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Originally posted by brian05
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I wish those figures were true, all high quality albums that everyone interested in music should own. But sadly, it doesn't look true at all (except maybe for LZIV). -
Because Physical Graffiti was in the charts for 27 weeks whereas Led Zeppelin IV was in the charts for 69 weeks to sell 1.5 million. There is no way that sales could be 5 million. The record company would have released this information to the public if it had outsold the Beatles.Originally posted by Kashmir75Comment
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Australian Chart
Code:Singles - 3/16/1963 52 Please Please Me - 5/25/1963 9 From Me To You - 8/31/1963 3 She Loves You/I'll Get You -12/21/1963 1 I Want To Hold Your Hand/This Boy - 1/11/1964 5 Twist And Shout - 1/25/1964 1 I Saw Her Standing There/Love Me Do - 2/22/1964 36 Please Please Me - 2/22/1964 52 The Beatles' Hits: Please Please Me - 2/29/1964 21 From Me To You/Thank You Girl - 2/29/1964 29 My Bonnie - 3/14/1964 1 Roll Over, Beethoven/Hold Me Tight - 3/14/1964 79 The Beatles No.1: Anna (Go To Him)/Chains/Misery - 3/21/1964 1 All My Loving - 4/25/1964 1 Can't Buy Me Love/You Can't Do That - 4/25/1964 32 Cry For A Shadow - 5/30/1964 1 Requests: Long Tall Sally/Boys/I Call Your Name - 6/20/1964 16 Ain't She Sweet - 7/11/1964 1 A Hard Day's Night/Things We Said Today - 8/ 1/1964 7 More Requests: SLow Down/Matchbox/Till There Was You - 8/22/1964 1 I SHould Have Known Better/If I Fell -11/28/1964 1 I Feel Fine/SHe's A Woman -12/26/1964 44 And I Love Her/Tell Me Why - 3/13/1965 1 Rock And Roll Music/Honey DOn't - 4/24/1965 1 Ticket To Ride/Yes It Is - 6/26/1965 84 Eight Days A Week - 7/24/1965 1 Help!/I'm Down -10/16/1965 2 Yesterday/Act Naturally -12/11/1965 1 We Can Work It Out/Day Tripper - 3/26/1966 1 Nowhere Man/Norwegian Wood - 6/18/1966 1 Paperback Writer/Rain - 8/27/1966 1 Yellow Submarine/Eleanor Rigby - 3/11/1967 1 Penny Lane/Strawberry Fields Forever - 7/15/1967 1 All You Need Is Love/Baby, You're A Rick Man -12/ 9/1967 1 Hello, Goodbye/I Am The Walrus - 3/16/1968 3 Magical Mystery Tour (EP): Magical Mystery Tour/The Fool On The Hill - 3/30/1968 1 Lady Madonna/The Inner Light - 9/21/1968 1 Hey Jude/Revolution - 2/22/1969 1 Ob-La-Di, Ob-Al-Da/While My GUitar Gently Weeps - 5/10/1969 1 Get Back/Don't Let Me Down - 6/21/1969 1 The Ballads Of John And Yoko -10/25/1969 1 Something/Come Together - 3/16/1970 1 Let It Be - 6/22/1970 7 The Long And WInding Road - 6/ 7/1976 86 Yesterday - 8/30/1976 93 Got To Get You Into My Life - 9/18/1978 90 Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band/With A Little Help From My Friends - 5/ 3/1982 33 Beatles Movie Medley -11/24/1986 48 Twist And Shout Albums - 1/ 9/1965 1 A Hard Day's Night - 2/ 6/1965 1 Beatles For Sale - 9/18/1965 1 Help! - 2/26/1966 1 Rubber Soul - 9/24/1966 1 Revolver -11/19/1966 11 The Beatles Greatest Hits Vol. 1 - 3/ 4/1967 9 The Beatles Greatest Hits Vol. 2 - 8/ 5/1967 1 Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band - 6/ 8/1968 7 A Collection Of Beatles Oldies -12/21/1968 1 The Beatles (White Album) - 2/ 8/1969 4 Yellow Submarine -10/25/1969 1 Abbey Road - 5/ 4/1970 1 Hey Jude - 6/ 8/1970 1 Let It Be - 3/13/1972 10 The Essential Beatles - 2/19/1973 9 The Beatles' Australian 10th Anniversary 1963-1973 - 7/ 9/1973 11 1967-1970 - 7/ 9/1973 18 1962-1966 -10/14/1974 48 Magical Mystery Tour - 4/19/1976 4 Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band - 6/28/1976 4 Rock 'N' Roll Music - 5/16/1977 12 The Beatles At The Hollywood Bowl - 5/23/1977 24 Live! At The Star-Club In Hamburg, Germany: 1962 -11/28/1977 59 Love Songs -12/ 3/1979 33 The Beatles Collection - 5/26/1980 27 Rarities -12/22/1980 23 The Beatles (White Album) - 4/13/1981 1 The Beatles Ballads - 5/24/1982 56 Reel Music - 5/30/1983 1 The Number Ones - 9/ 7/1987 53 Yellow Submarine - 3/21/1988 75 Past Masters Volume 2 - 3/21/1988 79 Past Masters Volume 1 -12/26/1988 82 THe Beatles Box
