SOURCE

 

Just three episodes into their second season, the cast of Glee have smashed one of the Beatles' most enduring musical records, chalking up the most top 100 US hits by a non-solo act. As of this week, the fictional high-school glee club has amassed 75 top 100 singles, trouncing the Beatles' record of 71.

 

Glee came in through the bathroom window. While many bands strive for years, trying to grace the Billboard Hot 100 with another original single, the cast of the US TV show simply recorded dozens of covers. They began flooding the market in September 2009, and by the time we were counting down the seconds to 2010, Glee's cast had already scored 25 hits in the top 100, coming second to the Beatles who had 31 hits in 1964.

 

But the Fab Four weren't able to hold Glee off for long. Buoyed by a blockbuster new episode starring Britney Spears, the series saw six new singles chart this week. Glee easily pipped the Beatles for the Hot 100 record. The only artists ahead of them now are solo acts – James Brown, who has 91 top 100 singles, and Elvis Presley, who has 108. Ironically, the cast of Glee owes some of their success to John, Paul, George and Ringo: among their hits are covers of Hello Goodbye and I Want to Hold Your Hand.

 

The Glee cast has sold an impressive 2.8m albums and 11.5m downloads, according to sales source Nielsen Soundscan. Paul McCartney has even expressed interest in making a cameo.

Edited October 8, 201014 yr by Doctor Blind

Doesn't really count to be honest...

 

The vast majority (if not all) of those Beatles songs were proper fully promoted singles. Glee just took the easy way and manipulated people through a TV series.

 

Manipulating people into buying songs they otherwise wouldn't via TV isn't a bad thing, it increases sales etc. and is a very effective method of promotion but Glee completely cheat the system with the sheer volume of their releases.

Edited October 8, 201014 yr by ~ braysephone ~

The Glee beating The Beatles hype is laughable.

 

1) Of the 75 'Glee' Billboard Hot 100 Hits, only 14 spent more than 1 Week on the Chart.

 

2) Only 1 made the Top 10 - their Cover of Journey's 'Don't Stop Believin' - No.4.

 

3) Of The Beatles 71 Hot 100 Hits, 34 made the Top 10.

 

4) 20 of The Beatles Hits were No.1's.

 

But - just because 'Glee' has had 75 Hot 100 Hits, to The Beatles 71,

the USA & UK Media is running the story as if 'Glee' is bigger than

The Beatles!

 

Indeed, that is what Gordon 'Misnomer' Smart, said in today's, 'The Sun':,

 

"THERE are few acts in history bigger than THE BEATLES - but the cast of GLEE

now officially are".

 

LINK:,

 

http://smurl.name/49re

Edited October 8, 201014 yr by zeus555

We talk a lot in this forum about how happy/relieved we are now that the Hot 100 once again incorporates sales in a meaningful way. And I still think that is best.

 

But this Glee thing is precisely what the proponents for airplay claim they are trying to prevent. They may have a point here, I suppose.

 

Anyway Glee isn't the worst chart manipulation I've ever seen. How about re-releasing an Elvis song every week? :P

If anything, I think some Glee tracks suffered due to lack of promotion. I mean, they get very little airplay and video play, whilst people like Lady Gaga and Eminem are out of control.

 

The Glee Cast's tracks get played once in an episode, and that's like 90% of the promotion it could ever dream of getting.

The age of the download. :w00t: Now imagine what The Beatles record might've been if downloads had been the dominant market in the early 60s and that Apple allowed all Beatles songs to be available to download from iTunes.

 

In fact, if this ever happens then The Beatles could reclaim their record in one week. :lol: