Voting Station

Johnny Wakelin

Please vote to return to collections.

Vocalist

The Resume

    (1939- )
    Born in Brighton, England, United Kingdom
    Recorded the singles 'Black Superman -- Muhammad Ali' (1975) and 'In Zaire' (1976)

Why he might be annoying:

    He was a one-hit wonder in the US, a two-hit wonder in Britain.
    Both hits were novelties cashing in on the Ali-Foreman 'Rumble in the Jungle.'
    His song inspired DC Comic's goofy 'Superman vs. Muhammad Ali' (1978).
    After a decade without hits, he returned to boxing, recording a song about British heavyweight champ Frank Bruno. It flopped.

Why he might not be annoying:

    He developed his singing talent entertaining fellow patients while hospitalized for three years in his teens following a serious motorcycle accident.
    He was discovered by the same producer who had recorded 'Kung Fu Fighting' with Carl Douglas -- a man who clearly knew how to turn a reggae-inflected novelty into a hit.
    He said he latched onto the 'Rumble in the Jungle' theme because 'I needed something to write about that would catch people's eye. Something which would almost guarantee it being a hit.'
    'Black Superman' spent six months on the Billboard singles chart (peaking at #21), went Top 10 in England and was a #1 hit in Australia.

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 17 Votes: 58.82% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 4 Votes: 75.00% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 2 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 6 Votes: 83.33% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 2 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 4 Votes: 75.00% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 14 Votes: 57.14% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 62 Votes: 67.74% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 13 Votes: 69.23% Annoying