Code:ARIA Certifications 1 Platinum x8 560,000 1962-1966 Platinum x3 210,000 1967-1970 Platinum 70,000 Anthology 1 Platinum x2 140,000 Anthology 2 Gold 35,000 Anthology 3 Gold 35,000 Let It Be...naked Gold 35,000 Live At The BBC Gold 35,000 Beatles Box Gold 35,000
Comment
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Very interesting stats for Australia, Nelson. Especially the albums section is highly interesting. Never seen one before. Do you know which chart was used? 27 no. 1s in the singles chart, previously the Beatles' total of Oz no.1s was 23. Was there a Top 100 published in Australia already in the 1960s (unusual for a more or less small market).Comment
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Hit Parades (1940 to 1948, monthly Top 20s, 1949 to 1955 weekly Top 20s, from 1956 to 1958 weekly Top 100), which were broadcast by radio stations (usually Top 7 or 8 each week), or were published in newspapers or music-oriented magazines.
then Top 40, from the beginning of the Top 40 era, in March 1958, radio stations' Charts from all areas of Australia, were used to compile a weekly National Chart, resulting in a Top 100 Chart from August 1958 to December 1969.
One of the big difference between the Hit Parades of the 1940s and the Charts of the 21st century is that of Songs and Records. Today's Charts are based on sales of individual Records (CD, vinyl, etc), and sometimes list more than one track; occasionally, more than one version of a song is charting, and is listed separately. Prior to the Rock 'n' Roll era, and in the early days of Top 40, most Hit Parade entries were of Songs, and the lists were compiled from sales of sheet music as well as records, plus other factors such as public requests and (perhaps) the opinions of radio stations' personnel!
Australia's first Top 40 Charts, published by 2UE, Sydney in 1958 were compiled from "Public Survey, Record Sales, Music Sales and a national survey by the Billboard, the amusement industry's leading news weekly". During this year, some songs were charted, even though not available on record on the time. no recorded versions were listed on the early Top 40 charts, even though more songs are associated with a particular well-known version (or two...).
Here's what writer said:
In listing SOngs, I have frequently listed more than one version as contributing to the lists. I have listed the most popular versions, as determined by known sales, or by knowledge of their international success. There are some cases where I have listed versions which were not released in Australia at the time of the song's popularity, yet became well-known versions. In most cases, these versions have become available later, in various formats. Because the songs may have been on the charts due to other sources (eg. sheet music sales), I consider it valid to list unreleased recorded versions. I have not listed all available versions of songs that made the charts, but have chosen only the biggest sellers or best known ones. It was common for multiple versions of songs to be available, particularly in the early 1940s. The first No. 1 song of 1940, "South Of The border (Down Mexico Way)" was available in 8 versions, of which 3 are included in the book, Later than year "WHen You Wish Upon A Star" (from "Pinnochio") was represented by 12 versions, again only 3 of these appearing in the book. Perhaps the extreme example for multiple versions was "Volare (Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu)" in 1958; I have listed only 2 of 21 versions reported to be available at the time.
