1983: Culture Club at #1

Full article linked above.

 

It was revealed recently that 'Karma Chameleon's total sales stand at 1,623,347 - made of 1,528,498 single sales and 94,849 SES. The article also reveals the song sold 955k in 1983 alone.

 

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I don't know why the OCC keeps trying to come up with figures from pre 1994- they always make a hash job of it. "Karma Chameleon" sold over 1.3 million in the 80s- it was mentioned at the time (1989) that the top 11 from the decade had topped the million mark and it had outsold "Careless Whisper", "The Power Of Love" to rank No 6 on the list produced by Gallup in 1989. :(

2007: Sugababes score their final #1 with 'About You Now'

 

Jokes about Sugababes' revolving door line-up aside, the trio in whatever incarnation they were in always delivered a killer album lead single, didn't they?

 

Overload (2000), Freak Like Me (2002), Hole In The Head (2003) and Push The Button (2005) were all notable pop moments of the early Noughties, with three out of four topping the Official Singles Chart.

 

When it came to their fifth album header, it seemed the only option was to go big, teaming up with hit songwriter Cathy Dennis (Britney Spears, Kylie Minogue) on About You Now; a slick piece of electro-rock-pop that presented the group in a new light. Fitting, given that they were in the early stages of their third lineup change after the recent appointment of Amelle Berrabah to replace Mutya Buena.

 

The track was an instant hit, charging to Number 1 on the Official Singles Chart on its second week when it was made available to download, selling 34,000. It had debuted at 35 the previous week on physical sales alone, common practice at the time for single releases during the handover in formats.

 

About You Now spent four weeks at the summit, something no other girl group has managed to achieve since, though Little Mix have come close on two occasions: Black Magic and Shout Out To My Ex have both managed three weeks at the top spot.

 

To date, the song has notched up 626,000 combined sales, split between 470,000 downloads and 7.9 million streams. And it seems plenty of you are still enjoying it - last week it was downloaded 91 times in the UK and played 172,215 times on streaming services.

 

About You Now was to be the last Number 1 for Sugababes - the closest they would come again was in 2009 with (the distinctly less timeless) Get Sexy, the group's final single with the only founding member left Keisha Buchanan, who was ousted in time for their next single, About A Girl. Sigh.

 

Elsewhere in the Top 40 Shayne Ward landed the week's highest new entry with double (bop) A-side No U Hang Up/If That's OK With You, Ida Corr and Fedde Le Grand's electro-house banger Let Me Think About It zoomed to Number 5 from 64 the previous week, and Mark Ronson and Amy Winehouse's cover of Valerie was in the middle of its chart ascent, up from 41 to 12 (it would eventually peak at 2).

 

For me the highlight of the chart is 'Let Me Think About It' smashing right into the top five, and of course eventually peaking at #2!

 

And of course 'The Ladies Bras' (lol) making #27 and becoming the shortest song to ever chart at 36 seconds, surprised the OCC didn't pick up on that fact in their article!

 

Full top 75 W/E 06/10/07

 

1 (35) About You Now (By Sugababes) 2w

2 (NEW) No U Hang Up / If That's OK With You (By Shayne Ward) 1w

3 (2) Ayo Technology (By 50 Cent Featuring Justin Timberlake) 7w

4 (1) Beautiful Girls (By Sean Kingston) 6w

5 (64) Let Me Think About It (By Ida Corr vs Fedde Le Grand) 2w

6 (3) Hey There Delilah (By Plain White T's) 11w

7 (4) Stronger (By Kanye West) 8w

8 (5) 1973 (By James Blunt) 5w

9 (7) She's So Lovely (By Scouting For Girls) 5w

10 (9) Shut Up And Drive (By Rihanna) 11w

11 (8) The Pretender (By Foo Fighters) 7w

12 (41) Valerie (By Mark Ronson Featuring Amy Winehouse) 12w

13 (10) The Way I Are (By Timbaland Featuring Keri Hilson And D.O.E.) 15w

14 (13) Young Folks (Re-Issue) (By Peter Bjorn And John Featuring Victoria Bergsman) 8w

