Nosey

Does anyone have any idea what kind of sales the Eurovision CD gets? I've seen it in fairly prominent positions in the supermarkets over the last few years, so it must have a decent market.

There seems to be a shift in opinion. Even some people who were previously backing 100% freedom to own guns are admitting that they should place some kind of restrictions. When the right to bear arms was agreed, no-one envisioned modern weaponry. Those days it was muskets that took 15 seconds to reload, not machine guns. A restriction on semi-automatic rifles that can fire multiple rounds with a lot of deadly force in a short space of time could reasonably be banned without contradicting the constitution, and requiring permits for all guns would be a positive move too. The true benefits of more sensible gun control would not be seen immediately, especially if there is no cultural shift. With no current requirement for registration, there's no way of knowing what proportion of the illegal weapons were handed in. If the penalties for catching someone with an illegal weapon are high enough, the numbers will reduce in time, and it will be an extra means to send drug barrons to prison when they are found with a stash in the boot of their car.

Yes, but farmer and country vets having a shot-gun is not the same as half the population having hand-guns, or semi-automatic weapons. They have legitimate reasons for gun ownership, and very strict rules on how they can be stored and used. It may still be possible that the child of a farmer may know where the guns are kept and get hold of them to go on a rampage, but you won't get as far with a shot-gun as you would with a semi-automatic, or hand-gun. The higher the availability of guns, the more likelihood there is that a nutter will use one. The easier they are to fire multiple rounds, the more people the nutter can kill in a short space of time. Step away from the political and moral arguments, it's basic sums and common sense.

Gun laws were changed after that. A few gun fans complained it was an over-reaction, but the general public put the welfare of innocent members of the public above the right of a person to join a gun club and use a hand-gun there. In the time that has passed, many people who were initially against the law change have accepted it was the right thing. It's still possible to commit gun crime, but it's much harder for people to legally acquire guns. Remember, most of these mass killings are not gang warfare amongst criminals. It seems to be previously law abiding citizens who had access to guns, who then used them once they'd flipped.

I'm one of the people who liked Little Mix, but was so unimpressed with their winners single, it didn't even cross my mind to buy it. I liked the song, and I liked them, but there was something about their version that didn't work. I was glad it did well enough, but not brilliantly. It made sure the record company knew they couldn't get away with being lazy.

Because some of us like to listen to new music, and catch the news, and yes, a little bit of chat when we tune into a supposedly music based radio station in the mornings. Listening to radio is about not knowing what music will be played next and sometimes that means we'll hear something we don't like, sometimes we'll hear something new, and sometimes it will make us want to buy a new CD. There are talk based radio stations with a much higher level of conversation I could listen to if I wanted that.

Grimmy has been doing a lot of cover of the day-time slots lately, and I've really warmed to him. Presumably, they were testing him out on the day-time audience and it has worked. I'm always thrilled when Chris is on holiday and Scott covers for him. I feel a bit bad for him that he's not getting the permanent gig, but it's not surprising given his age, and he's probably going to be secure in the afternoon for a good few years. I'd have been happy with Greg too, but mainly I'm glad Chris is off. He's not quite as obnoxious as he used to be, but one of the reasons I prefer BBC Radio to commercial radio is the lack of ads. But at least with ads, we know they will end. When he's prattling on about his boring life, you've no idea when he'll stop.

That's just because it's a classic big ballad, and Christmas is the time of year we normally get them on the radio. I'm not that keen myself. It's an alright song, but Stooshie themselves over-sing it, and their vocals sound very affected, like they are in the battle round of The Voice trying to prove a point. I find it painful in places.

