Simon Cowells stable has No 1, 2 and 3 in the Xmas Singles chart!

[clippedgull]

Newly-crowned X Factor queen Alexandra Burke has topped the Christmas singles chart with Hallelujah.

Burke won the battle for Christmas number one ahead of the late Jeff Buckley, whose version of the same song was in second place.

It is 51 years since the same song sat at numbers one and two, and the first time ever at Christmas.

Burke's Hallelujah became the fastest-selling single by a female solo artist, with 576,000 copies sold.

The cover of Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah by Buckley, who died in a drowning accident in Memphis in May 1997 aged 30, finished at number two on download sales only.


The Official Charts Company said the only other time the scenario occurred was in January 1957 when Tommy Steele and Guy Mitchell held the top two places with Singin' The Blues.

Cohen - who wrote the hit more than 20 years ago - made it a triple Hallelujah in the top 40 with a new entry at number 36.

Official Charts Company managing director Martin Talbot said: "It is a particularly amazing week for Alexandra Burke who has broken a string of records to announce her arrival in spectacular style.

"And, chart placings at 1, 2 and 36 are remarkable for a 25-year-old song which has never previously reached the top 40."

HMV's Gennaro Castaldo said: "It was pretty much a given that Alexandra Burke's cover of Hallelujah would dominate the race for this year's Christmas number one, but it's been such a strange year that we thought the charts would throw up some kind of a surprise, and the twist came in the form of the Jeff Buckley cover.

Buckley's Hallelujah is widely regarded as the definitive version

"It's ironic that it's taken the X Factor to get a lot more of us to appreciate the music of Leonard Cohen and the talent of Jeff Buckley."

Burke's victory pushed 2006 X Factor winner Leona Lewis off the top after two weeks. She is at number three with her cover of Snow Patrol's Run.
The reality TV theme continued in the chart charts after comedian Peter Kay's spoof reality TV singer Geraldine entered the top 10 at number five with Once Upon A Christmas Song.

Comeback kings Take That claimed Christmas number one in the album chart with The Circus.

The album is the fastest-selling album in the UK so far this millennium, according to the Official Charts Company, and the second biggest-selling album of 2008.

Duffy's Rockferry was the year's runaway biggest seller so far, with 1.5 million copies sold in 2008 to date.

 

[vegster]

Mnnnnn.... the Cowell " Stable".... my mind sees several Donkeys up to their shins in manure..

 

[NMH]

How come this country, which has a known history in influential, and in influencing music across the World....is consistently churning out and broadcasting so much utter shit??

 

[vegster]

How come this country, which has a known history in influential, and in influencing music across the World....is consistently churning out and broadcasting so much utter shit??

I think there is still good stuff out there but you have to wade through the overhyped to get to it. I have long ago stopped worrying about what this weeks No. 1 is as very rarely is it by a band or artist I would touch with a barge pole.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

I think there is still good stuff out there but you have to wade through the overhyped to get to it. I have long ago stopped worrying about what this weeks No. 1 is as very rarely is it by a band or artist I would touch with a barge pole.

We do churn out some embarrassing stuff though. There is some youtube 'Britain's got talent' clip doing the rounds in Germany of a girl and a dancing dog. My friends find it highly amusing we have a tv program dedicating to finding such new 'talent.' and ask if this is as good as our talent gets.

 

[gripper stebson]

We do churn out some embarrassing stuff though. There is some youtube 'Britain's got talent' clip doing the rounds in Germany of a girl and a dancing dog. My friends find it highly amusing we have a tv program dedicating to finding such new 'talent.' and ask if this is as good as our talent gets.

Thats fair enough. We should all look in envy at Germanys many comedians, actors and musicians.

 

[Lady Whistledown]

What I find hard to grasp is that the X Factor winner inevitably records a song that's been around for years, which nobody has evidently given a shit about until Cowell got his claws into it.

Then, like utter sheep, they all rush out and buy it, regardless of the quality. Why? If the song's that good, why didn't you like it before? I can only conclude that people buy it simply because it's sung by somebody on TV, which is a fairly sad reflection on a large sector of the public.

 

[vegster]

What I find hard to grasp is that the X Factor winner inevitably records a song that's been around for years, which nobody has evidently given a shit about until Cowell got his claws into it.

Then, like utter sheep, they all rush out and buy it, regardless of the quality. Why? If the song's that good, why didn't you like it before? I can only conclude that people buy it simply because it's sung by somebody on TV, which is a fairly sad reflection on a large sector of the public.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

We do churn out some embarrassing stuff though. There is some youtube 'Britain's got talent' clip doing the rounds in Germany of a girl and a dancing dog. My friends find it highly amusing we have a tv program dedicating to finding such new 'talent.' and ask if this is as good as our talent gets.