15 (NEW) Hard Headed Woman (Re-Issue) (By Elvis Presley) 1w

16 (40) 1234 (By Feist) 5w

17 (48) Second, Minute Or Hour (By Jack Penate) 2w

18 (15) Big Girls Don't Cry (Personal) (By Fergie) 16w

19 (11) With Every Heartbeat (By Robyn With Kleerup) 9w

20 (58) Tired Of Being Sorry (By Enrique Iglesias) 5w

21 (12) Sexy! No No No (By Girls Aloud) 5w

22 (17) In The Air Tonight (Re-Issue) (By Phil Collins) 14w

23 (NEW) If You Were A Sailboat (By Katie Melua) 1w

24 (6) Delivery (By Babyshambles) 2w

25 (19) Foundations (By Kate Nash) 15w

26 (98) You Are The Music In Me (By Gabriella And Troy) 7w

27 (RE) The Ladies' Bras (By Jonny Trunk And Wisbey) 2w

28 (NEW) The Kill (Rebirth) (By 30 Seconds To Mars) 1w

29 (31) Sorry Blame It On Me (By Akon) 4w

30 (25) Umbrella (By Rihanna Featuring Jay-Z) 20w

31 (21) Clothes Off!! (By Gym Class Heroes) 8w

32 (22) This Is The Girl (By Kano Featuring Craig David) 6w

33 (20) Don't Mess With My Man (By Booty Luv) 4w

34 (NEW) Do It Well (By Jennifer Lopez) 1w

35 (26) Tears Dry On Their Own (By Amy Winehouse) 11w

36 (28) Worried About Ray (By Hoosiers) 15w

37 (24) Love Is Gone (By David Guetta Featuring Chris Willis) 10w

38 (55) I Got It From My Mama (By will.i.am) 4w

39 (30) Dream Catch Me (By Newton Faulkner) 10w

40 (161) Gotta Go My Own Way (By Gabriella And Troy) 2w

 

41 (NEW) It Means Nothing (By Stereophonics) 1w

42 (111) Why (By Gabrielle) 2w

43 (18) You're Not Alone (By Enemy) 4w

44 (23) The Creeps (Get On The Dancefloor) (By Freaks) 9w

45 (NEW) No More Running Away (By Air Traffic) 1w

46 (NEW) Love Will Tear Us Apart (3rd Re-Issue) (By Joy Division) 1w

47 (57) Mouthwash (By Kate Nash) 7w

48 (NEW) Nothin' Better To Do (By LeAnn Rimes) 1w

49 (16) Illegal Attacks (By Ian Brown And Sinead O'Connor) 2w

50 (37) I Want Your Soul (By Armand Van Helden) 9w

51 (NEW) Most Likely You Go Your Way (And I'll Go Mine) (By Bob Dylan) 1w

52 (45) Good Life (By Kanye West Featuring T-Pain) 3w

53 (39) Hold On (By KT Tunstall) 7w

54 (33) Suburban Knights (By Hard-Fi) 7w

55 (27) Do You Know? (The Ping Pong Song) (By Enrique Iglesias) 18w

56 (38) He Said He Loved Me (By Reverend And The Makers) 5w

57 (113) I Don't Dance (By Corbin Bleu And Lucas Grabeel) 4w

58 (NEW) Dark Road (By Annie Lennox) 1w

59 (NEW) Everyday (By Cast Of 'High School Musical 2') 1w

60 (42) Big Girl (You Are Beautiful) (By Mika) 17w

61 (50) Take Her Back (By Pigeon Detectives) 9w

62 (53) How To Save A Life (By Fray) 38w

63 (34) Moving On (By Taio Cruz) 4w

64 (NEW) Fabulous (By Ryan And Sharpay) 1w

65 (NEW) Bet On It (By Troy) 1w

66 (NEW) One For The Bristol City (By Wurzels) 1w

67 (36) The Salmon Dance (By Chemical Brothers) 8w

68 (43) You Don't Know What Love Is (By White Stripes) 4w

69 (47) Wake Up Call (By Maroon 5) 8w

70 (59) When You're Gone (By Avril Lavigne) 19w

71 (68) We Don't Have To Take Our Clothes Off (By Lil' Chris) 2w

72 (176) Bubbly (By Colbie Caillat) 2w

73 (NEW) Hip Hop Police (By Chamillionaire Featuring Slick Rick) 1w

74 (NEW) Two Left Feet (Re-Issue) (By Holloways) 1w

75 (67) Chasing Cars (By Snow Patrol) 56w

(text source: UKMix)

Buzzjack reacts to Sugababes climbing to #1:

 

YAY for the Sugababes!