Comment
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Yeah Brian, weird figures. As I said, all of the rest of the list looked OK.Originally posted by brian05
Anyway, the Led Zep titles FAR outsold the Dylan ones around the world. Led Zep IV sold 22 million in the US alone.
All of these 4 figures are wrong - both for UK sales and world sales. Nevermind, as I said, all the rest looked pretty good.See Page One of my threads for all updatesComment
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Hi KashmirOriginally posted by Kashmir75
I'm afraid 5m for PG in the UK is just impossible.
We have lots of sales data from 1987 and PG just doesn't figure at all. I would guess it has done 1m at the very least and was/still is a great success - but not 5m
Led Zep IV sold more in the UK.
For more info on UK Sales see
http://www.ukmix.org/forums/viewtopic.p ... 61&start=0
In the US, Led Zep IV has sold 22 million! and PG 7.5 million. So the worldwide sales given are far too low.
See
http://www.ukmix.org/forums/viewtopic.php?t=21747%start=0
This has shipment figures for Led Zep titles including double albums and box sets, plus soundscan figures.See Page One of my threads for all updatesComment
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Thanks Nelson. Do you have the Aussie Chart info from 1989 onwards covering all their 90's CD releases like Anthology and singles like Free As A Bird?Originally posted by nelson
Also do you have the New Zealand Chart info?See Page One of my threads for all updatesComment
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Great thread!!
It's worth noting that combined US/UK album sales (134m + 40m = 174m) is roughly 50% of their global total of 370m.
Co-incidently about 45% of album sales generally come from just these two contries...
About 45% of the global sales of "1" come from the UK/US and you'll see that many of their albums have 40-50% of sales just within America and Britain...
On a 'per capita' basis The Beatles sold more in the Uk than the US. However, 40% of their American sales are since 1991!!! In Britain, 25%(approx) of sales are since 1987.
Some dodgy sats provided by the john Tobler/Alan Jones and Music Information database(whoever they are!)
The stats for those Led Zep and Bob Dylan albums are clearly exaggerated, although others on that list from Q mag seem realistic....Comment
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I’ve dug up this info on one of the Beatles forums and find it interesting enough to acquaint you with some curious facts.
"This excellent piece of information was compiled by a guy called Chartfacts for another Beatles forum. Copyright Simon Walters 2002.
Check it out:
I am basing my estimates of Beatles UK singles sales on a variety of sources, which are mentioned in the text below. The information is often contradictory, so trying to make sense of it all is not an easy task.
There are a number of ways to consider sales and I differentiate between them as follows:
1. Advance orders - orders placed by record outlets before a single has been released to the marketplace.
2. Shipment figures - the number of singles shipped by the record company to record outlets (retailers, distributors, wholesalers and mail order companies) before and after it has been released.
Alan Jones, in Record Mirror of 17 October 1987, commented on compiling a top 100 with Graham Walker of Music Week, which celebrated 20 years of Radio 1 as follows: the compilation process was an absolute nightmare. Getting hold of quantifiable data from record companies was almost impossible and even those that were willing to help were often foiled by their own internal accounting. So many companies have changed hands/nationality/distribution over the 20 year period that it was impossible to accurately track sales of many, many records.
3. Returns - singles not sold to the public and returned to record companies.
4. Over the counter sales [unit sales] - the number of singles sold by record outlets to the public. Many books erroneously quote shipment figures as over the counter unit sales.
The collection of information about unit sales data each week to produce the UK singles chart has become increasingly sophisticated since 1952. Until February 1969, it involved telephoning a small selection of record stores and because the sample was so limited, this could only give broad trends rather than specific sales information.
