S/D artists whose entire known output is a single track on a compilation album

remember, if it was released as a single, it doesn't count - must be a single track from a compilation

This one was the subject of an extensive close read on the internet radio show Time Crisis:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rXN8vEELBI

that's exactly what I'm talking about, thank you!

wait, no, they have multiple other singles. disqualified, sorry.

gahh ignore me, Discogs is stupid

def not the same band as what they list

The New Psychenauts' "Specialization" appeared on Twin/Tone Records' Big Hits of Mid-America Vol. III. I saw this wacky Minneapolis band a lot in the new wave era. "Bonzo Dog Band meet the Mothers of Invention" gets you in the ballpark.

https://peterschimke.com/the-new-psychenauts/

Nice!

I have this post-industrial cassette culture release that has a bunch of artists like this, including Brain Wot's "Gnong"

https://www.discogs.com/release/1423619-Various-Intrendent-Fansette

https://www.discogs.com/artist/1192221-Brain-Wot

I bet there are a bunch of punk comps with stuff like this, i.e. the Wasp Women

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmdA05LrfLU

This is not really in the spirit of the thread, but I'm also thinking of '90s supergroups that only existed for a track on a soundtrack or tribute album, like

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AF9U9vpJSp4

The band Bullring Brummies featured Black Sabbath founding members Geezer Butler and Bill Ward, along with vocalist Rob Halford, Obsessed/Saint Vitus guitarist Scott "Wino" Weinrich, and Fight guitarist Brian Tilse. Their cover of "The Wizard" on the first album is their only official recording, with the musicians coming together specifically for this recording.

Well obviously Mick Smiley - Magic

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hK2EUIYiWXU

every artist but two on this 1979 Devo tribute album afaict (Bakersfield Boogie Boys and the View both released EPs)

https://dangerousminds.net/content/uploads/images/made/content/uploads/images/devotees120214_465_460_int.jpg

https://dangerousminds.net/content/uploads/images/made/content/uploads/images/devotees2120214_465_471_int.jpg

nice!

imagine there will be a lot of punk bands on this list. scratching my head trying to recall some of these.

great idea for a thread btw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uyaotTacLjw

Post mortem - Play

(most of the artists on this 1985 compilation don't seem to have released anything else, with the notable exception of the La's. I'd also recommend Fingerless gloves by Cassio Viletone, Bad night at Malibu Beach by the Happy Gauls and Terry Fields And A Pint Of Guinness by The Romulan Cloaking Device. Don't Cry Darling (Daddy Had To Drown The Cat) by Old Ma Cuxon And The Soapchoppers is good as well, but they put out a single.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDtaaEtaItw

The Academy Of Fine Popular Music - The Morning After

Don't know if this strictly counts, but before forming Fairground Attraction, Eddi Reader and Mark Nevin recorded two tracks as the Academy Of Fine Popular Music which appeared on compilations put out by the Compact Organization.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlZv2cpLReM

Not exactly what you're talking about but this was a track on the East Coast Family Vol. 1 that featured the only recorded appearances of some of Michael Bivens' signees (like Whytgize)

Juicy Bananas! (Sy Richardson reciting his dialogue from Repo Man over a funk backing track.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dYwhINZgVeU

love mysterious idm/ambient/electronica tracks by one-and-doners

https://www.discogs.com/release/1697-Various-Aurora

who is melf?? who is Benjamin? gorgeous ambient nuggets

there's a ton of german examples of this. here's one that springs to mind - cosmic greatness

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTiFS81Hfb8

This also doesn't quite count since the track was part of a 4 song EP (and that's all they ever released), but this was on a Clicks & Cuts comp and I was obsessed with it at the time

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wUXVXrdmuVM

band called Ellagaru had two tracks on a 1984 compilation A Secret Liverpool, no other releases

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-EAaLN_SG9A

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lt-ioDGTfms

do those ilm comps count?

The only one of these I can think of is "Talk Talk Talk Talk" by the Reaction (Mark Hollis's pre-Talk Talk band) that appeared on an indie compilation called Streets, but that still doesn't count because they also released a single called "I Can't Resist" before breaking up.

https://tomsmithksv.bandcamp.com/track/c01-silk-purse-nowhere-i-go

(2/3 of Sightings)

I wonder if a lot of those one-off ambient artists are better known people working under a pseudonym?

one of the album tracks on the first so so def bass all stars compilation (the one with "my boo" on it) is by an artist called t'baby (not to be confused with the legendary "it's so cold in the d" t-baby) who afaict never released anything else. all three of those compilations are uneven to a degree and yeah it's not exactly a "my boo"-tier classic but i always enjoyed it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1nfsl9BAzQ

the producer, danny d, and the guy doing the hype vocals, big ace, both have other releases, so idk if it totally fits but yeah

nah that totally fits, it's OK if the artists did other stuff (that Moet The Poet track I posted to start features members of Poison Girls and Ear Trumpet)

https://www.discogs.com/artist/329586-The-Organs-Of-Site & https://www.discogs.com/artist/329584-Richard-Steele

^^ love that record, excellent examples

Just guessing, but "Isgodaman" by Arthur Comics? (Streets)?

(The name of the band takes a question mark.)

ooh that's a good example of a pseudonym band! it was The Sniveling Shots but they were forced to use another name:
https://www.discogs.com/artist/536730-Arthur-Comix
https://www.discogs.com/artist/684538-The-Snivelling-Shits

lol sorry typos

I’m sure they at least had a b-side but I always loved The Hatfields “Yes I Do” from the first Back from the Crypt Cd comp.

here's one! probably multiple bands on this comp would qualify

https://www.discogs.com/artist/279363-The-Clones-2

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0jl292aPJg

This cover of Green Day's When I Come Around was always a classic between me and my friends:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTsS1V0R6xQ

oh here's a good one

Bent Nails

Mike Luzader (drums), Byron Stamatatos (bass), Zach Georgopoulos (guitar) and Frank Portman (vocals)

Punk band from Millbrae, California that formed around 1979, while the band members were in High School. Frank and Byron would later go on to start The Mr. T Experience in Berkeley.

The only released Bent Nails track was "No More Riots" on the MRR "Not So Quiet On The Western Front" compilation.