John_Squire

280-300k this week, but with a 500k week closer to Christmas. I thought about 1.4m overall but seeing as The Circus topped 2m (thought it was closer to 1.5m), maybe Progess could do about 1.7m or so.

Human by The Killers. IMO the worst opening single for any of their albums (possibly their worst single overall), yet it was absolutely massive.

I reckon that sounds about right. Wonder what the demographics were?

On X-Factor singing alone: 1 Rebecca Ferguson (Saturday rank: 1) 2 Matt Cardle (SR: 8, worst performance yet - prob about equal with Mary and Paige) 3 Katie Waissel (SR: 5, but #1 by miles for her sing-off song - best performance of the weekend!) 4 Cher Lloyd (SR: 3) 5 Paije Richardson (SR: 6, OK but boring) 6 Mary Byrne (low because of the lack of variation) (SR: 7, good but boring) 7 One Direction (best performance this week, by far) (SR: 2) 8 Wagner (his best too, but obviously way down on all the others) (SR: 4, just because it's the first time he's been in tune) (Aiden would have been 4th, and ranked middle for Saturday, awfully out of tune in the sing-off) Overall (singing, performance, entertainment, likeability, 'star qualities', etc) 1 Katie Waissel (brilliant but she shouldn't win X-Factor) 2 Matt Cardle (hopefully will come 2nd. Sings brilliantly sometimes but somewhat overrated and is at least as ambitious as Katie, yet with her it's a bad thing apparently) 3 Wagner (on comedy value alone he makes top 3. Let him have his year in the limelight!) 4 Paije Richardson (won't win or do very well musically but has a nice voice and is likeable) 5 Rebecca Ferguson (great voice, has confidence, but doesn't scream 'star' at all - is it just me thinking that? She could do well if she wins though - with the right material. Like Matt, overrated somewhat) 6 Mary Byrne (likeable but apart from her interesting back story and ability to belt out ballads, she doesn't have much more to give. Would be interesting if she won - wouldn't be as big as SuBo though) 7 Cher Lloyd (what would be her target market apart from teenage girls who like her 'attitude? Does she want to be Cheryl Cole or Lady Sovereign? Not fussed at all although her voice has improved) 8 One Direction (probably nice enough, but just a bit bland/samey overall - one hit album then flop into obscurity, I think. Simon would give them $h!t songs IMO) This year seems to have more good performers/singers than last year (and most of the other years) and Wagner is better comedy than Jedward. Joe wouldn't win this year, definitely not. Alexandra would have a chance, Leon wouldn't win, Shayne would be in the final, Steve wouldn't be final 16, and we have the new Leona for the final in the shape of Rebecca.

WOOOO :cheer: I didn't mind Aiden, but so glad that Katie is still in. She IS talented, she has had some bad performances (her Elton was average) but her good ones - like her Aguilera - more than make up for it! Even if she is a total bitch, who cares? I don't think she's that bad, she's sometimes stroppy and diva-y, but that doesn't necessarily equal bitch. As a performer she can be bloody amazing. Obviously Rebecca and Matt are better suited to winning the X-Factor, both have very good voices, but Katie does have a great voice on the right songs (which she often doesn't do on the show - and Katie doing an X-Factor winner's album would be dire - so she shouldn't win, but the exposure should hopefully get her a decent record deal). Paige has grown on me but he won't win, nor will Wagner (who was actually decent this time!) though I hope the Wagner vote will keep him in til near the final. Mary I like but she is a bit samey (and her 'There You'll Be', despite the judges' loving it, wasn't great IMO; she was OK this time) One Direction, yawn. OK this week, but just another same old same old pretty-boy band. That doesn't mean they can't sing (don't think any of them are brilliant though), but it's obvious they will be tailored for a certain market if they win. Cher I just don't like at all, I don't get why the Katie hate is constant but the Cher hate isn't. Cher has had some good performances, some not so good, but I just don't like her attitude. In the whole Gamu thing Cher was panned as much as Katie, and Cher has also had some bad press, some of which is arguably worse and more justified than any of Katie's, if true. Paige will be out next, then Mary or Katie, then Mary or Katie, then Wagner, then Cher or (possibly!) Rebecca, as Matt and 1D have the obvious fan votes, and Cher has over 1 million Facebook fans, whereas Rebecca has about 800k less fans (I know this is not concrete but it is an indication of how people like the contestants). Rebecca, Cher, 1D and Matt final four.

