The UK Singles Chart

Ed Sheeran has taken 9 out of the top 10 positions In the UK Singles Chart this week and 16 of the Top Twenty. Yet.... he only has 1 single out.

How is this possible, because the powers that be that compile the chart now allow album tracks.

So, even Ed Sheeran says " I'm very disappointed and it should be changed , this is one achievement I definitely won't be celebrating".

This sort of anomoly happened ( to a much lesser extent ) in America a few years ago and they quickly changed the way they were doing things .
When are the people at The Official Charts Company going to wake up ?

 

I think it is based on downloaded tracks.

Although he only has one single out all the people who download other tracks put them into the charts.

Rusty

 

Hi Rusty, yeah that's what's happening, that's why in America they base it now on downloaded tracks but disregard any that are not on general release, those go into a Download Chart..

 

A subject close to my heart!

The chances are, they will never wake up! For one reason or another, the charts have never been accurate! Thats because there has always been a degree of censorship. To ban a record (eg the old Judge Dread songs) almost automatically ensures its sales to take it to the top, bit they are never included. Other records were not included simply because they never made the play lists! a good example of that was "I cant stop loving you" recorded by Paul Anka in 1966. That sold a ridiculous amount of records, but never entered the charts....

Of course, that was in the past, and has nothing to do with todays listings. Back then though, there were "singles" charts and "album charts." I'm under the impression that if a similar system was used today, only one Ed Sheeran song would appear in the Top 20, and only one in the album charts.

 

I don't think it matters. It used to matter. Back in the days before the Internet, when unless you had some seriously underground connections, the only way to discover new music and new artists was to listen to the radio and hope to catch what the dj said at the beginning or end of the record, or watch top of the pops. Of course if you were cool enough to go to the decent clubs (as I was ), you could ask the dj what record he was playing if you liked it, and then try to remember until at least the next day, so you could trail round the few record shops looking for it.

Back in those days, the charts mattered. Nowadays they don't.

If I want to discover new music now, I don't even need to move, other than my index finger. I just need to flick about on YouTube or various other online sources.