The One and Only (song)

This article is about the Chesney Hawkes song. For other songs, see The One and Only#Songs.

"The One and Only" is a song by the English singer and actor Chesney Hawkes. Written by Nik Kershaw, the single was released by Chrysalis Records in January 1991 as Hawkes' debut single. Produced by Kershaw and Alan Shacklock, and recorded and mixed by Gareth Cousins, the song was featured in the comedy-drama film Buddy's Song (1991), which starred Hawkes as the eponymous Buddy and Roger Daltrey as his father. The film performed moderately well at the UK box office, but the song was a hit in that country's music charts, spending five weeks at number one on the UK Singles Chart in March and April 1991. Kershaw's influence can also be heard throughout the track not only in guitar style, but in the backing vocals on the intro and choruses, with Hawkes singing the verses.

"The One and Only"
Single by Chesney Hawkes
from the album Buddy's Song
B-side	"It's Gonna Be Tough" "Say Mama"
Released	28 January 1991 (1991-01-28)[1][2]
Genre	Power pop
Length	3:42
Label	Chrysalis
Songwriter(s)	Nik Kershaw
Producer(s)	Alan Shacklock Nik Kershaw
Chesney Hawkes singles chronology
"The One and Only" (1991) "I'm a Man Not a Boy" (1991)
Music video
"The One and Only" on YouTube

In the United States, "The One and Only" was featured in the romantic comedy film Doc Hollywood (1991).^[3] The single proved to be Hawkes' only hit in the US, peaking at number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in November 1991.

Critical reception

Larry Flick from Billboard commented, "Sugar-coated pop rocker by U.K. male vocalist, who was discovered by Roger Daltrey, is beginning to duplicate previous European chart success. Anthemic lyrics and a heartfelt performance should help push this over the top with top 40 punters."^[4] Pan-European magazine Music & Media wrote, "Written by Nick Kershaw [sic] in his own, unmistakeable style. Pretty soon this young man will be a familiar face, competing directly with the likes of Rick Astley."^[5]

Music videos

Three music videos for the single were produced. The first video is a direct tie-in to Buddy's Song. A girl (played by Saffron) and her friend (played by Lucy Alexander) go to a cinema to watch the film, where Buddy Clark (Hawkes) jumps out of the screen and beckons the girl to follow him. They go into a storage room, but Buddy is then pulled back into the screen; he escapes again, only to have his father Terry (Roger Daltrey) come out of the screen and chase after them. Finally, at the end of the video, Buddy reaches out of the screen to the girl, who takes his hands and goes into the screen with him. They kiss whilst being watched by the girl's shocked friend.

The second video is a live concert performance of the song intercut with black-and-white footage of Hawkes' interaction with his fans. This version was released in international markets where Buddy's Song was not released. The third video is an alternate edit of the second version featuring scenes from Doc Hollywood. All three videos are included in the DVD of the career-spanning box set The Complete Picture: The Albums 1991–2012 (2022).^[6]

Track listings

UK CD single

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"The One and Only"	Nik Kershaw	3:42
2.	"It's Gonna Be Tough" (film version)	Nigel Hinton John Wesley Harding	2:29
3.	"Say Mama"	Johnny Meeks Johnny Earl	2:09
4.	"It's Gonna Be Tough"	Hinton Harding	2:50
Total length:			11:10

US cassette single

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"The One and Only"	Kershaw	3:42
2.	"The One and Only" (US remix)	Kershaw	3:42
3.	"It's Gonna Be Tough"	Hinton Harding	2:27

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1991–1992) Peak position Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[7] 1 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[8] 3 Canada Top Singles (RPM)[9] 61 Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM)[10] 37 Denmark (IFPI)[11] 6 Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[12] 5 Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[13] 2 Germany (GfK)[14] 8 Ireland (IRMA)[15] 3 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[16] 11 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[17] 9 Norway (VG-lista)[18] 5 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[19] 2 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[20] 4 UK Singles (OCC)[21] 1 US Billboard Hot 100[22] 10 Chart (2016) Peak position Poland (Polish Airplay Top 100)[23] 75

Year-end charts Chart (1991) Position Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[24] 20 Belgium (Ultratop)[25] 29 Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[26] 19 Europe (European Hit Radio)[27] 8 Germany (Media Control)[28] 34 Sweden (Topplistan)[29] 9 UK Singles (OCC)[30] 7 US Billboard Hot 100[31] 93

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Sweden (GLF)[32]	Gold	25,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[33]	Silver	200,000‡
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

2022 Nik Kershaw remix

"The One and Only (2022 Nik Kershaw remix)"
Single by Chesney Hawkes
Released	4 March 2022
Genre	Pop rock
Length	4:25
Label	Chrysalis
Songwriter(s)	Nik Kershaw
Producer(s)	Nik Kershaw Alan Shacklock
Music video
"The One and Only (Nik Kershaw 2022 Remix)" on YouTube

"The One and Only" was remixed by writer Nik Kershaw, performed by Hawkes and released by Chrysalis Records solely on downloads on 4 March 2022 as a non-album single.^[34][35] It is also included as a bonus track on the Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon Music releases of the compilation The Complete Picture: The Albums 1991–2012.^[36][37][38]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"The One and Only" (2022 Nik Kershaw remix)	Nik Kershaw	4:25

Use in other media

• Director Duncan Jones featured the song in some of his films. In Moon (2009) it is used as the wake-up alarm for the main character. In the film Source Code (2011), the song appears as the cellphone ringtone of the character of Christina. It is heard as background music for a game being played in Jones' film Mute (2018). A deleted scene in Warcraft (2016) would have featured Hawkes himself as a bard playing it on a lute.^[39]
• In 2014, Hawkes performed the song with a flashmob dance group in the streets of Manchester to promote MyMate Loans.^[40] In addition, he recorded a version of the song with different lyrics for a MyMate commercial.^[41]
• Hawkes sang the song at halftime at the 2022 FIFA World Cup group stage match between Wales and England.

See also

• List of European number-one airplay songs of the 1990s