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Feb 13

Charts – 12 February 2012

Posted on Monday, February 13, 2012 by Paul in Music

First things first: no, there aren’t any Whitney Houston songs on this chart.  The chart week runs from Sunday to Saturday, so all of the memorial sales will count towards the next chart.  In fact, judging from iTunes, it looks like the major impact will be sales of her greatest hits albums; I’m not expecting a deluge on the singles chart, though things could always change during the week.

The midweek chart showed “Titanium” by David Guetta staying at number one, but as it turns out, it didn’t quite hold on.  Instead, it slips to number two, and gets replaced by this:

“Somebody I Used to Know” by Gotye featuring Kimbra entered at number 36 four weeks ago and has been climbing steadily since.  I already covered it in the 15 January post, so go and read that if you want more on the artists.

Since it’s the debut hit for both acts, even though Gotye in particular has been around for years, technically it means they also both join the list of true one hit wonders until such time as they register a follow-up hit.  But I don’t imagine that’s going to be a major problem for them.

Although there’s been a rapid turnover of number one singles so far this year, with one exception they’ve all climbed from further down the chart, which seems a healthy trend.  (The exception was “Twilight” by Cover Drive, which you’ve probably already started forgetting about.) Mind you, it’s not like there’s been a heavy schedule of new releases.

This week’s big new entry is at number 3: “T.H.E. (The Hardest Ever)” by the frankly implausible combination of will.i.am featuring Jennifer Lopez & Mick Jagger.  Perhaps this was somebody’s idea of a joke.  Perhaps when you join will.i.am’s management company, they tell you to try and line up a collaboration with Jennifer Lopez and Mick Jagger, and also fetch a left-handed screwdriver.  The resulting record is not, in fact, the hardest ever.

This is will.i.am’s 13th solo hit in total, though since he’s a serial collaborator, it’s only his fourth as the lead artist.  Jennifer Lopez had a number one hit only last year with “On The Floor”.  But Mick Jagger is a less frequent presence these days.  He was last on the chart in 2005 as a member of the Rolling Stones, when “Rain Fall Down” made number 33.  He hasn’t had a solo hit since “Sweet Thing” (24 in 1993), and this is his biggest hit since “Dancing in the Street” with David Bowie made number 1 in 1985.

Choreography for the ages, I think you’ll agree.

The other new entries are right at the bottom of the chart, but before we get there, this week’s big climber. Number 11 is “Turn Me On” by David Guetta featuring Nicki Minaj, up from 33.  Yes, he’s only just been knocked off number one, and he’s already got another single out.  Quite why you’d bother getting Nicki Minaj in to sing through an auto tune filter for most of the record, I’m not entirely sure, but it’s selling well enough.  Very, very odd video – though the best stuff is in the first minute.

And now for the stragglers.  Number 34 is a re-entry for “Nothing’s Real But Love” by Rebecca Ferguson, which made number 10 back in December.  No idea why it’s returned.

Number 37 is “Give Me All Your Luvin'” by Madonna featuring Nicki Minaj & M.I.A..  This was released last week, but it was ineligible for the chart because it was also being made available to people who pre-ordered Madonna’s new album.  That promotion ended on Monday, so the sales from Tuesday to Saturday were eligible for the chart.  But even allowing for all that, a number 37 placing is pretty dismal, and the iTunes chart suggests this one’s going no further.  Reviews have been decidedly mixed, it has an unusually high proportion of negative votes on YouTube, and bluntly, it’s looking like a bit of a bomb.

Frankly, the only person on this record who sounds awake is Nicki Minaj… and while I admire her determination to cram as much as possible into her bit, her frantic audio mugging (as somebody once described it) might strike some people as a little too awake.  As for M.I.A., I have no clue why she’s here other than to prop up Madonna’s credibility account.

And it doesn’t help that the opening lines remind me of this.

Number 38 is “Mirror” by Lil Wayne featuring Bruno Mars, which looks to set climb next week.  And 39 is a re-entry for “Let Me Go” by Maverick Sabre, as a spillover from the release of his album – number 2 this week, completing his transition to mainstream star.

Bring on the comments

  1. Nick says:

    I have yet to manage to listen to that Madonna song for more than 2 minutes. It’s incredibly boring.

  2. errant says:

    I think it’s refreshing that Madonna/LiveNation/Interscope are perfectly happy cannibalizing chart placing for the single to sell albums on the increasingly irrelevant and archaic charts, especially in the UK which seems like the last market that still gives a shit about the singles charts.

    By all acounts, the pre-orders for MDNA (the parent album) have been phenomenal.

  3. Paul says:

    She’s not the first act to do this. Coldplay did it on the last two albums. There’s also an increasing divide between bands who sell in singles and albums formats – though with the market shifting heavily towards the download of individual tracks over recent years, there’s a definite argument that the album format is far less significant than it used to be.

  4. kingderella says:

    yes, M.I.A. really is just a human accessory here, isnt she?

    i actually like the track. it doesnt blow me away, but then again, when was the last time madonna did anything musically relevant? (id say ‘music’, which was in 2000). its catchy and fun, and its growing on me.

  5. errant says:

    Indeed, Paul. Which I think makes it more impressive that certain artists/labels are willing to put their efforts into album promotion, where the real money is made (touring aside). Instead of getting %70 out of a $1.29 (or whatever it is in the UK iTunes), even if the pre-orders are deeply discounted, they’re making %70 off of $9.99 or $12.99 or what have you, if they don’t have plans to promote 4 or 5 individual singles from the album.

    Add to that the fact that Madonna fans are notorious singles collectors, in all formats, and at this time Interscope has no plans to release any format other than a 1- or 2-track single to the UK or Europe.

  6. errant says:

    Also, has the immediate download of the single ended in the UK? On US iTunes, it’s still being advertised as available if you pre-order.

  7. Paul says:

    Yes, the pre order promotion ended last Monday. That’s why it’s eligible for the charts at all.

    But even on the strength of five days’ sales in its second week, I’d expect it to be way, way higher than 37. (And the iTunes chart suggests it’s going no further.) Granted, in this territory she didn’t have the benefit of appearing on the Superbowl, but with two weeks of radio play alone, she should have done a lot better. It looks very much like the UK doesn’t like the track.

  8. errant says:

    It’s fallen out the Top 40, as we know by now. Expect a rebound after the 2-track single is released. Really shocked that Interscope still has no plans to release a multi-format physical single in the UK.

  9. Paul says:

    Physical singles make very little difference these days. Mainstream retailers just don’t bother with them, unless it’s a major charity release or the winner of a talent show. CD singles are really only worth doing if you’ve got a hardcore collector fan base willing to mail order them. I’m sure Madonna has some fans in that category, but overall, I very much doubt that a physical release would have had much impact on her UK sales.

  10. errant says:

    Madonna has a disproportionately large number of singles collectors in her fanbase, which is how she’s managed to keep racking up #1’s & #2’s in the UK even in the last decade.

    And so far, there’s only one remix available. These people will buy them all up if they are available. God knows why, since they’re mostly awful any more, and I myself mostly gave up on it about a decade ago.

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