Music Chronicle

Trends – 1970s Tracks The graph illustrating the performance of the eight most popular tracks from the 1970s is pretty clear. With the honourable exception of Elton John’s “Step Into Christmas”, the 70s hits are in decline, relative to other festive favourites. (Note that the scale has been extended on this chart, to take in 40 places on the Festive Perennials Chart, rather than the 30 needed for the 80s/90s tracks). • Slade peaked at #2 in 2006, but are currently #15. Wizzard’s best was 3rd in 2010, but they are #13 this week. Boney M are in danger of dropping out of the Top 40 for the first time. Greg Lake has missed out altogether in five of the past six years. • Elton John has bucked the trend. “Step Into Christmas” may only have been a modest hit in 1973, but it peaked at #6 on the Festive Songs list last year, no doubt helped by the Rocket Man film. • Paul McCartney and John Lennon have maintained some consistency, and are to be found between #10 and #20 in most years. • This is pure speculation, but is the downward trend partly a consequence of the aging of people who grew up with these songs ? Someone who was in their early teens in 1973 was in their 40s when downloading took off, and hence quite likely to be receptive to the new technology. But, by the late 10s, they were in approaching their 60s, and perhaps less enthusiastic converts to streaming. Hence, relatively speaking, 70s hits have declined in popularity compared to 80s and 90s hits, as their strongest advocates continue to listen to their iPods, rather than calling on their Alexas for Christmas playlists.

Trends – 1980s & 1990s Tracks It is singles from the 1980s and 1990s which have dominated the festive landscape during the digital era. The graph below shows the year-by-year performance of the Top 8 from this period. • It clearly shows how Mariah has overtaken the Pogues & Kirsty in the middle of the 2010s. Wham! have also overhauled the Pogues & Kirsty in the wake of George Michael’s premature death. • Shakin’ Stevens’ song’s popularity has suffered a fall, and then a rise again, ranking as the 4th most popular Festive Perennial in four of the past six years. The long-term trend for Band Aid is upward, peaking at #4 in 2017 and 2018. But Chris Rea is now in long-term decline, having risen to take 4th position in 2011 and 2012. • East 17 and Jona Lewie are perennially popular also-rans.

List 2 – Ranked by Average Position This table ranks those same 49 songs by their average position on the Festive Perennials Chart. This allows more recent tracks to rise up the list, and doesn’t penalise tracks which missed out in the early years. • Mariah takes the number one spot again, but this time not shared. The Pogues & Kirsty MacColl rise to second, just 0.04 behind Mariah. Indeed, if they were to overtake Wham! in next week’s OCC chart, they will also overtake Mariah on this list. • Wham!’s average is marginally better than 3. The only year when they weren’t in the Festive Perennials Top 3 was 2010. • There isn’t much distance between Shakin’ Stevens, Wizzard and Band Aid in 4th, 5th and 6th. Michael Buble’s current average is 8.0, but he is at #5 this week, and was 5th in 2018, so his average is decreasing whilst those around him are going in the opposite direction. Trends like this are illustrated by the graphs below.

List 1 – Ranked by Appearances & then Peak The table below lists the 49 tracks with 4 or more appearances, ranked first by the number of years they have appeared since 2004, and then by the highest position they have attained in the Festive Perennials Chart. • Mariah Carey and Wham! share first place on this list, having appeared every year, and both been a Festive Perennials #1. (Mariah in 2004, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019 and 2020; Wham! in 2017). • Slade have also appeared every year, peaking at #2 in 2006. • The Pogues & Kirsty MacColl did not make the Top 100 of the singles chart or the Top 40 of the download chart in 2004, but have been ever-present since 2005. They occupied the #1 position every year from 2005 to 2012, and then again in 2014. Shakin’ Stevens was also absent in 2004, but has not been outside the Top 8 since. His 2020 position of #4 equals his previous best. • Band Aid and Chris Rea were both listed in 2004 (at #2 and #6 respectively), but missed out in 2005. • Wizzard, Brenda Lee, John & Yoko and Boney M did not make it in 2004 or 2005, but appeared in 2006, and have been there ever since. The Darkness lost out as a result of cutting the OCC reference chart from the Top 200 to the Top 100, missing out in 2014 and 2015 only.

