Combining hard beats and melodic hooks, pop-punk has a rich history of disturbing the charts. Despite this, it has taken decades for the likes of Green Day and Blink-182 to feel respected in the same ways that hard rock and metal bands have gotten their flowers. Punk rock always feels like it's disrupting the system, more than being a part of it.

All of which is to say, it feels great when a pop-punk song smashes into the charts or creates a moment that's considered a classic within its scene. Not every band has the talent or the timing to create a hit, let alone something that can keep the public's interest over time. In some cases, these bands become one hit wonders—artists who have a single success that overshadows the rest of their career. There are great bands on this list with incredible songs, but in of hit tracks, these artists were unable to repeat their success.

10 American Hi-Fi, "Flavor Of The Weak"

Album: American Hi-Fi (2001)

Rhyming "too stoned" with "Nintendo" really has no right to be this much fun. Former Veruca Salt drummer-turned-singer Stacy Jones quit his comfortable gig to start American Hi-Fi, a band that had lots of potential upon forming. "Flavor Of The Weak" is as good a debut single as possible, but things never quite reached those same heights again.

Opening with the kind of hard-hitting post-hardcore riff that Rival Schools would have been proud of, "Flavor Of The Weak" quickly morphs into a pop-punk masterpiece. It's got enough rough edge on its production to feed the desire for the "punk" part of the pop-punk equation, but the song's greatest weapon is its perfect vocal melodies. Usually, a band has a follow-up single that some fondly (this writer likes "Rascal King" more than The Mighty Mighty Bosstones' "The Impression That I Get"), but American Hi-Fi don't even really have that to fall back on, and so they are a true one-hit wonder.

9 Lustra, "Scotty Doesn't Know"

Album: Left For Dead (2004)

Infidelity never felt so fun: A tale of how much of a gullible butthole one's friend can be, Lustra's "Scotty Doesn't Know" is a morally bankrupt rager that is part of pop-punk folklore. The band would appear in the video for their one-hit song as the backing band, because, in truth, Lustra aren't even really the reason for this song's success.

Taken from the movie Eurotrip (that is not as good as Road Trip or American Pie, but is a fun relic of its time nevertheless), Matt Damon is sensational in the song's video as a shaven-headed college bully. Damon went to school with a few of the makers of Eurotrip, and in a moment of divine timing, was shooting The Brothers Grimm movie in Prague at the same time as the gross-out comedy movie. Sometimes, these things just work out, and the product of that set of divine circumstances is that Jason Bourne has a part in pop-punk's history. Classic.

8 The Only Ones, "Another Girl, Another Planet"

Album: The Only Ones (1978)

A bratty anthem with a slightly honky-tonk feel, The Only Ones' "Another Girl, Another Planet" is a timeless pop-punk rager. Chugging along with hack-and-slash power chords, The Only Ones' song was popularized by Blink-182 as a single release from a 2005 Greatest Hits collection. When played with the Californian pop-punk legends' unique vibe, the pop-punk potential of "Another Girl, Another Planet" is fully realized.

The Only Ones' song "Another Girl, Another Planet" was also covered by The Replacements, who included a live performance on 2019's The Complete Inconcerated Live (part of the Dead Man's Pop box set).

In a heartwarming turn of events, London's The Only Ones reformed in 2007 following the success of Blink's cover version. "Another Girl, Another Planet" is a song that feels in league with the likes of "My Sharona" by The Knack and "Just What I Needed" by The Cars when it comes to influencing the quirky nerd rock of Weezer and other pop-punk adjacent bands.

7 Fountains Of Wayne, "Stacy's Mom"

Welcome Interstate Managers (2003)

It's ok to blame the general population's bad taste for some bands being one hit wonders. Fountains Of Wayne wrote incredible power-pop songs, fueled by distortion and the punk rock influences that come more from Talking Heads, Television and the punkier moments of Elvis Costello & The Attractions. There are loads of great songs in their catalog, but Fountains Of Wayne are known for "Stacy's Mom."

"Stacy's Mom" is a song so perfect that it doesn't need explaining, but perhaps the song's legendary video made all the difference. Rachel Hunter riffing on the MILF motif made popular by Jennifer Coolidge, it's the perfect visual for just another one of Fountains Of Wayne's immaculately crafted pop songs. The outpouring of love for vocalist Adam Schlesinger after he ed away from Covid in 2020 was heartwarming to see, as it's the very least his immense talent deserved.

