Chi Coltrane: Thunder And Lightning

Wednesday’s One Hit Wonder is from Racine, Wisconsin’s own Chi Coltrane. One of seven children born of a German father and Canadian mother, Chi (pronounced “shy”) is still performing music and touring today. Her best known hit record released in January 1972 was “Thunder and Lightning.” It was a powerful tune that almost never made it to the charts as it took until November of 72 to peak at #17 on the Hot 100.

Her only hit features Chi's strong vocals and pounding piano. This is such a good song I can’t understand why Columbia Records didn’t do more with promoting her music to the masses. While the A&R department at CBS had the initiative to sign her in the first place, the promotion staff dropped the ball in regard to her hit potential. While radio did give a few spins to “Go Like Elijah” (which you may hear some day in the near future), “Thunder and Lightning” was sadly her only American hit.