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Elvis Presley is shown in concert in the later part
of his career.
(AP) | |
MORE than 27 years after he was officially
declared dead Elvis Presley is poised to make history by claiming the
1,000th British chart No 1.
Since his death in August 1977 Elvis has been sighted in any number of
unlikely places, ranging from burger bars and supermarkets to funeral
parlours and sheepdog trials.
He has been a priest, a policeman and a lorry driver. One fan even
claimed to have spotted him returning a Dyson cleaner to the John Lewis
department store in Welwyn Garden City.
Record company executives are now, however, plotting to resurrect him
in the incarnation that won him fame, fortune and iconic status - as a pop
star.
Sony BMG hopes that by releasing all of Elvis's previous chart-toppers
he will be able to claim the coveted 1,000th number-one slot early in the new year.
Band Aid 20 became the 997th No 1 with Do They Know It's Christmas? and
it has led the singles chart for four weeks.
The X Factor winner Steve Brookstein has been tipped as the 998th with
his single Against All Odds, which has sold 40,000 copies so far, taking
the No 2 position and with Band Aid sales expected to slow now Christmas
is past.
Elvis's 18 previous No 1s are being re-released over 17 consecutive
weeks from January 3 to April 25, starting with All Shook Up and ending
with A Little Less Conversation.
Strict chart rules mean All Shook Up is ineligible because it will come
in a collectors' box, so Jailhouse Rock will be released on the same day.
The record label has described the attempt at claiming the 1,000th No 1
for Elvis as "the most ambitious singles release campaign in the history
of the UK record industry". Gennaro Castaldo, an HMV spokesman, said:
"With Band Aid 20 currently occupying the top spot, it's difficult to
predict precisely when the 1,000th No 1 will occur. However, there's a
possibility that it could fall to Elvis, which would be a fantastic and
truly fitting way to celebrate the landmark.
"Sales of singles around this time of year tend to be at their lowest.
So if Elvis fans are out in force to buy his reissued No 1s, there's every
chance this could happen." The 1,000th No 1 will be one of the last based
on sales of singles in the shops alone. In the next few months the chart
will be changed to incorporate internet downloads.
(Agencies) |
在官方正式宣布其死訊的27年多后,“貓王”埃爾維斯·普雷斯利將有可能開創(chuàng)歷史,成為英國流行樂壇史上的第1000位排行榜冠軍。
自從他1977年8月去世以來,埃爾維斯的肖像就出現(xiàn)在各種不可思議的地方,比如肉餅店、超市、殯儀館,甚至牧羊犬選拔中心。
他曾經(jīng)當(dāng)過牧師、警察和卡車司機(jī)。他的一個(gè)樂迷甚至宣稱曾在衛(wèi)爾溫花園城看到他正將一臺(tái)戴森牌吸塵器歸還給約翰·劉易斯百貨店。
唱片公司的總監(jiān)正策劃以一個(gè)流行樂手的身份來重振埃爾維斯的聲威,因?yàn)檫@一身份給他帶來了名譽(yù)、財(cái)富和偶像地位。
索尼BMG公司希望通過發(fā)行埃爾維斯以前的所有榮登排行榜首的音樂專輯,使他在新年年初成為令人垂涎的第1000位排行榜冠軍。
慈善音樂組合Band Aid 20 憑借一首《他們知道圣誕節(jié)到了嗎?》成為第997位排行榜冠軍,并雄踞單曲排行榜長(zhǎng)達(dá)四周之久。
美國節(jié)目X
Factor的獲勝者史蒂夫·布魯克斯坦被推為第998位排行榜冠軍,其成名單曲《不計(jì)成敗》現(xiàn)已賣出四萬張,在排行榜上暫居第二,而圣誕節(jié)已經(jīng)過去,預(yù)計(jì)Band
Aid組合的銷售勢(shì)頭將減緩。
埃爾維斯早先的18張冠軍碟將在17周(1月3日到4月25日)的時(shí)間內(nèi)再度發(fā)行,從《All Shook Up》開始,到《A Little
Less Conversation》結(jié)束。
按照嚴(yán)格的排行榜規(guī)則,《All Shook Up》不能算合格的打榜專輯,因?yàn)樗鼘⒊蔀檎洳匕�,為此,《Jailhouse
Rock》將于同一天發(fā)行。在唱片封套上,為埃爾維斯?fàn)幦〉?000位冠軍的嘗試被描述為“英國唱片業(yè)歷史上最有野心的單曲發(fā)行運(yùn)動(dòng)”。英國“主人之聲”(His
Master's Voice)唱片行的發(fā)言人詹納羅·卡塔多說:“因?yàn)楝F(xiàn)在占據(jù)榜首的是Band Aid
20,所以很難準(zhǔn)確地預(yù)測(cè)第1000個(gè)排行榜冠軍何時(shí)才會(huì)出現(xiàn)。不過,這個(gè)頭銜將有可能落到埃爾維斯頭上,并成為慶祝這一劃時(shí)代事件的出色而且真正合適的方式。
“每年的這個(gè)時(shí)節(jié),各大單曲的銷量總是趨于歷史最低點(diǎn)。因此,如果埃爾維斯的樂迷們能夠大量購買重新發(fā)行的冠軍碟,這很有可能發(fā)生。”英國樂壇上的第1000位排行榜冠軍也將是最后一批僅根據(jù)單曲的店面銷售情況進(jìn)行排名的唱片之一。在接下來的幾個(gè)月里,英國流行音樂排行榜將發(fā)生變化,與網(wǎng)絡(luò)下載流量相結(jié)合。
(中國日?qǐng)?bào)網(wǎng)站譯) |