garax

I think Adele is going to go huge this time. Her Bob Dylan cover has been reminding everyone of her voice very nicely for a number of months now (a rare case of X factor actually doing something positive for music?) and this new single is tight as a drum. I'm saying No.1

I had a listen. Last years list you could easily pick some hits from, this year it's... tricky. They seem to have gone for at least 2 bands that just sound like The Drums, which didn't even work for The Drums that well so why anyone else would want to do it is beyond me. The Vaccines were about the only ones I can imagine breaking through. Last year's list introduced me to what is now one of my favorite bands and my album of the year - Everything Everything and Man Alive.

Out of interest, and given Digitalspy says A&M is closing (!) - how is the Duffy album doing this week? And did it do better or worse in it's first week than Kate Nash's second album. thanks. :)

One bad decision can kill the career of an artist if they are considered 'credible'. Duffy did that awful Diet Coke advert - it was a terrible terrible error, it made her look grasping. And now we see the long term damage inflicted on her career. Commercially, baring a miracle, she is over.

Looking at the last 20 or so, the only one I really like - I still think it's one of their best songs, is 2 become 1 by the Spice Girls. I bet I'd pick more from a list of all the songs that were number 2 at xmas - is there a list of those anywhere!

The stand out ones for me, in no order are: The Pretenders - 2000 miles - beautiful and never over played so it's always a delight to hear. The Pogues/Kirsty MacColl - Fairytale of New York - a bit ott and I don't really want to hear anything that emotional when I'm shopping in Tesco, but still. Jona Lewie - Stop The Cavalry - when you break it down this song is still a madness - it totally should not work but it 100% does it every time. Greg Lake - I Believe in Father Christmas - the musical borrowing is beautiful to start with, but the icy starkness of the delivery is genius. Paul McCartney - Wonderful Christmastime. I know, I can't help it - but this is truly the sound of a ridiculously talented writer arsing about and it always makes me smile. and maybe a new one, i'm loving Christmas Lights by Coldplay, it's maybe too soon to know if it's got the legs to be a great, but well, I think it just might...

I kind of find Slade's - "Merry Christmas Everybody", hard to bare. It just seems to bring something of the early 70's with it and I find it a bit depressing as a result.

My 'Record of the Year' - is the amazing track 'Final Form' by Everything Everything, ah, but I see it is not on the list, there mostly just seems to be a lot of forgettable blah on that, what a surprise.

On the subject of Xmas songs - I completely agree - there are a number of bands who would be a distant memory if their Christmas classic didn't do the business every year - Slade are a pretty good example - they were huge in the first half of the 70's - I suspect few people under 30 have heard of them but for the Xmas record. I'm really glad Coldplay bothered not only to do a Christmas Song but delivered one that is of the exact same standard as their 'normal' output - like them or not - at least they didn't just chuck any old rubbish out. And I also agree more should be doing it - I know XF keeps buggering up the Xmas No.1 - but losts of classics never got to number 1 - and actually of all songs released XMas songs more than any other are about connecting and having an emotional impact on people - rather than where they charted mattering - hence does it matter Fariytale of New York wasn't No 1 - or Last Xmas - or I Believe In Father Christmas - or Stop the Cavalry - I rather think not - a great Christmas song transcends that mark of success and just *becomes* part of Christmas. Coldplay I am 100% certain just added to the small pile. Take That really really ought to give it a go - I'm amazed Gary Barlow hasn't given it a proper go - (Geraldine accepted.)

Yes - I've listened to all of the tracks - though not in the order they appear on the album. And that's why I commented. And they are poorly consturcted, oddly sung and lacking in anything that could be a sizable hit. But if you like it then that's lovely. But I'm commenting on why I don't think it's amazing she is struggling, and in my view, the reasons it's failing are fairly visible.

See that Hurts track is a good example of the whole problem with the Hurts - it's trying hard but they just don't have a knack with melody lines - they ache so much to be a classic band and yet they just don't cut it. It's a shame because they mean well - they just need a moment of inspiration - they need to go up about 6 gears and then they'll be onto something.

Given the quality of the Duffy album it's not that surprising and not that undeserved either.

It's also 10 years since Kirsty Maccoll died in a few weeks time, incredibly, so it may be getting a few extra spins because of that. Anyway, she will always be with us on the radio because of that song.

I only read about the Coldplay single the day before, but having listened to it - and indeed bought it, it's a slam dunk instant Christmas classic, if it doesn't chart well this week - and it may yet - then I wouldn't be in the least bit amazed to see it really build up a head of steam in the next couple of weeks - it's ages since we had a new really A class Xmas song from anyone - and this is definitely a keeper.

I'm kind of pleased really - for TT - I think if they had had as many as they could sell it would have heavily spiked sales of the album and it would have basically done all its business by week 3 and quickly go from the charts - probably taking any chances of another big single with it. So bad for shoppers, but good for TT.

Yeah - I did wonder how many they would actually have - but I'd still have thought more than that - just goes to show - lots of publicity for them with little actual outlay - mind - bound to have some very annoyed customers now!

Here is what I find interesting - be interested in anyone else's views on this: Xfactor Final peaked at 19million viewers and yet has so far only shifted 300k of singles - that's approximately 1 in 60 people who watched buying it - surely that is a terrible ratio? Does this prove that it is the wrong song - or do people just utterly disengage from the show once it is finished?

Its worth pointing out some of the singles mentioned were deleted. I think Crazy was. Raving I'm Raving used a sample and was only cleared to be released if limited to a certain number of physical copies. Also a number of the singles are Christmas songs which usually suffer immediately following the end of Christmas. But its still an interesting list. Be interested to know the reason Maneater fell so fast...

What Are You Doing New Year? probably the most famous - its a Standard - lots of versions: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=y1idhwIW_n4 http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=kU_BBNeumLI http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=G1YbfCQmr4o http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=PGOid0TxB_Q http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=1Cxoq1Q2DY0&...feature=related also - personal fave: New Year's Eve - Eg and Alice.

What do you mean by Merit? You do realise that Pop Chart stands for Popular Chart - it IS a popularity contest - not a quality contest - whatever you define quality as - and since X Factor is a mix of music ability and likeability - hence 'x factor' not 'sing factor' or 'like factor' then I'd have to wonder what you think the pop charts are for if not for the likes of the X Factor.

Here's an idea - how about banning you from posting? What do you reckon? Does it seem fair - because I don't think your thread has much merit so why don't I just decide on behalf of everybody else? No, I thought not. The charts have been going about 50 years - i that time there have been plenty of good bad and indifferent songs, plenty of classics that didn't chart as highly as you might imagine, plenty of No.1s all but forgotten - plenty of chart wars/battles, plenty of fads, plenty indeed for everybody and plenty enough to go around. Just get over it.

Not releasing it till 1st Dec is a bad decision - they have just denied Leona a smash hit no.1 single.

I think they need to do one of two things - either 1) Re-record and release The Greatest Show on Earth as the next single or otherwise 2) Give up ad go and do a new album. I'd agree that in comparison to the first the second album is pretty sucky - the first album had singles to spare - but something went majorly wrong with the second. I really liked them previously - and I'd like to think they have enough of a clue to regroup and deliver a classic third album but if they don't then that will be the end of them. Great shame.

Come on Rosin! It amazes me that such a talented women and such a bloody amazing album and singles can be performing so sluggishly sales wise. Have people no ears?

I think you should buy it if you like it and you think you'd like to listen to it. I think if you don't like it then ignore it - its not going to hurt you - and if the thought of a sweet likeable young guy just starting out getting the joy and excitement of a Christmas number one is really too much to bare - well - that kind of reflects more on you then on him.