RAGGGGggeeee!!!!!

[Dee]

I dont even think Joe had a good voice, he doesnt even look the part of a popstar.

Am so glad the cycle has been broken, ok it may not be a permanent thing, but it just goes to show, the X Factor single isnt always going to hit the top spot

[Glaucus]

To true..

I think this is a very good balanced article on the reason and choice

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/18/20091220...s-a56114e.html

Rage Against the Machine vocalist Zack de la Rocha told BBC radio: "We are very ecstatic and excited about the song reaching number one.

"It says more about the spontaneous action taken by young people throughout the UK to topple this very sterile pop monopoly and less about the song and the band. We are very proud to have had the song chosen as the vehicle by which to do this."

McElderry, 18, said: "Fair play to the guys who have organised the Facebook campaign -- it's been exciting to be part of a much-hyped battle."

He added: "This time last year I never thought for one minute that I'd win 'The X Factor', never mind about having a debut single out, so I'm just delighted to be in the charts."

Pop mogul Simon Cowell, the main force behind 'The X Factor', said: "I am gutted for Joe because a number one single meant a lot to him."

However, Cowell kept a hold on the album chart as Scottish singer Susan Boyle's debut "I Dreamed A Dream" remained at the top spot for a fourth straight week.

"This is a truly remarkable outcome -- possibly the greatest chart upset ever," said Gennaro Castaldo, spokesman for high street retailer HMV.

"This is all about the stunning impact of the Rage Against The Machine Internet campaign in galvanising music fans to protest against the dominance of the reality show in recent years.

"Rage Against The Machine may not be the ideal expression of the Christmas spirit -- and many people will have preferred a more appropriate song to top the festive charts, but their anti-corporate message proved a perfect vehicle through which to register such a powerful protest."

[Stan_Lite]

Originally Posted by AcidHell2

I don't think you realise just how big and popular they are with a statement like a minor hit.

I would consider #25 in 1992 a minor hit.

[petemc]

No.1 in 2009. Major hit

[Glaucus]

Originally Posted by Stan_Lite

I would consider #25 in 1992 a minor hit.

several platinum cds, sale out gigs around the world, head liners at the biggest festivals. Millions upon millions of sales and multiple songs and albums in the charts around the world.
A song that has been purchased and listened to by millions for 17 years.
A minor hit is forgotten about after a few weeks. Not listened to and still selling after 15 years, especially considering its genre

[Garp]

Originally Posted by Takhisis

As an aside Rage got the number 1 with 500k sold - didn't it use to be millions sold to get to number 1?

At times, but I think for the most part it's generally a myth. Only 21 singles have ever broken the 10 million mark too, globally!

I've been doing some digging around trying to get some official figures but can't find any. Some tidbits bits of of related trivia that popped up:

Wham's "Last Christmas" was held off the top spot by Band Aid's huge sales in 1984. Almost any other week it would have easily topped the chart, selling half a million copies in that week alone. It went on to sell 1.42 million copies.

So even in 1984 we were still only on the 500,000 copies level to 'easily' top the chart.

Biggest-selling single to peak at number 4 is Robbie Williams' "Angels". It shipped a million copies to the shops and sold in excess of 864,000.

- Though it's not clear whether they mean that 864k is for the first week it was sold in or not. If it did I'm curious to see what it was up against!

From wikipedia on fastest selling singles:

The record is held by Elton John with "Candle In The Wind 1997" which sold 1.55 million copies in its first week (it sold 658,000 on the first day of release, 13 September 1997). It is also the biggest selling single in the UK as well as the fastest selling. "Candle In The Wind 1997" is also the biggest selling single in the world (37m copies) and the fastest selling single in many other countries also - it went platinum (sold a million copies) in 24 hours in the US. Elton outsold Dario G's 'Sunchyme' by a clear margin, and this is the biggest ratio between #1 and #2 to date. Dario G sold 85,000 to hit the #2 slot that week.