The Music Chronicle reviews Christmas Perennials in the Digital Age With Christmas coming early this year, and Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” finally reaching the number one slot, 26 years after release, the Music Chronicle has taken a look at those hardy seasonal perennials – the hits which keep coming back. A very brief history The return of Christmas songs every year is one of the oldest chart phenomena. In Steve Waters’ book The Missing Charts, Bing Crosby’s “White Christmas” is revealed to have been the yuletide chart topper in the year of its release, 1942. But such was its popularity, it was ranked #2 for Christmas 1943, 1944 and 1945 before securing the top spot again for Christmas in 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1950 and 1951. The early 1980s saw a burst of Christmas re-entries, as the most popular singles of the 1970s enjoyed regular re-releases. Slade were the biggest beneficiaries of this, with “Merry Xmas Everybody” returning to the Top 75 in 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985 and 1986, whilst John & Yoko, Wizzard, Greg Lake and Mud all saw renewed attention paid to their offerings. But in November 1985 the release of Now – The Christmas Album, which collected together all of those 70s hits plus “White Christmas” and the 11 month-old smashes by Band Aid and Wham!, meant that buying a re-released single was unnecessary and uneconomic. A succession of updates and rivals such as The Best Christmas Album In The World…Ever, It’s Christmas !, and The No.1 Christmas Album, meant that re-entries and re-issues of Christmas favourites were rare throughout the CD era. But the landscape changed again with the advent of single track downloads, and, a decade later, streaming. It is the period from 2004 to 2020 that is reviewed here. The Festive Perennials Chart The Music Chronicle has taken the OCC weekly singles chart which is most heavily laden with Christmas songs for every year from 2004 to 2020, and created a Festive Perennials Chart. 21st century tracks which are appearing for the first time are excluded, and only join the Chart the first year they re-enter the OCC listings. This review is only interested in the songs which prove popular over a number of years, not one-off hits. For 2004-2006 we have used the singles chart and also the download chart, to get a meaningful number of songs. For 2007 to 2013, we have used the combined singles Top 200, and for 2014 to 2020 we have used the published Top 100. Use of the Top 200 has given a peak of 36 hits in 2007 and 2013, whilst the Top 100 has so far maxed out at 53 hits in 2019, although that could be surpassed in the next fortnight. Note that ACR/SCR is irrelevant, because of the exclusion of first time hits, meaning every track in the Festive Perennials Chart is on ACR, and therefore in the right relative position. The purpose of creating a Festive Perennials Chart, is that it enables a review to be conducted on a level playing field. There are plenty of best sellers list (based on purchases only). And any all-time list compiled using chart sales would be heavily weighted towards those tracks which have performed the best in the past couple of years. 49 different tracks have appeared in the Festive Perennials Chart in a minimum of four separate years. Three tracks appeared in all 17 years.

Thank you very much. Your comments are much appreciated. The work that goes into updating the best sellers lists to take account of the full year is, in my opinion, one of the most important stages of preparing the books.

:) :)

Yes, I'd be delighted to ship to Iceland. I've sent copies to Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands and France. Please drop me an e-mail at musicchronicle@yahoo.com and I'll give you full details.

Thank you very much. :)

Thank you very much. Yes, those are the correct links. And thank you for your positive comments too - they mean a lot when they come from such a respected chart enthusiast.

Sorry for not providing any links. But until I've reached 20 posts, I'm not allowed to ! However, kingsofskiffle's post below has the correct links. I'll add them to the first post when I've reached 20 posts.

Yes, you're right. "Christmas Wrapping" first charted (as a "bubbling under" single) in 1981, and will be close to the Top 40 most streamed Christmas songs. John & Yoko, Slade, Wizzard and Elvis all featured on the 1981 Christmas chart. There were a further 8 Christmas-themed singles in 1981 which haven't endured. Mostly deservedly.