Singles and EPs Released by Parlophone and Apple, 1962 to 1970 - Estimated Sales
As the majority of Beatles sales were in the 1960s, one is reliant on record company information. EMI has published a certain amount about the Beatles catalogue. The singles have not always been available, having been deleted at certain times but most have been steady sellers periodically over 40 or so years. Their major sales periods are:
a) Initial release; b) 1976 re-release in picture sleeves (Penny Lane/Strawberry Fields Forever and Let It Be had of course been released with picture sleeves in 1967 and 1970, respectively but the 1976 versions were different); c) death of John Lennon; d) 20th anniversary re-release.
Love Me Do (released 5th October 1962) 290,000 to 300,000
First charted in 1962, when it reportedly sold 116,227 units [Hits of the 60s, The Million Sellers, by Coryton and Murrells, 1990]. This must be a shipment figure, as the chart compilers did not calculate unit sales.
All Beatles singles were re-released simultaneously on 6th March 1976 in special picture sleeves (although all were available in plain sleeves and had not been deleted at that particular time). Love Me Do got into the lower reaches of the BMRB Top 100 and sold a few thousand.
When John Lennon died, it charted at 156 and may have sold about 1,000 copies. On the 20th anniversary in October 1982 it was re-released and sold about 165,000. On the 30th anniversary in 1992 there were a further 3,000 to 5,000 sales.
Please Please Me (released 11th January 1963) 340,000 to 350,000
A unit sales figure of 310,000 in 1963 is given by [The Long And Winding Road, Neville Stannard, 1983]. This should be taken as a shipment amount.
In 1976 it got into the lower reaches of the BMRB Top 100 and sold a few thousand. The 20th anniversary saw a further 30,000 or so unit sales. Total unit sales are probably somewhere between 340,000 and 350,000.
From Me To You (released 11th April 1963) 710,000 to 720,000
Sales of 660,000 are given by [Coryton/Murrells] up to December 1965. EMI presumably carried out an audit of Beatles sales at the tail end of 1965, as a lot of shipment figures are quoted from this date. In 1976 it got into the lower reaches of the BMRB Top 100 and sold a few thousand.
[The Rock Lists Album, Tobler and Jones, 1982] published a top 100 of the sixties, based on estimates of record sales that they presumably gleaned from information provided by record companies. Although there are some omissions from their list, such as some Cliff Richard singles for instance, this is a great resource. From Me To You is ranked at 35 and I would estimate is at 690,000 unit sales.
20th anniversary 1983, sales were around 20,000.
She Loves You (released 23rd August 1963) 1,890,000
Advance orders were placed for 235,000 copies by 14th August and around 500,000 by the date of release. (The biggest advance by August 1963 was for The Young Ones - Cliff Richard and the Shadows (1962) at 524,000 copies, whilst Its Now Or Never - Elvis Presley (1960) had an advance of approaching 500,000).
Shipments were as follows: 03-09-1963 500,000; 11-10-1963 750,000; 27-11-1963 1.05m; 31-12-1963 1.3m; 31-01-1964 1.5m [The Long And Winding Road].
From these figures, one can estimate that She Loves You passed the 500,000 unit sales mark by late September / early October and 1 million by the first few weeks of December 1963.
The 1976 re-issue reached the 50s in the BMRB Top 100 and sold a few thousand. On its 20th anniversary re-issue in 1983, it got to number 45 and sold about 15,000 to 20,000.
[Coryton/Murrells] and [Stannard] put final unit sales at 1.6m. In Record Mirror of 19th January 1985, She Loves You is placed as the 7th all-time best seller at 1.6m. [The Top 10 Of Music] gives a total of 1.89m, which is repeated in [The Top 10 Of Everything, Ash, (1998 to date)] and in Music Week 9th March 2002.
I guess that EMI carried out an audit of the whole Beatles catalogue in around 1987 when it revealed the shipment figures for Sgt. Pepper at 4.25m. The estimate for She Loves You was presumably increased from 1.6 m to over 1.8m.
She Loves You was the best selling single of 1963 and the UK all-time best seller between January 1964 and January 1978. It is currently eighth on the all-time list.
