart. "One Headlight" also stayed at No. 1 in Canada for five weeks. In 2000, the song was listed at No. 58 on Rolling Stone and MTV's list of the "100 Greatest Pop Songs of All Time",[3] and Billboard ranked it as No. 1 on its 2021 list of the "Greatest Adult Alternative Songs".[4] [5]
The song was written by lead vocalist Jakob Dylan, and is the second to be written during the recording of Bringing Down the Horse in Los Angeles. Dylan has stated that the song is about "the death of ideas".[6]
The music video was filmed in New York City in February 1997 and features the band performing.[7]
Although the song did not chart on the US Billboard Hot 100 due to the chart rules at the time, it was a significant radio hit. It spent five weeks at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart and a total of 70 weeks on the chart. In March 1997, it became the first song to top all three of Billboards rock airplay charts—the Modern Rock Tracks, Mainstream Rock Tracks, and Triple-A charts.[8] In Canada, the song reached No. 1 on the RPM 100 Hit Tracks chart, staying there for five weeks and was also the third-most-successful song of the year. Outside North America, the song reached No. 14 in Australia and became a moderate hit in Germany and the United Kingdom.
The song won two Grammy Awards at the 40th Annual Grammy Awards, Best Rock Song[9] and Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group.[10] The song was performed live at the 1997 MTV Video Music Awards with Bruce Springsteen, where the music video was nominated four times, including for Viewer's Choice.
| Year | Association | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Grammy Awards | Best Rock Song | |
| Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals |
Australian CD single; UK 7-inch and CD single[11] [12] [13]
European CD single[14]
| Chart (1997) | Position | |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[16] | 60 | |
| Canada Top Singles (RPM)[17] | 3 | |
| US Hot 100 Airplay (Billboard)[18] | 5 | |
| US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)[19] | 2 | |
| US Mainstream Rock Tracks (Billboard)[20] | 3 | |
| US Modern Rock Tracks (Billboard) | 6 | |
| US Top 40/Mainstream (Billboard)[21] | 8 | |
| US Triple-A (Billboard)[22] | 1 |
| Region | Date | Format(s) | Label(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | January 27, 1997 | Contemporary hit radio | Interscope | [24] |
| United Kingdom | June 30, 1997 | [25] | ||
| Japan | September 22, 1997 | CD | [26] |
