77 (60) U2 (2,446,000) 1987 2.2175

 

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01595/u2_1595752c.jpg

 

Not the biggest Irish act on this survey, U2 would undoubtedly be higher if we took into account concert revenue but I can only do what I can, so here are U2 who, it would seem, hit their height roughly 30 years ago. “The Joshua Tree” was the era when the band were massive, it opened with a sale of 235,000 which was (at the time) the second highest opening tally ever, it was also their first transatlantic No 1, gave them two US chart toppers and solidified their new found status as stadium fillers which they can still do to this day.

 

ALSO BIG IN: 1988

 

76 (44) LUCIANO PAVAROTTI (2,741,000) 1990 BIGGEST ACT 2.2180

 

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01566/pavarotti_1566996c.jpg

 

Given a guess who sold more records in 1990 than anyone else I’m pretty sure not many would have plumped for Luciano Pavarotti- yet it’s true. The Italian Tenor was of course a famous and renowned name within the classical field but it was the BBC decision to use his version of “Nessun Dorma” for the World Cup in Italy in 1990 that gave him his first hit on the charts and introduced the “Three Tenors” brand which gave him another No 1 album in a year when he shifted 2.3 million albums.

 

75 (133) ULTRAVOX (1,828,000) 1981 2.2372

 

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01378/vox1_1378458c.jpg

 

Ultravox and 1981 conjures up just one thought- Midge Ure’s outrage at being denied No 1 by Joe Dolce and “Shaddap You Face” but they actually had 5 top 40 singles during the year and two top 5 albums. The group were formed back in 1974 but were in chart exile until Midge Ure joined in 1979 and steered them to commercial success before he left to go Solo in the late 80s.

 

74 (34) ONE DIRECTION (2,992,000) 2013 2.2451

 

http://assets6.capitalfm.com/2013/30/one-direction-gq-magazine-2013--1375176938-large-article-0.jpg

 

Formed from rejected soloists in the “X Factor” show of 2010, the group quickly established themselves among the teenage female audience and scored three No 1 singles and two chart topping albums before 2013. All that led the group to sing the Comic Relief single for 2013 which was another No 1 single which was followed by a couple of near miss No 2 singles and a third album “Midnight Memories” which became the biggest selling album of 2013 passing Emeli Sande in the final week of the year!

 

ALSO BIG IN: 2012

 

73 (81) LIONEL RICHIE (2,238,000) 1984 2.2866

 

http://files.clonewb.webnode.pt/200001156-c92e8ca287/250396~Lionel-Ritchie-Posters.jpg

 

Following the lead set by “Thriller” Lionel Richie took 5 singles from his “Can’t Slow Down” album, all of them top 20 singles. Fuelled by tightly choreographed videos the album became the best seller of 1984 and established Richie as a solo star for the remainder of the decade and validating his departure from the commodores. “Hello” became a transatlantic chart topper despite its rather cringeworthy promo video.

 

72 (63) PHIL COLLINS (2,408,000) 1985 2.2979

 

http://www.halleyandpeter.nl/afb/pc85.jpg

 

BEST SELLING YEAR: 1990

 

Breaking free, or should I say running concurrently, Collins managed a hugely successful solo career whilst also being a full time member of Genesis in the 80s. He was the height of his selling power in 1990 and the “But Seriously” era but overall 1985 fares better, a year in which he sold 1.3 million albums plus a No 1 single in tandem with Philip Bailey on “Easy Lover”.

 

ALSO BIG IN: 1989

 

71 (110) KIDS FROM FAME (1,975,000) 1982 2.3258

 

http://i.ytimg.com/vi/pTM1Mo6IVR4/hqdefault.jpg

 

Consider them, if you will, a Glee of their time, based on the film “Fame” they starred in the TV spin off which was picked up by the BBC and moved to a Saturday afternoon slot which saw the popularity of the show explode to be something of a phenomenon. The group scored a couple of top ten hits and held the No 1 spot on the album charts for 12 weeks in 1982 but their fame (sorry) soon ran out when 1983 came round though the fourth season did feature a young Janet Jackson.

 

70 (29) GLEE CAST (3,129,000) 2010 2.3302

 

http://cdn03.cdn.justjared.com/wp-content/uploads/headlines/2010/01/glee-cast-2010-peoples-choice-awards.jpg

 

And here’s the 2010’s version. The concept was simple, record a TV series following the fortunes of a choir who competes on a circuit with other schools and then release to iTunes the songs performed on the show that evening. When the show was bought by E4/C4 for the UK the inevitable onslaught of entries happened and the show charted 46 singles in just over 6 months (the first season) with their version of “Don’t Stop Believin” selling over half a million, not to mention the 1.1 million albums they also shifted.