I Want To Hold Your Hand (released 29th November 1963) 1,750,000
Advance orders for I Want To Hold Your Hand were at 700,000 by 06-11-1963. (It had only been recorded on 17-10-1963 and received its mono mix on 21-10-1963). Orders reached 940,000 by 27-11-1963, two days before release [The Long And Winding Road]. This was the biggest advance in the UK, overtaking The Young Ones - Cliff Richard and the Shadows (1962) at 524,000 copies.
The initial factory pressing of the single before the release date was for 500,000, an unprecedented number in those days and would have taken at least a week to distribute.
Shipments: 31-12-1963 1.25m; 17-01-64 1.5m; January 1974 1.509m [The Long And Winding Road].
It is likely that I Want To Hold Your Hand was selling over 250,000 per week for at least its first three weeks on the market and passed the 500,000 unit sales mark by mid December 1963, and 1 million by the end of the year.
The 1976 re-issue reached the 60s in the BMRB Top 100 and sold a few thousand. On its 20th anniversary re-issue in 1983, it reached number 62 and sold about 5,000.
In Record Mirror of 19th January 1985, I Want To Hold Your Hand is the 8th all-time best seller at 1.5m. [The Top 10 Of Music] in 1993 gives a total of 1.64m. In 1987, its sales were reassessed at 1.75m.
I Want To Hold Your Hand was the second best selling single of 1963 and the UK second all-time best seller between January 1964 and January 1978. It is currently fourteenth on the all-time list.
Cant Buy Me Love (released 20th March 1964) 1,520,000
At least 1 million singles were ordered by 17-03-1964 in advance of release.
This record was probably selling at least 250,000 per week for its first few weeks on the market. Around 1.21m were shipped by 21st April [The Long And Winding Road]. Cant Buy Me Love was the best selling single of 1964.
A sales figure (should be shipment) of 1,286,963 is given up to September 1965 [Coryton/Murrells].
The 1976 re-issue reached the 60s in the BMRB Top 100 and sold a few thousand.
In Record Mirror of 3rd December 1983, Alan Jones reported that the sales of Karma Chameleon - Culture Club were at 1.3m, only 50,000 behind Cant Buy Me Love, the 10th best seller of all-time to date.
On its 20th anniversary re-issue in 1984, it got to number 53 and sold about 5,000 to 10,000.
Its sales have now been estimated at 1,520,000 and it is at twenty in the all-time list.
A Hard Days Night (released 10th July 1964) 730,000 to 750,000
600,000 had been ordered in advance by 10-07-1964 [The Long And Winding Road].
[The Rock Lists Album] top 100 of the sixties has A Hard Days Night at number 29. Sales can be estimated at between 720,000 and 740,000 by 1982. ([The Long And Winding Road] - probably quoting from Murrells - wrote that it shipped 800,000 by 23rd July and eventually sold 1.0m in UK. This is not backed up by any other publication).
The 1976 re-issue reached the 60s in the BMRB Top 100 and sold a few thousand.
On its 20th anniversary re-issue in 1984, it got to number 52 and sold around 5,000 to 10,000.
It may be that EMI reassessed the sales of A Hard Days Night in 1987 but I do not know of any figures.
I Feel Fine (released 27th November 1964) 1,410,000
Advance orders: 05-11-1964 500,000; 27-11-1964 750,000
Shipment figures: 02-12-1964 800,000; 11-12-1964 1.0m [The Long And Winding Road]. September 1965 1,242,333 [Coryton/Murrells].
Excluding Sundays, Christmas and Boxing Day, it had about 27 days in 1964 to sell a million over the counter (at least 250,000 per week) and in all probability, it was able to do so. I Feel Fine was the second best selling single of 1964.
The 1976 re-issue got into the lower reaches of the BMRB Top 100 and sold a few thousand.
On its 20th anniversary re-issue in 1984, it reached number 65 and sold about 5,000.
Its sales have now been estimated at 1,410,000 and it is at twenty-eighth in the all-time list (if White Christmas - Bing Crosby is included).