HEY! Nowt wrong wi' Kate and Gin!

YouTube - Kate and Gin the dancing dog- Britains got talent 2008

 

[Lady Whistledown]

What I would really enjoy, is if, following the announcement of the annual X Factor winner, the viewing public just for once exercised their power of independent thought, and went "Hang on a minute, this song is actually total horseshit, I'm not buying that".

Leaving Cowell scratching his head and searching for a completely new way to fleece people before he gets down to his last £50 million.

 

[Woodingdean Gull]

What I find hard to grasp is that the X Factor winner inevitably records a song that's been around for years, which nobody has evidently given a shit about until Cowell got his claws into it.

Then, like utter sheep, they all rush out and buy it, regardless of the quality. Why? If the song's that good, why didn't you like it before? I can only conclude that people buy it simply because it's sung by somebody on TV, which is a fairly sad reflection on a large sector of the public.

Two points.

First, doesn't this then put Simon Cowell, or his organisation, at the top of the tree, for seeing the potential in a number like "Hallelujah" when it's been around for 25 years but never even been in the top 40, and secondly, Alexandre Burke has an excellent voice and the arrangement of the number also shows how good Cowell's company is to put out a cover that is totally different from any previously well known version.Where he is lucky is in the fact that he gets loads of prime time advertising for this sort of thing.

I actually think both versions are excellent and as much as I like the song itself, I don't like Leonard Cohens version at all.

 

[adrian29uk]

When you get 5 mins, watch channel 4 unsigned act.
All the groups on here can at least play instruments and have talent.
Channel 4 | Orange unsignedAct homepage | 4music

And what's this shit Cowell keeps coming out with, that we should be proud to be British. What over a singer, get real!
I am glad I'm not one of the plebs that is going out and buying this shit, just to fill Cowells bank account. I wish some people would wake up and actually get what is going on here.

 

[Icy Gull]

Christmas number 1s are always shit, it's a tradition.

 

[Tooting Gull]

What I find hard to grasp is that the X Factor winner inevitably records a song that's been around for years, which nobody has evidently given a shit about until Cowell got his claws into it.

Then, like utter sheep, they all rush out and buy it, regardless of the quality. Why? If the song's that good, why didn't you like it before? I can only conclude that people buy it simply because it's sung by somebody on TV, which is a fairly sad reflection on a large sector of the public.

That is certainly true, and a bit baffling.

But at the end of the day, what has happened here? A very good, soulful, spiritual song has had some new life breathed into it and been brought to a new audience, plus by accident Jeff Buckley and Leonard Cohen have got some wider recognition. Can't see a big problem with that.

Reading this and other threads, sometimes it feels like music snobbery has become the new racism - a river of pure bile and hatred.

 

[Jim D]

What does Cowell have to do with Jeff Buckley? Was he his manager? Does he now own the rights to the song? I've no idea what no. 3 is either.

 

[Wardy]

What does Cowell have to do with Jeff Buckley? Was he his manager? Does he now own the rights to the song? I've no idea what no. 3 is either.

Number 3 is Leona Lewis

 

[Normal Rob]

I wish some people would wake up and actually get what is going on here.

Just how patronizing do you want to be? You can't tell people what they can like and can't like as it's their own opinion. Cowell cannot force them to buy the record - they do it of their own accord.

C4's unsigned act is a good show I agree - though i struggle to recall the names of lasts years winning band...

 

[Uncle Spielberg]

Whatever you say the X Factor is pretty fair overall in that over 100 000 people have a democratic chance of breaking into the big time. By the end of it all the best singer has usually risen to the top. Alexandra was the best singer this year that was clear back in September. Leona Lewis is a world class singer.

I find the song dreary and do not like it much. If you don't like it don't buy it. Simple really.

 

[Questions]

They`ve cut this bit out from the original.........
filthy swine Cohen.

There was a time you let me know
What's really going on below
But now you never show it to me, do you?
And remember when I moved in you
The holy dove was moving too
And every breath we drew was Hallelujah

 

[Mellotron]

They`ve cut this bit out from the original.........
filthy swine Cohen.

There was a time you let me know
What's really going on below
But now you never show it to me, do you?
And remember when I moved in you
The holy dove was moving too
And every breath we drew was Hallelujah

That bit is quality in the Buckley version.

The X Factor version has literally RAPED the song of it's true feel and meaning, with disgustingly expensive and expansive production values. Of course by "true feel and meaning" I mean the Buckley version, which is the song at it's most mournfully beautiful.

The Alexandra BERK version I can see being made into a House remix with a hardcore beat.