The fastest selling debut single is "Anything is Possible/Evergreen" by Will Young. It sold 1.11 million copies in its first week of sale. Massive publicity had built up in his single due to Pop Idol and the massive phone vote of 8.7 million people phoning in the final showed how popular the show was, with him himself receiving over 4 million votes. He is one of the few people to receive longstanding and great success from a talent show in the UK.[citation needed]

The fastest selling single from a group (and also fastest selling debut from a group) is Hear'Say's debut single, "Pure And Simple". Winning ITV's first series of Popstars, massive interest in the group had built up and their debut single proved to be incredibly successful, selling 0.55 million copies in its first week. This is only true if we discount Band Aid from being classified as a group whose single "Do They Know It's Christmas?" sold 0.75 million copies in its first week due to the pictures shown of the distressing famine in Ethiopia

Honestly all just leads me to think 'millions' was a myth.

[NokkonWud]

Originally Posted by petemc

Shelter have been given nearly £70,000 due to the efforts by us RATM fans. Thats the difference. Real music won the day and the profits went to a good cause. Didn't hear Cowell offering to donate his profits to Shelter.

Very true.

[Knipples]

Am not sticking up for either side because I think Shelter is a fantastic cause, but The X factor finalists had that song by Michael Jackson out where all the proceeds were going to Great Ormond Street.

[Stan_Lite]

Originally Posted by petemc

No.1 in 2009. Major hit

Originally Posted by AcidHell2

several platinum cds, sale out gigs around the world, head liners at the biggest festivals. Millions upon millions of sales and multiple songs and albums in the charts around the world.
A song that has been purchased and listened to by millions for 17 years.
A minor hit is forgotten about after a few weeks. Not listened to and still selling after 15 years, especially considering its genre

What I was trying to say was that, when the song was first released as a single, comparatively few people bought it. The point is largely irrelevant anyway as it wasn't the main thrust of my argument.

My main point is that, the RATM single only got to where it is this week because people wanted to "stick it to da man". Now that that has been achieved, RATM will slowly slide back into relative obscurity and Joe McElderry will continue to enjoy success. Joe McElderry and all the previous X Factor winners enjoy success because more of the people who buy records want to listen to the bland pap they churn out than acts like RATM - that's an indisputable fact.

What has happened this weekend isn't a victory for proper music over manufactured mediocrity, it's the internet flexing it's muscles and proving that, with a highly concentrated effort, it can affect the charts. It is in no way sustainable and within a matter of weeks, everything will be back to the way it was and we'll have the same crap populating the charts we usually do - because that's what the people who buy music want.

Don't get me wrong, I'm all in favour of "proper" music and can't stand most of the stuff that's been in the charts for many years now. Unfortunately, the charts are generated by the music people actually buy and, as long as more people want to buy the bland offerings in the charts, that's what will be there. That's why I refuse to get excited about this week's "victory". It will be a short term blip and normal service will be resumed shortly. You won't change what people want to buy by synthetically massaging the charts for a week - the status quo will resume next week.

Kudos to RATM for donating the proceeds to Shelter - a very worthy cause. Hopefully, this exercise will at least mean that a few homeless people will be able to spend Christmas a bit more comfortably than they would have and a few may be given the opportunity to get off the streets for good.

[Will]

Oooh Status Quo - good choice Stan!

I didn't buy anything (I seldom actually buy music - most of the stuff I like and have is not modern and I already own it) and don't particularly care about the politics behind it. However I do like the RATM song (I have the album at home as well - kinda like their stuff, if I'm in the right mood for it).

However, I can't stand Xfactor and all this rubbish manfactured tripe with talentless people who only win through popularity rather than skill (I'm not saying I'm right or this is fact, this is just how I feel, an opinion.) I find all these "talent" contest dire...

I kind a like that people had a rise against it, I find it kinda funny. I never pay attention to the charts or who is Christmas #1 as I don't give a fig about it. However, purely through my evil, vitriolic and nasty personal ways I like the fact that the xfactor chap didn't win. None of them really have careers, let's face it, they do it for 15 mins of fame, Simon Cowell makes a huge amount of money (good on him, why not he's a business man, that's all he's interested in. He doesn't really care if they have talent as long as it brings him big bucks).

However, I like how people have got together and changed what was due to be a predictable outcome. Power to the people and all that. I like a bit of anarchy or a bit of ruffling of feathers. Controversy makes me happy - sheep-like behaviour bores me.

Anyway who really cares about the charts anyway?!