6 We The Kings, "Check Yes, Juliet"

Album: We The Kings (2007)

The concept of a one-hit wonder is capturing lightning in a bottle, and that definitely feels like the case on "Check Yes, Juliet" by We The Kings. Although the band has enjoyed other hits—"Sad Song (feat. Elena Coats)" comes to mind—this track is an anomaly for We The Kings. This is because "Check Yes, Juliet" stands alongside genre-defining iconic pop-punk songs.

The chorus of "Check Yes, Juliet" comes in with the power of a tidal wave. A band that usually trades in bog-standard, forgettable pop-punk cliches and dull musical landscapes just forgot all of that for 3 mins and 39 seconds of pop-punk brilliance. It's a phenomenal song, but as We The Kings approach their 28th year, it still feels like a fluke.

5 As It Is - Dial Tones

Never Happy, Ever After (2015)

Bringing it home for the new school, As It Is came roaring out of the blocks with "Dial Tones." Following on the success of Neck Deep and the UK having a burgeoning pop-punk scene for the first time, As It Is had all of the raw elements to be enormously successful with post-Blink 182 generations. As things would play out, their biggest asset may also have been their biggest obstacle.

Despite having the same breakdown sensibilities of New Found Glory and A Day To , and songwriting that felt earnest and authentic in a genre where that's in short supply, Patty Walters' huge YouTube success was always going to be contentious. The punk crowd is quick to call BS on something it sees as undeserving, and Walters bringing his own "influencer fanbase" to the band made the group an easy target. Still, As It Is deserves props for being a modern pop-punk band, proving the genre isn't dead.

4 Lit, "My Own Worst Enemy"

Album: A Place In The Sun (1999)

It's a great shame that Lit are considered one hit wonders; A Place In The Sun is a stunning album that conjures an infinite summer every time it is played. Their lounge wear and classic Americana vibe gave them a completely different look and feel to the other bands of their era, but more importantly, the songs that populated that album still hold up today. Despite this, Lit will always be the "My Own Worst Enemy" band.

A Place In The Sun is a stunning album that conjures an infinite summer every time it is played.

As far as hit singles go, "My Own Worst Enemy" has it all: A riff that's catchier than the common cold, a quirky yet lovable video, and some of the most singable lines of the 1990s. A full 25 years after its release, "My Own Worst Enemy" remains an endlessly relatable tale of stumbling home drunk and waking up to the consequences the next morning—and one of the most fun pop-punk songs of all time.

3 Hit The Lights, "Bodybag"

Album: This Is A Stick-Up...Don't Make It A Murder (2006)

Displaying absolutely zero amount of chill, "Bodybag" is a great pop-punk song teeming with chaotic, aggressive energy. It has literally every element that makes a great pop-punk song, delivered at the highest level possible. It has a chorus from the gods, fun and satisfying riffs, and pitch-perfect gang vocals. The changes of pace are satisfying and increase the fun factor, while the vocal harmonies all feel as gratifying as scratching an irritable itch.

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It's a real shame Hit The Lights never repeated the success of "Bodybag." They were a pretty enjoyable band on the whole, but they didn't ever get anywhere near replicating the brilliance of this one song.

2 Generation X, "Dancing With Myself"

Kiss Me Deadly (1981)

Before he was crashing white weddings and disturbing the world with a rebel yell, Generation X frontman Billy Idol had success with "Dancing With Myself." Generation X found themselves lumped in with New Wave (because punk was a dirty word by the early '80s), but their sound was way closer to punk rock. Songs like "Kiss Me Deadly" and "Ready, Steady, Go" are essentially pop-influenced punk rock songs, all of which explains why they're here on this list.

Outside of The Ramones back catalog, no song sounds more like the pop-punk that Green Day popularized in the mid-'90s and beyond than "Dancing With Myself." It is a snotty outsider anthem, curling its lip and sticking two fingers up at the world in a flurry of power chords and a snarling repeated vocal refrain. "Dancing With Myself" is one of the most covered songs by popular pop-punk bands, and therefore feels like your favorite pop-punk band's favorite pop-punk song.

1 SR-71, "Right Now"

Now You See Inside (2000)

Owning a few months of the year 2000, SR-71 are one of pop-punk's ultimate one-hit wonders. Sinking without a trace after this Y2K banger, "Right Now" had so much obnoxious energy that it was used in the holy trinity of Harold And Kumar Go To White Castle, Old School and Dude, Where's My Car?

The appeal of "Right Now" is obvious. It's simple to the point of being basic, but that principle didn't stop The Ramones being one of the best bands ever—and it doesn't stop Right Now punching its ticket into the pop-punk Hall Of Fame.