 

Only the 4th song ever to get to #1 on downloads alone:

 

1st = Gnarls Barkley - Crazy

2nd = Mika - Grace Kelly

3rd = Rihanna - Umbrella

 

^_^

Sugas :cheer: :cheer: :cheer:

hmm im still not mad on this song

YES! That makes 6 number ones for the Sugababes!

I have to say this is IMO, this Sugababes track ranks within their worse tracks ever purely because it sounds like uninspired American trash!

 

But it denied Ward of number one, so it's a thumbs up from me! And well bloody done on Fedde Le Grand - Top 5 is a far better result than anyone could predict.

Their only bad #1 single is Walk This Way. All the others are classics

I usually like the Babes - when they are good - they're great!... When they're bad... ooooh they stink!

Well done to Sugababes having the highest jump to #1 inside the toip 40 since Captain Sensible with 'Happy Talk'

Well done the Sugababes. :cheer:

 

Read the whole Sunday chart show thread here.

Any reason why a Wurzels song about Bristol City charted that week? :lol: Couldn't get much more West Country, even I've been asked to sing the Combine Harvester song on a night out.

!!! at 'The Ladies' Bras', I forgot that was a thing. Iconic tbh.

Any reason why a Wurzels song about Bristol City charted that week? :lol: Couldn't get much more West Country, even I've been asked to sing the Combine Harvester song on a night out.

 

It was re-recored and re-issued in 2007 to celebrate promotion from League One to The Championship. The original was released in 1977, so it was also a 30 year "celebration" type thing as well. :D

 

Despite being a massive Bristol City fan, I really can't stand The Wurzels. :puke2:

 

Did you sing 'The Combine Harvester' then? :lol: :o

The ladies' BOOBS

How many double A sided singles charted after 'No U Hang Up / If That's OK With You' by Shayne Ward? I can't think of any. The rules back then about double A sides were a bit convoluted with regards to how to attach download sales to the single and I think double A sides died off pretty soon after. I remember Leona Lewis had a double A side around then, something like 'Footprints In The Sand' and I forget the other track, but I can't remember if that was before or after Shayne Ward.

How many double A sided singles charted after 'No U Hang Up / If That's OK With You' by Shayne Ward? I can't think of any. The rules back then about double A sides were a bit convoluted with regards to how to attach download sales to the single and I think double A sides died off pretty soon after. I remember Leona Lewis had a double A side around then, something like 'Footprints In The Sand' and I forget the other track, but I can't remember if that was before or after Shayne Ward.

 

The Leona Lewis double A-side charted in 2008 (Better In Time / Footprints In The Sand) with Footprints In The Sand also charting on its own lower down (downloads of Better In Time being combined with the physical and download bundle).

 

The track was an instant hit, charging to Number 1 on the Official Singles Chart on its second week when it was made available to download, selling 34,000. It had debuted at 35 the previous week on physical sales alone, common practice at the time for single releases during the handover in formats.

 

As suggested by the quotes from the time, this is completely wrong - its #35 entry was on downloads of a re-mixed version. Its first week at #1 was on downloads of the original and re-mixed version(s), with the physical following the next week.

Still love "About You Now". Truly the last great single they did in my view, fitting it should be their final number one.

 

The video for Shayne Ward's "No U Hang Up" was wella softcore Channel 5 porn at 2pm c. 1997!

Cheers Paul, I knew 'Footprints In The Sand' was involved somewhere!