Shakespear's Sister could do almost as much this week as they did at some of their weeks at #1 :o

Nothing awful left...went for Jai Ho.

Linger.

After reading about the non-number 1s selling 100k, I wondered about number 4s - specifically Gorillaz 'Clint Eastwood' and Nickelback's 'How You Remind Me'. Both these sold over 400k in year of release (IIRC). Does anyone have sales for the weeks these songs were at #4? I know Gorillaz went 4-5-6-4-5-6, were sales pretty equal over those weeks? Thanks in advance.

Don't think albums sales (excepting Cheryl and possibly Bon Jovi, Rumer) will be great...if Jamiroquai can't move KOL I can't see it selling more than 40k. Not awful for top 5 - even if it's only 30k - but it's surely the time when sales should be picking up pre-Christmas (or is it too early?)

:o Is that the best one-week sales figure for a #3 outside Christmas - or ever?

Spiller and Sophie E-B vs. True Steppers, Dane and Posh - 202k vs. 180k, right?

TAIO

I wonder how much artists actually care about albums anyway. With some albums, each track is relevant to the other/is best heard in a certain sequence/tells a complete story/is simply how the artist wants it. With others - I'd say usually but not always with artists who don't write their own stuff - how much does it really matter what tracks go where, or how they're listened to? It's just a grouping of the 'best' (spurious in many cases) songs an artist has at that particular time. If the artist sells only 200k albums but, say, 500k, 400k, 250k and 200k for four cherry-picked tracks, then that's a great incentive to keep an act on the books, especially popular stuff, because the big singles will get the airplay/video views, the albums won't. I'd argue that sales aren't that much of a problem with pop or rock/indie lite - these albums still sell pretty well (example is Pixie Lott - massive sales in this sales climate, considering it's straight up pop music with lots of singles taken from it), though nothing like the massive sales from 2003-05. Rap and RnB albums have generally always sold poorly in comparison to the singles. It's anything alternative/harder rock/indie that's in more trouble, because the singles don't chart as high any more and the albums don't sell very much usually.

Tinchy

Ugh, so much crap in here! I voted for Shayne although to be honest it probably isn't the worst of the X-Factor debuts. Hopefully the charity ones will go quickly.

I would have thought Tight Fit would sell more than the four songs around it

Average top 3 IMO. I like most Cee-Lo tracks but 'f*** You' isn't anything special at all. Robbie and Gary, it's OK but boring: classic Robbie second-or-third single material, nothing stand out. Radioactive is a return to form: a bit weird, a bit funky. Don't know if they've conciously tried not to release another 'Use Somebody' but I like this as a comeback.

I still like 'Katy On A Mission', I'm surprised it's stuck around so well though.

There must have been a UK rapper with a number 1 album before now? Kermit as part of Black Grape maybe? Can't think of a solo rapper though. EDIT: of course, The Streets.

Five-ish.

Why did Enrique go from 34-20 a few weeks ago?

Magnetic Man should be higher.

Ouch for Alexandra, possibly non top-40 in 3-4 weeks? I would say 8 weeks top 40 is acceptable for a one-week number 1 that debuts at the top. Like Olly Murs: 1-4-5-12-16-23>so something like -28-37-out (probably will get 9-10 weeks though) Add a week for every week spent at number 1, so Alex B=9 weeks for a decent run.

P.S. Susan Boyle around 200k first week, 700k+ year's end (maybe a million: X-Factor performance?)