Yesterday, the OCC posted an article about the Top 40 most streamed Christmas tracks. The return of old Christmas tracks to the charts is an older phenomenon than many people realise. In 1981 the Christmas chart set a new record, with 13 seasonal singles listed. Four of these were re-entries / re-releases, and the A-side of three of them, plus the B-side of the fourth, appear on this OCC streaming list. 1981 also saw the first appearance of a cult Christmas classic which won't be far outside the OCC Top 40. The Music Chronicle 1981 provides a rundown of the 13 Christmas hits, alongside a multitude of other entertaining and informative lists, articles and snippets of trivia about the British music scene in that fascinating year. This week's albums chart saw entries for new compilations by Shakin' Stevens and Spandau Ballet. After making their chart debuts in 1980, both of these acts established themselves in 1981. The Music Chronicle 1981 reveals where in the year end Top 206 their singles finished, how they ranked amongst the Top 46 singles acts, where their albums finished amongst the Top 192 of the year, and how they fared on the Top 28 albums acts list. The book also tells the story of Shakin' Stevens' rise to fame, illustrates his two tours of the British Isles during 1981, shows how he ranks amongst the most successful acts of the 1980s, summarises his performance on the singles charts in 10 European countries, provides detailed information about his number one singles and albums, and tells the history of his cover versions. Spandau Ballet feature in the story of The Blitz Kids. And page 168 reveals the link between "Lifeline", and Sheena Eastons' "For Your Eyes Only", Madonna's "Burning Up" and Def Leppard's "Let's Get Rocked".

The return of old Christmas tracks to the charts is an older phenomenon than many people realise. In 1981 the Christmas chart set a new record, with 13 seasonal singles listed. Four of these were re-entries / re-releases, and the A-side of three of them, plus the B-side of the fourth, appear on this OCC streaming list. 1981 also saw the first appearance of a cult Christmas classic which won't be far outside the OCC Top 40. The Music Chronicle 1981 provides a rundown of the 13 Christmas hits, alongside a multitude of other entertaining and informative lists, articles and snippets of trivia about the British music scene in that fascinating year.

Here are some of the comments we received about The Music Chronicle 1980, on BuzzJack and other forums and websites:- “A great addition to my music book library. The content is outstanding. I'll happily recommend it to people.” “Sean seems to have covered all the important and interesting musical facts and events of the year very well. I get the feeling I may be referring to this book often in the future and look forward to seeing other years in the series.” “I think what I like best about it is not the pure stats. The book eschews what you can find on the internet. The joy is in the value added. So some rather intriguing lists, for example the connections of session supergroup Sky, and the reasons behind some otherwise surprising re-issues. The Music Chronicle is, for want of a better word, whimsical.” “I study the UK Charts avidly, but there were many details in the book that I was unaware of. I cannot praise the book enough.” “I ordered a copy of this and it really is a fantastic source of information for the price.” “Amazing value and hours of reading and digesting! Couldn't even begin to imagine how much work went into this!” “The 1980 Book is excellent. I highly recommend it, as it is well worth its price. I urge every UK chart fan to buy the 1980 book. It is a great addition to any chart books collection.”

The second book in The Music Chronicle annual series is now available, with 16 extra pages of content. There are many books and websites which catalogue the British singles and albums charts. And there are a wealth of biographies of pop stars and rock groups in book and magazine format. But, until The Music Chronicle came along, there wasn’t a year-by-year review which documented the best sellers, the major festivals and tours, the award winners, the films and television shows, the industry’s financials, the headline news stories and the unlikely trivia which go together to create the vibrant and diverse British music scene. With chapters covering Singles, Albums, Live Music, the Music Industry, Music & the Media, Global Music, Awards and Music People, plus a Review of the Year, the Music Chronicle presents in a series of over 200 lists, charts and short articles, all aspects of popular music from a single year. The benefit of hindsight makes it possible to pick out the musical trends of the period, the debuts, break-ups, births and deaths which had most impact, and the singles and albums which have endured. The majority of the lists and all of the graphics have been compiled exclusively for the Music Chronicle, using original research that has sourced information from both contemporary and more recent publications. In time for its 40th anniversary, the second edition in the Music Chronicle series covers 1981. It shines a spotlight on Adam & The Ants, Queen, Toyah, U2, The Human League, Shakin’ Stevens, Bucks Fizz, Bob Marley, Kim Wilde, The Rolling Stones, Soft Cell, Blondie, Air Supply, John Lennon, O.M.D., Randy Crawford, Julio Iglesias, Elvis Presley, Brit Funk, Ghost Town, Bronze Records, disco medleys, MTV, The Birdie Song, Wigan Casino, The Blitz Kids, HMV, Kerrang!, The Royal Wedding, home taping, Eel Pie Studios and much more. Who were the biggest selling songwriters and producers of 1981 ? Which festival had the largest attendance ? What were the critics’ favourite albums of the year ? What were the biggest American hits that failed to chart in the UK ? Which artists sold more records in 1981 than they did in any other year ? What breakthrough technologies were launched that year ? Who are the most successful musical stars that were born in 1981 ? Which Greatest Hits album contained the most hits ? Whose stage set was stolen, and whose sold for over £11,000 at auction ? Where would you have obtained a copy of “Pinball Wizard” by Bucks Fizz ? How many Top 20 hits were spun out of Crossroads ? Why did Queen have to cancel two concerts in Venezuela ? Which chart star has a Masters of Fine Art in Sculpting ? Which number one album included two versions of “The Birdie Song” ? Who was signed to his eighth record label when he scored his first hit ? All of these questions are answered amongst the wealth of information that builds to tell the complete story of popular music in 1981.   The Music Chronicle 1981 is available for £5.99 + P&P (£1.99 in the UK), directly from the publisher by e-mail to musicchronicle@yahoo.com Or for £6.99 + P&P from eBay. Search for Music Chronicle 1981. Music Chronicle 1981 For anyone who missed The Music Chronicle 1980, this is available together with The Music Chronicle 1981 from eBay, with a saving on P&P. Music Chronicle 1980 + 1981