 

As it's 10 years ago this week since Music Week launched its first digital edition and as I have that first copy on my computer here's a look at the charts they published back then:

 

Top 5 Radio Airplay:

 

1 (1) - Hey There Delilah - Plain White T's

2 (8) She's So Lovely - Scouting For Girls

3 (22) - Goodbye Mr A - The Hoosiers

4 (12) About You Now - The Sugababes

5 (2) - 1973 - James Blunt

 

Radio 1 Record Of The Week

 

Jo Whiley - Heater - Samim

Edith Bowman - Echoes Patience & Grace - Foo Fighters

Scott Mills - Bleeding Love - Leona Lewis

Colin Murray - Machines - Biffy Clyro

Zane Lowe - Empty Walls - Serj Tankian

JK & Joel - Uninvited - Freemasons feat. Bailey Tzuke

Weekend Anthem - Let's Dance To Joy Division - The Wombats

One For The Weekend - Why Not - Alter Ego

 

Most Played on:

 

Radio 1: She's So Lovely - Scouting For Girls

Radio 2: 4:00AM - Cherry Ghost

Commercial Radio: Hey There Delilah - Plain White T's

 

Number 1 Albums:

 

Albums: Echoes Silence Patience & Grace - Foo Fighters (135,685)

 

Compilation Albums: Original Soundtrack TV - High School Musical 2

Edited October 5, 20177 yr by Robbie

It was re-recored and re-issued in 2007 to celebrate promotion from League One to The Championship. The original was released in 1977, so it was also a 30 year "celebration" type thing as well. :D

 

Despite being a massive Bristol City fan, I really can't stand The Wurzels. :puke2:

 

Did you sing 'The Combine Harvester' then? :lol: :o

 

Oh yeah, both City and Rovers went up that year and got everyone at school very excited. :lol:

 

I actually do sing it, the more drunk I get the more Bristolian I sound! Also, I don't think I've ever been at a West Country wedding where the 'Cider Drinker' song isn't played.

Freemasons Uninvited was such a good dance track!!

 

2007 seems like yday but a massive distance in terms of music in the charts!

Freemasons Uninvited was such a good dance track!!

 

2007 seems like yday but a massive distance in terms of music in the charts!

 

 

Uninvited was like no other dance song at that time. It's really quirky.

 

Sugababes need a reunion. All 6 of them in a super group & a reality docu-series to go with it

As suggested by the quotes from the time, this is completely wrong - its #35 entry was on downloads of a re-mixed version. Its first week at #1 was on downloads of the original and re-mixed version(s), with the physical following the next week.

Exactly!

 

It's rather strange of OCC to claim "debuted on physical sales alone, common practice at the time for single releases during the handover in formats." as the reason. Not only because it's not true in the case of About You Now, but also I can't think of any examples of "physical only weeks" occurring in 2007... so it was hardly "common practice".

1997: Spice Girls' second album lead single sells big

 

In 1997, the world was in peak Spice mania. The group's debut album had sold 19 million copies worldwide and girl power had become an established movement. As such, they wanted to lead their second album with a "song for the world" - and Spice Up Your Life was it.

 

As with most stories during the Spice Girls' brief but bright explosion, the story around Spice Up Your Life is a chaotic one. With their record label keen to put out a follow-up to their self-titled debut as quickly as possible, the group were forced to record between filming scenes for their upcoming film, Spiceworld.

 

Written by regular collaborators Matt Rowe and Richard 'Biff' Stannard, Spice Up Your Life's energetic and Latin-infused sound was said to be inspired by Bollywood films. Matt recalled in an interview that the recording of the song was riotous, with piecemeal contributions that were constantly interrupted. Mel B later revealed that all five members piled into one booth to sing the chorus rather than the traditional method of recording vocals separately and mixing them together.

 

If that seems rushed, the recording of the single's B-side (as was the done thing at the time to incentivise the public to pick up the CD) was even more haphazard. In the absence of any off-cuts from previous recording sessions, production duo Absolute were tasked with putting a song together in one day, so they placed four microphones in a room and told the group to talk about whatever they wanted. The result, called Spice Invaders, is as charmingly chaotic as you'd expect.