Ticket To Ride (released 9th April 1965) 580,000 (to 700,000?)
Advance order of 300,000
The 1976 re-issue got into the lower reaches of the BMRB Top 100 and sold a few thousand.
[The Rock Lists Album] top 100 of the sixties has Ticket To Ride at number 61. Sales can be estimated at about 570,000 by 1982.
In 1985 on its 20th anniversary, it reached number 70 and sold between 5,000 and 10,000.
([The Long And Winding Road] wrote that it sold 700,000 copies, which seems to be an over-estimate).
Help! (Released 23rd July 1965) 905,000
Advance orders: 21-07-1965 300,000
Shipment figures: 30-07-1965 500,000; 13-08-1965 800,000 [The Long And Winding Road]; 20-08-1965 815,874 [Coryton/Murrells]
It sold over 900,000 in 1965 [The Long And Winding Road] and [Murrells].
The 1976 re-issue reached number 37.
[The Rock Lists Album] top 100 of the sixties has Help! at number 18 with around 900,000 sales.
In [40 Years Of NME Charts, Rees, Lazell & Osborne, May 1992], a Top 100 of best selling singles from 1952 to 1992 is listed. Help! is at number 66 at around 900,000 sales. Generally, it seems to reflect estimated sales over the period, although it is not as accurate as The Official Chart of 2002.
On its 20th anniversary re-issue in 1985, it did not make the Top 75 singles chart and sold about 5,000.
Day Tripper / We Can Work It Out (released 3rd December 1965) 1,385,000
Shipment figures: 08-12-1965 750,000; 20-12-1965 1.0m
It is possible that Day Tripper / We Can Work It Out managed to convert 1.0m shipment figures to unit sales by the end of 1965 but as one cannot be certain, it should be classed as a million seller by January 1966. It was the third best selling single of 1965 behind Tears - Ken Dodd, and The Carnival Is Over - Seekers.
The 1976 re-issue got into the lower reaches of the BMRB Top 100 and sold a few thousand.
On its 20th anniversary re-issue in 1985, it did not make the Top 75 singles chart and sold about 5,000.
In 2002, the single was the 33rd best seller in the UK (if White Christmas is included).
Paperback Writer (released 10th June 1966) 530,000 to 540,000
Shipments: 300,000 by 15th June and 500,000 by 22nd June 1966 [Disc Weekly]
It sold over 500,000 in 1966 [The Long And Winding Road] and [Murrells].
The 1976 re-issue reached number 23.
[The Rock Lists Album] top 100 of the sixties has Paperback Writer at number 75. Sales are estimated at between 530,000 to 540,000.
On its 20th anniversary re-issue in 1986, it did not make the Top 75 singles chart and sold around 5,000.
Yellow Submarine / Eleanor Rigby (released 5th August 1966) 510,000 to 520,000
Advance orders were 250,000 by release, which EMI had shipped to dealers by 10-08-1966 [The Long And Winding Road].
Shipments: 24-08-1966 300,000; 31-12-1966 455,000
The Beatles got an Ivor Novello award for best selling British single of 1966 (by British writers), with sales of 455,000.
The 1976 re-issue reached the 60s in the BMRB Top 100 and sold a few thousand.
[The Rock Lists Album] top 100 of the sixties has Yellow Submarine / Eleanor Rigby at number 81. Sales are estimated at between 510,000 to 520,000.
On its 20th anniversary re-issue in 1986, it got to number 63 and sold around 5,000.
Penny Lane / Strawberry Fields Forever (released 17th February 1967) 530,000 to 540,000
It shipped 350,000 copies by 20-02-1967 [The Long And Winding Road and Murrells] and 500,000 by 25-03-1967 [Disc Weekly].
It sold over 500,000 in 1967 [The Long And Winding Road] and [Murrells].
The 1976 re-issue reached number 32.
[The Rock Lists Album] top 100 of the sixties has Penny Lane / Strawberry Fields Forever at number 78. Sales are estimated at between 520,000 to 530,000.