 

69 (76) S CLUB 7 (2,283,000) 2001 2.3346

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/media/images/39123000/jpg/_39123671_sclub.01.01.jpg

 

BEST SELLING YEAR: 2000

 

Allegedly a concept that came into Simon Fuller’s mind the day the Spice Girls fired him as manager, S Club 7 managed 11 straight top 3 singles including 4 chart toppers. By 2001 they were chart regulars with 6 top 3 singles to their credit by the time the year opened, but their biggest hit “Don’t Stop Movin’” was round the corner and they topped up with a second Children in Need single which also went all the way. Though their sales were slightly down on 2000 they still outpaced the general market decline and in all fairness “Don’t Stop Movin” is still considered their finest moment in the eyes of many.

 

ALSO BIG IN: 1999

 

Fame and Glee, oh my... :lol:

 

Yay, S Club! :cheer: They also had a TV show that aired in the US too. :lol:

68 (108) BROS (2,003,000) 1988 2.3554

 

http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Music/Pix/pictures/2010/10/13/1286983894155/Bros-in-1988-006.jpg

 

Perhaps one of the more interested stories in pop, taken from obscurity and remodelled as an Aryan ideal by Tom Watkins (manager for Pet Shop Boys and later East 17) Bros were THE sensation of 1988 and quickly acquired a feverish devoted fanbase who lapped up everything they did seeing them score 5 top 5 hits including a No 1 (“I Owe You Nothing”) and an album “Push” which almost sold a million as the group became a byword for ostentatious spending. By 1991 the band had split and were near bankruptcy, they still serve as a warning of the riches to rags story that naivety in the business can bring.

 

67 (144) TONY CHRISTIE (1,760,000) 2005 2.3677

 

http://www.expressandstar.com/wpmvc/wp/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/2005_Tony_Christie.jpg

 

Prior to 2005 Tony Christie was best known for his 1971 track “I Did What I Did For Maria” (No 2) but of course he owes a huge debt of gratitude to Peter Kay who used his track “Is This The Way To Amarillo?” on his “Phoenix Nights” TV series which raised the songs profile. Three years later he again chose the song to promote Comic Relief with Christie’s consent and it sold a million becoming the best selling single of the year, a collection of Christie’s work “Definitive Collection” also hit the top though the revival ended there.

 

66. (90) ENRIQUE IGLESIAS (2,190,000) 2002 2.3734

 

http://api.ning.com/files/LcTFS6cJZr6rukBxwP4bUeZZaecoxxhvMqBRN51UiglHvSHdXNlgIP10liTiMSITZzuDGTh2VcePQ-jVrqhf5SvBEGLSdalR/0102_enrique_iglesias_n1.jpg

 

Recording only in Spanish between 1995 and 1999 Julio’s son was already a major star in the Spanish speaking world before he made the transition to English with the song “Bailamos” in 1999 which topped the US charts and made the top 5 here. Then nothing much for three years but in 2002 “Hero” gained popularity after 9/11 and went top 3 before its UK release, when we finally got the song it spent a month at No 1 and launched his “Escape” album which followed suit and was, until the final weeks of the year the best selling album of the year. He’s still a relatively big popstar if a bit too overly reliant on guest rappers these days

 

Wouldn't

Kylie Minogue

be THE sensation of 1988?

 

Oh, and I realise that every time you do one of your fantastic threads you're putting yourself out there to be shot down all the time by chart and music fanatics, so I apologise for that question.

 

:blush:

Edited June 12, 201510 yr by AntoineTTe

"Amarillo" was the last honest million seller.

Edited June 12, 201510 yr by Broken Heart

How do you mean honest? It was a charity single with huge exposure.

Wouldn't

Kylie Minogue

be THE sensation of 1988?

 

Oh, and I realise that every time you do one of your fantastic threads you're putting yourself out there to be shot down all the time by chart and music fanatics, so I apologise for that question.

 

:blush:

It's quite alright! :D

 

I think press wise Bros were, and certainly hype wise, though of course they were outsold by one act :dance:

:thumbs up:

So weird to think Crap like Bros came along only 8 yrs after the current TOTPs 1980s with all the classic artists on there - it looked a different time!

How do you mean honest?

 

Only CD sales, without downloads and streaming.

Edited June 13, 201510 yr by Broken Heart