 

While the reception to Spice Up Your Life and its Blade Runner-inspired music video was mixed amongst critics, the song was a huge hit with the British public, landing straight in at Number 1 this week 20 years ago. It set a new chart record, with Spice Girls becoming the first act to reach Number 1 with their first five singles (and the first to debut at the top four times in a row).

 

The song opened to huge first week sales of 321,000 and finished as the 10th biggest single that year. Its total sales stand at 887,000 in the UK, while the song has been streamed 4.5 million times.

 

Elsewhere in the Official UK Top 40 this week in 1997, the Spice Girls had held Danish pop band Aqua off Number 1 with their debut single Barbie Girl, though the song would reach the summit the following week. And after five weeks at the top, Elton John's Princess Diana tribute single Candle In The Wind '97 slipped to Number 3.

 

Further down, Northern Irish rockers Ash were new at 10 with A Life Less Ordinary, London singer Jimmy Ray scored his one and only hit at Number 13 with Are You Jimmy Ray?, plus there were new entries from Primal Scream, US rock band Smash Mouth and Travis.

 

Full top 75 W/E 25/10/97

 

1 - NEW - 01 - Spice Girls - SPICE UP YOUR LIFE

1 - NEW - 02 - Aqua - BARBIE GIRL

06 - 01 - 03 - Elton John - CANDLE IN THE WIND '97 / SOMETHING ABOUT THE WAY YOU LOOK TONIGHT

02 - 02 - 04 - Sash! Featuring La Trec - STAY

05 - 03 - 05 - Dario G - SUNCHYME

03 - 04 - 06 - Backstreet Boys - AS LONG AS YOU LOVE ME

03 - 05 - 07 - Eternal - ANGEL OF MINE

10 - 06 - 08 - Chumbawamba - TUBTHUMPING

02 - 11 - 09 - Brand New Heavies - YOU'VE GOT A FRIEND

1 - NEW - 10 - Ash - A LIFE LESS ORDINARY

02 - 12 - 11 - Clock - U SEXY THING

04 - 08 - 12 - Janet Featuring Q-Tip And Joni Mitchell - GOT 'TIL IT'S GONE

1 - NEW - 13 - Jimmy Ray - ARE YOU JIMMY RAY?

02 - 07 - 14 - Propellerheads / David Arnold - ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE

09 - 17 - 15 - Tina Moore - NEVER GONNA LET YOU GO

11 - 14 - 16 - Will Smith - MEN IN BLACK

1 - NEW - 17 - Primal Scream - BURNING WHEEL

03 - 09 - 18 - Lighthouse Family - RAINCLOUD

1 - NEW - 19 - Smash Mouth - WALKIN' ON THE SUN

07 - 20 - 20 - Verve - THE DRUGS DON'T WORK

04 - 15 - 21 - Louise - ARMS AROUND THE WORLD

04 - 13 - 22 - Oasis - STAND BY ME

1 - NEW - 23 - Lil' Kim - CRUSH ON YOU

04 - 19 - 24 - M People - JUST FOR YOU

1 - NEW - 25 - Jay-Z Featuring Babyface And Foxy Brown - SUNSHINE

1 - NEW - 26 - Rolf Harris - SUN ARISE

04 - 22 - 27 - 2 Eivissa - OH LA LA LA

1 - NEW - 28 - 2K - F**K THE MILLENNIUM

03 - 21 - 29 - Coolio - OOH LA LA

02 - 18 - 30 - Supergrass - LATE IN THE DAY

1 - NEW - 31 - Nuyorican Soul Featuring Jocelyn Brown - I AM THE BLACK GOLD OF THE SUN

1 - NEW - 32 - Belle And Sebastian - 3..6..9 SECONDS OF LIGHT

05 - 23 - 33 - Bellini - SAMBA DE JANEIRO

02 - 16 - 34 - Busta Rhymes - PUT YOUR HANDS WHERE MY EYES COULD SEE

03 - 27 - 35 - Roachford - THE WAY I FEEL

1 - NEW - 36 - Lalo Schiffrin - BULLITT

02 - 10 - 37 - Mansun - SEVEN (EP)

1 - NEW - 38 - Travis - HAPPY

06 - 31 - 39 - Sly And Robbie Featuring Simply Red - NIGHT NURSE

18 - 34 - 40 - Puff Daddy And Faith Evans - I'LL BE MISSING YOU

 