On its 20th anniversary re-issue in 1987, it got to number 65 and sold between 5,000 and 10,000.
All You Need Is Love (released 7th July 1967) 560,000 to 570,000
Advance orders of 300,000 [NME]
Shipment: 400,000 by 18-07-1967 and 500,000 by 16-08-1967 [NME]
It sold over 500,000 in 1967 [The Long And Winding Road] and [Murrells].
The 1976 re-issue got into the lower reaches of the BMRB Top 100 and sold a few thousand.
[The Rock Lists Album] top 100 of the sixties has All You Need Is Love at number 68. Sales are estimated at between 550,000 to 560,000.
On its 20th anniversary re-issue in 1987, it got to number 47 and sold around 10,000.
Hello Goodbye (released 24th November 1967) 690,000 to 700,000 or 780,000 to 790,000
It shipped 500,000 by 15-12-1967 [The Long And Winding Road]. NME wrote that the shipment of 500,000 was by 06-12-1967.
The 1976 re-issue got into the lower reaches of the BMRB Top 100 and sold a few thousand.
[The Rock Lists Album] top 100 of the sixties has Hello Goodbye at number 36. Sales are estimated at 690,000.
In September 1987, Gallup / Music Week compiled the [Radio 1 20th Birthday The Top 100 Best Selling Singles of the last 20 years in the UK]. Hello Goodbye is at number 73, which corresponds with sales of between 780,000 and 790,000.
It was difficult for Alan Jones and Graham Walker of Music Week to track the sales of many singles for the September 1987 Top 100 and I assume that some were either left out or had to be roughly estimated on the basis of shipment figures. For Beatles records, the EMI archive is known to be fairly complete and presumably could give accurate shipment figures. It appears that Hello Goodbye shipped over 780,000 copies. I do not know how this compares to unit sales.
On its 20th anniversary re-issue in 1987, it got to number 63 and sold around 5,000.
Lady Madonna (released 15th March 1968) 250,000 to 300,000
A silver disc was awarded by Disc magazine on 30-03-1968, indicating a shipment of at least 250,000 copies. It only spent 8 weeks in the Record Retailer Top 50 during 1968 and probably sold somewhere between 250,000 and 300,000.
The 1976 re-issue got into the lower reaches of the BMRB Top 100 and sold a few thousand.
On its 20th anniversary re-issue in 1988, it got to number 67 and sold around 5,000.
Hey Jude (released 26th August 1968) 850,000 or 930,000 to 940,000
Shipment figures are as follows: 04-09-1968 250,000; 27-09-1968 558,535; 30-11-1968 700,000; 31-12-1968 800,000 [The Long And Winding Road] and [Coryton/Murrells].
The 1976 re-issue reached number 12.
[The Rock Lists Album] top 100 of the sixties has Hey Jude at number 24. Sales are estimated at around 820,000.
Hey Jude is at number 38 in the [Radio 1 20th Birthday Top 100], which corresponds with sales of 930,000 to 940,000.
On its 20th anniversary re-issue in 1988, it got to number 52 and sold around 5,000.
In [40 Years Of NME Charts Top 100] Hey Jude is at number 75 with sales of around 850,000.
Get Back (released 11th April 1969) 570,000 to 580,000
A sales figure of 530,000 has been given for the 1969 release [The Long And Winding Road] and [Murrells].
The 1976 re-issue reached number 28.
[The Rock Lists Album] top 100 of the sixties has Get Back at number 63. Sales are estimated at between 560,000 and 570,000.
On its 20th anniversary re-issue in 1989, it got to number 74 and sold around 5,000.
The Ballad Of John And Yoko (released 30th May 1969) 300,000 to 320,000
A silver disc was awarded by Disc magazine on 12-07-1969, indicating a shipment of at least 250,000 copies. It sold around 300,000 [The Long And Winding Road] and [Murrells].
The 1976 re-issue got into the lower reaches of the BMRB Top 100 and sold a few thousand.
On its 20th anniversary re-issue in 1989, it did not chart and sold around 5,000.
