Continuing my slow catch-up on the singles chart…

It’s September. It’s the start of the winter TV season. And you know what that means. Yes, The X Factor is back.  Brace yourselves for the usual bombardment of tie-in singles, charity releases, records by acts vaguely associated with previous years, and songs plucked from back catalogue obscurity by a high-profile amateur cover version.

Take this week’s number one, which is “Please Don’t Let Me Go” by Olly Murs.  (It’s not embeddable, so you’ll just have to watch it on YouTube, if you want to hear it.)

Olly Murs was the runner-up in last year’s X Factor.  I haven’t checked the release schedules, but if past years are any guide, 2009 winner Joe McElderry should be releasing his own follow-up single shortly, to coincide with the start of the live finals.  Murs, who was also signed by Simon Cowell after the series, gets to release his debut to coincide with the start of the auditions.  It all works out nicely.

When last we saw him, Olly was a nice young chap with a bit of stage presence, more of an entertainer than a great singer, who was being positioned as someone in the mould of early Robbie Williams.  Now that he’s a “proper” recording artist, “Please Don’t Let Me Go” isn’t bad, as these singles go.  It’s a bouncy little thing, with the mildest conceivable hint of reggae, which should probably have come out in midsummer, and will have picked up decent airplay on the MOR stations.  Fair enough, that’s his natural audience.

The single only lasted a week at number 1, but it’s still hovering in the top 5, so it’s done alright.

Thwarted by the reality show juggernaut, “Teenage Dream” by Katy Perry ends up at number 2, thwarted by the reality show juggernaut.  (Again, it’s not embeddable.)  In fact, its sales have held up better than Murs’ – it’s currently sitting at number 3.  It’s her eighth UK hit, and the fourth in a row to reach the top 3.  Not sure about this one, to be honest.  It’s less gimmicky than many of her singles, but not especially catchy either.  Still, she’s trying to broaden her range, at least a little bit.

Now the next one is interesting.  It’s another talent show single, but it’s not X Factor.

“You Took My Heart” by Pepper & Piano, at number 7, is a song from Must Be The Music, an X Factor clone commissioned by Sky One.  MBTM is meant to be X Factor with a bit more credibility.  The judges are Dizzee Rascal, Jamie Cullum and Sharleen Spiteri.  Some actual bands made it past the auditions.  And generally, it seems to be looking for real songwriters.

All of the songs performed on the live semifinals were also recorded in the studio, and released online immediately after the show.  They’re not charity singles, they’re just straightforward download tracks.  (And yes, apparently the acts are getting paid for these.)  X Factor doesn’t do this, for the very good reason that it would give away which act is winning the public vote.  If that had been public knowledge last year, for example, there would have been no tension going into the final at all, because everyone would have known that Joe McElderry’s win was a foregone conclusion.  All of the MBTM semifinalists had singles out, and this is the one that made the top 10.  Rather gives away who was winning that week.

But Must Be The Music is on Sky One, which has a far smaller audience than ITV, so to be honest they probably weren’t expecting to shift many copies.  The appearance of a MBTM track in the top ten is unexpected, to say the least.  And there’ll be more of this in the next couple of charts.  Given that Sky One has nowhere near the market clout of ITV, it’s nice to see that you can put a complete unknown on a minority TV channel, and people will actually go and buy the record if you make it easy enough.

The other new entries this week:

• “Make You Feel My Love” by Adele at number 24.  Adele Adkins was a hotly tipped act in 2008, who doesn’t seem to have released anything since.  She’s best known for her number 2 hit “Chasing Pavements.” “Make You Feel My Love” was a relatively minor single from her 2008 album, peaking at number 26.  It’s a cover version of a song originally recorded by Bob Dylan on his 1997 album “Time Out of Mind”.  Why is it suddenly back in the charts?  Well, why do you think?  Somebody did it in the X Factor auditions, and said it was an Adele song.

• “Power” by Kanye West at number 36.  The lead single from his new album, so presumably they were hoping for a bit more than this.  It’s actually the smallest hit he’s had as a lead artist (though he’s guested on plenty of singles that missed the top 40).  Still, in total it’s his 22nd UK hit.  The “video” is a very odd thing, clocking in at under two minutes and only covering the first verse – supposedly it’s a teaser for a longer clip, which I rather suspect is a euphemism for “we didn’t get it finished in time.”  Kanye says it’s not a video, it’s a moving painting.  That would be a video, Kanye.

• “Right Above It” by Lil Wayne ft Drake at number 37.  In and out in one week.  Wayne’s tenth hit (but only his second as lead artist), and the second for Drake, who had his debut hit a couple of months back with “Find Your Love”.