03 - 29 - 41 - DJ Flavours - YOUR CARESS (ALL I NEED)

03 - 32 - 42 - Seahorses - LOVE ME AND LEAVE ME

03 - 38 - 43 - Catch - BINGO

1 - NEW - 44 - Poppers Presents Aura - EVERY LITTLE TIME

1 - NEW - 45 - Lynden David Hall - SEXY CINDERELLA

02 - 24 - 46 - Feeder - HIGH (WITH MY FRIENDS)

03 - 30 - 47 - Foxy Brown Featuring Dru Hill - BIG BAD MAMMA

1 - NEW - 48 - Supernaturals - PREPARE TO LAND

1 - NEW - 49 - Martha Wash - CARRY ON '97

07 - 39 - 50 - Hanson - WHERE'S THE LOVE

1 - NEW - 51 - de Bos - ON THE RUN

02 - 28 - 52 - Levellers - CELEBRATE

02 - 25 - 53 - Sheryl Crow - HOME

1 - NEW - 54 - Vanessa-Mae - STORM

15 - 63 - 55 - Oasis - D'YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN?

02 - 33 - 56 - Universal - MAKE IT WITH YOU

13 - 54 - 57 - Boyzone - PICTURE OF YOU

1 - NEW - 58 - Corrs - ONLY WHEN I SLEEP

02 - 37 - 59 - Omar - GOLDEN BROWN

1 - NEW - 60 - Hardfloor - ACPERIENCE

05 - 50 - 61 - Third Eye Blind - SEMI-CHARMED LIFE

02 - 36 - 62 - Aphex Twin - COME TO DADDY

02 - 26 - 63 - Wildhearts - URGE

05 - 43 - 64 - Blackstreet - FIX

06 - 44 - 65 - Boyz II Men - 4 SEASONS OF LONELINESS

03 - 35 - 66 - Silver Sun - LAVA

06 - 51 - 67 - George Michael - YOU HAVE BEEN LOVED

1 - NEW - 68 - Cecil - HOSTAGE IN A FROCK

08 - 55 - 69 - Mariah Carey - HONEY

1 - NEW - 70 - Sparks - NUMBER ONE SONG IN HEAVEN

03 - 41 - 71 - East 57th Street Featuring Donna Allen - SATURDAY

04 - 47 - 72 - U2 - PLEASE

06 - 48 - 73 - Ricky Martin - (UN, DOS, TRES) MARIA

02 - 40 - 74 - Catatonia - I AM THE MOB

08 - 45 - 75 - All Saints - I KNOW WHERE IT'S AT

(text source: UKMix)

It's nice of the OCC to feel the need to explain why acts recorded B sides! I suppose there's a generation of music consumers growing up now who have no concept of what a B side was.

 

Aqua sold 183,000 copies as a new entry at number 2. The number 1 album was 'Urban Hyms' by The Verve (63,500) while the number 1 Compilation album was 'The Best Anthems in the World...Ever Vol.2'. Number 1 on the Airplay chart was 'Raincloud' by the Lighthouse Family.

Did Radio 1 shun Aqua - Barbie Girl back then for being too cheesy? They shunned a lot of eurodance songs in the early 00s from the likes of Flip and Fill and Scooter.

 

Btw Pensmith is doing his 1997 end of year top 40 plug sesh in a few weeks I think, looking forward to it. I am sure it will contain some Spice and some great dance tunes too!

 

Freemasons Uninvited was such a good dance track!!

 

I don't really like Uninvited much its a bit too poppy and polished for my liking, Love On My Mind, Watchin', Rain Down Love and When You Touch Me are better imo.

Edited October 19, 20177 yr by HissingSparkler

^

'Barbie Girl' wasn't a big radio hit, peaking at number 15 on the Airplay chart on the week it climbed to the top of the sales chart (and it ended up at number 186 on the end of year Airplay chart). Radio 1 must have more or less ignored it as had the station playlisted it the track would have charted much higher.

This must have been Travis and Feeders first hits?