Factoid

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

According to this morning's paper, 2008 is set to be the highest-selling year for singles EVER, with total sales topping 100m for the first time (compared to 1979's 89m). Obviously physical sales are a miniscule proportion of this but even so, that's a lot of sales. (And christ only knows how many non-sale downloads are going on).

I was a bit surprised by this!

Comments

[carsmilesteve.livejournal.com]

i suppose "in the air tonight" is probably the key example here innit? i guess it's looooooooads easier to send an email saying "dere itunes, this is an single nao" than y'know, actually making some new bits of plastic/sleeves etcetc

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

I guess the key test would be whether there's been a UK hit yet where the public picked a song that the record label WASN'T promoting as a single. I don't think that's happened - though we've seen examples of older singles being picked up (that rash of Ting Tings hits for instance).

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

I think Adele and Duffy both had non-promoted songs in the chart around the time of the January hype but tbh I was trying not to pay attention.

'No Air' first hit the top 75 at exactly the same time when the record company were trying to promote 'Tattoo'.

[koganbot]

I haven't confirmed this (or made much of an attempt to, other than once sending a Disney promo person an email that wasn't answered), but this might be what happened in 2007 with Miley's "See You Again" in the U.S.: Three other songs were promoted as singles but this was the one that kept leading the downloads, and finally radio picked it up.

[braisedbywolves.livejournal.com]

And "99 problems" post-Glasto, I suspect.