Even when "full year" lists were compiled in the early 80s, they still missed the vital Christmas week, when no data was collected by the BMRB. The only place you will find a list for all of 1980 is in The Music Chronicle 1980, which has estimated sales for that missing week, using a variety of industry sources, and compiled a year end Top 197 for UK singles and Top 147 for UK albums which covers the entire year. The Music Chronicle 1981 is currently in preparation, and will also fill in the gaps to create the most accurate year end lists for 1981 which have ever existed.

Thank you very much for your kind comments. It is our plan to produce the 1981 book this year. However, we need to sell a few more copies of the 1980 book to justify the effort. Word-of-mouth is helping sales tick over, so please continue to talk about the Music Chronicle to anyone who has a fascination with the minutiae of the British music scene.

Happy New Year to everyone at BuzzJack. We have now dispatched copies of the Music Chronicle 1980 to France, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden and Norway, as well as customers in Britain. Here are some of the comments about it which have been posted on various websites and forums:- “A great addition to my music book library. The content is outstanding. I'll happily recommend it to people.” “Sean seems to have covered all the important and interesting musical facts and events of the year very well. I get the feeling I may be referring to this book often in the future and look forward to seeing other years in the series.” “The 1980 Book is excellent. I highly recommend it, as it is well worth its price. I urge every UK chart fan to buy the 1980 book. It is a great addition to any chart books collection.” “I study the UK Charts avidly, but there were many details in the book that I was unaware of. I cannot praise the book enough.” “It's an excellent book, full of fascinating stats and information.” “I can highly recommend the 1980 book which I received this week. Excellent and loads of facts and trivia.” “I ordered a copy of this and it really is a fantastic source of information for the price.” “Amazing value and hours of reading and digesting! Couldn't even begin to imagine how much work went into this!” The Music Chronicle 1980 is available for £5.95 + P&P from eBay or directly from the publisher at musicchronicle@yahoo.com

Again, correct. The Music Chronicle 1980 notes this, and also mentions the other unlikely hit that was given national exposure by Noel Edmonds.

You are quite right. You'll find more on that subject on page 40 of the book. Thank you for ordering it.

Thank you very much to everyone who has already purchased a copy of The Music Chronicle 1980. We sold out the first batch, but don't worry, we have put more copies up for sale on eBay. And, don't forget, you can save nearly 10% off the price if you buy directly from the publisher. Many people have already taken this route. Just send an email to musicchronicle@yahoo.com A couple of people have already posted very kind reviews about the book. The first said: "The 1980 Book is excellent. Full of details about Sales and many Lists of various types of Best Selling Formats and Genres. I highly recommend it, as it is well worth its price. I study the UK Charts avidly, but there were many details in the Book that I was unaware of. I cannot praise the Book enough. Hopefully, there will be further Books from the compiler, such as one on 1976 and 1979, where the BMRB, (Chart Compilers), ended the Sales Year, around 3 Weeks before those Years ended. It would be good to see estimated Year End Singles and Albums Chart for those Years, showing Sales for the full Year. (BMRB = British Market Research Bureau, who compiled the UK Charts in 1976 and 1979 etc. The OCC of their time). In the meantime, I urge every UK Chart Fan to buy the 1980 Book. It is a great addition to any Chart Books collection..." And the second said: "I ordered a copy of this and it really is a fantastic source of information for the price. I sincerely hope you carry on, at least through the 80s and 90s - and preferably the other decades too!"

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