At risk of being a pedant, it can work either way. The relative percentage increase is 100% As in, Cheryl has sold 100% more than a song on 50% However, the percentage difference is 50 if you are talking in absolute terms, where the top song is defined as being 100% So long as you are clear on whether or not you are talking about relative or absolute percentage increases - and what you are relating it to (as in the song on 100% or another song on the list) - either is correct. In the world of science and medical journalism, there is a push amongst the more responsible writers and statisticians to use absolute percentages when talking about your increased risk of getting a particular disease, as it is more meaningful. Whereas the more sensational papers and headline writers like to use relative percentages (without saying so) as it makes it look much more scary than it really is. I appreciate that in terms of iTunes sales, everything is at least a bit relative, as it's in relation to the top selling song having 100% - but I still think it's much easier and meaningful to just treat the top song as 100% and to base percentage discussions against that figure. No matter which way you describe it, it's very impressive for Cheryl. :dance: I'm pleased she's proven all of the doubters wrong, as it was tiring having people claim she was only successful because Simon Cowell plucked her from obscurity to be on X Factor. :rolleyes:

I get the feeling that the people working with Alexandra were so keen to make her sound distinct from Leona's that they have pushed her away from doing ballads, even though she does them really well. Her vocal style is so different to Leona, and her approach to a ballad is different, so it shouldn't have mattered - except perhaps it made doing A&R easier to keep them poles apart. Alex can do the dance and upbeat pop stuff much better than Leona, but it's no accident that Hallelujah is by far the biggest selling X Factor single. I'm going to confess to really liking the Gary/Commonwealth song, Sing. I wasn't keen on the original Military Wives single, and the Gary Barlow on his own version of "Sing" is a bit dreary, but the whole thing with the layers of sound from so many different people, cultures and musical styles works amazingly well. It underlines Gary's strengths and weaknesses. His own music for himself as a solo artist, or even for other solo artists has never had the same impact as the work he's done for Take That. He appears to be best putting songs together for layered vocals. However, I did think turning what is an excellent track for the Jubilee and trying to turn it into a mini album was an indulgence. We didn't need to hear his solo version, and the inclusion of his version of "Here Comes the Sun" is peculiar. They should have kept the EP to four tracks, or whatever is required to make it eligible for the singles chart. That would have provided the added bonus of letting Paloma get to number one in the album chart! :D

I must admit that I didn't expect Adele to be so high. I wish it was for Rolling in the Deep, which is a much better song (IMO) than Someone like You. Although Will and Gareth had the advantage of a fresh show like Pop Idol to launch them, unlike X Factor, there was a delay of a month and two months respectively before they released their debut singles, which were available in one format only, which you had to buy from an actual shop, costing £4 a go. They weren't available for download within a couple of hours of the show ending, for 79p. Back in the early 00s, once a song dropped out of the charts, that was it for sales. Some will be able to pick up sales again now they are available for download, but when they were first available for legal download, they wouldn't have been eligible for the charts, so anything cherry picked from an album won't have counted to the official sales figures. Agreed. The reality is that if Gareth's stammer was still as bad as it used to be, he wouldn't have been able to do the interview at all. In fact, he hardly ever gave any radio interviews back then, and if he did do something, it was pre-recorded and heavily edited. If anyone is interested, Gareth did a documentary for BBC3 a couple of months ago, where he helped some other people manage their stammers.

This could be fun, but I could do without Reggie trying to be so painfully cool, whilst showing his usual ignorance of the music. We're tuned in expecting a bit of nostalgia, in full knowledge that there will be some songs that haven't been played on Radio 1 for years, and that aren't to Reggie's tastes, but he doesn't need to be quite so judgemental about it. It spoils what should be a bit of fun. I happened to love Gareth Gates' Anyone of Us, and I thought Reggie was over the top by spending so long telling everyone that they ought to think it's terrible. It was a massive international hit, so he can't just blame it on Pop Idol being massive. It just isn't his taste, and nothing wrong with that. And if Reggie didn't spend so making sure everyone knows which songs he doesn't like, he wouldn't have had to cut Madonna short for the news. Several songs have been cut short. More songs, less Reggie moaning. :)

Hopefully Marina will be top 40 soon. :cheer:

I'll probably record both of them, so I can whizz through the dull and cringey bits. I don't normally watch BGT in full, because it's too drawn out, and I don't like the kiddie acts.

You know, I never really connected with Happy before, but watching Jennifer skating to it on Dancing on Ice really worked for it and made me like the song much more than ever before.