Something/Come Together (released 1969) 200,0000
Excluding EPs, this is the first Beatles single since Love Me Do that was not eligible for a silver disc from Disc magazine.
The 1976 re-issue got into the lower reaches of the BMRB Top 100 and sold a few thousand.
On its 20th anniversary re-issue in 1989, it did not chart and sold around 5,000.
Let It Be (released 6th March 1970) 250,000 to 300,000
Sold around 250,000 in 1970 [Murrells].
The 1976 re-issue reached the 60s in the BMRB Top 100 and sold a few thousand.
On its 20th anniversary re-issue in 1990, it did not chart and sold around 5,000.
The EPs
Extended play records had their own Record Retailer chart from 10th March 1960 to 30th November 1967, after which they were eligible for the Top 50 singles chart. Other music magazines made no distinction between singles and EPs.
EP Shipment figures
Disc music magazine awarded silver discs from 1959 (Side Saddle - Russ Conway was the first) to mark shipments in the UK of 250,000 copies of a record, whether they be singles, EPs or LPs. The award was given on trust - an executive of a record company had to write and claim an award from the magazine.
Parlophone claimed the following Beatles EP silver discs:
Date of Award / EP Title
24-08-1963 Twist And Shout (first EP in UK to be awarded a silver disc)
14-12-1963 The Beatles Hits
21-03-1964 All My Loving
13-02-1965 Long Tall Sally
30-09-1965 The Beatles No1
23-12-1967 Magical Mystery Tour
Twist And Shout EP (released 12th July 1963) 670,000
Sales of EPs were relatively small in UK up to 1963. The biggest sellers before the Beatles were Expresso Bongo - Cliff Richard and the Shadows (1960) with a shipment of 178,138, and Follow That Dream - Elvis Presley (1962).
Twist And Shout sold in quantities usually reserved for a regular single release. According to [The Long And Winding Road] it shipped 250,000 by 13th August and 400,000 by 18th November. [The Rock Lists Album] top 100 of the sixties has the EP at number 42, suggesting sales of around 670,000 by 1982.
Magical Mystery Tour Double EP (released 8th December 1967) 620,000
By the date of release, it had advance orders of 400,000. 600,000 had been shipped by mid-January 1968. [The Long And Winding Road]. [The Rock Lists Album] top 100 of the sixties has the EP at number 50, suggesting sales of around 620,000 by 1982.
[The Top 10 Of Music by Ash, Crampton and Lazell, 1993] lists what they consider to be the top ten EPs in UK. This helps estimate the remaining Beatles EPs that sold over 250,000:
The Beatles Hits (released 6th September 1963) 350,000 to 450,000
All My Loving (released 7th February 1964) 250,000 to 350,000
Long Tall Sally (released 19th June 1964) 250,000 to 350,000
The Beatles No1 (released 1st November 1963) 250,000 to 300,000
The rest of the Beatles EPs sold less than 250,000 each.
Non-EMI releases / Records for Export
Some examples are:
My Bonnie
Aint She Sweet
If I Fell
Cry For A Shadow
Sweet Georgia Brown
None sold in the UK in great quantities.
Singles and EPs Released by Parlophone and Apple, 1962 to 1970 - Estimated Sales
Singles
1 She Loves You (1963) 1,890,000
2 I Want To Hold Your Hand (1963) 1,750,000
3 Cant Buy Me Love (1964) 1,520,000
4 I Feel Fine (1964) 1,410,000
5 Day Tripper / We Can Work It Out (1965) 1,385,000
6 Help! (1965) 905,000
7 Hey Jude (1968) 850,000 [or 930,000 to 940,000]
8 A Hard Days Night (1964) 730,000 to 750,000
9 From Me To You (1963) 710,000 to 720,000
10 Hello Goodbye (1967) 690,000 to 700,000 [or 780,000 to 790,000]
11 Ticket To Ride (1965) 580,000 (to 700,000?)
12 Get Back (1969) 570,000 to 580,000
13 All You Need Is Love (1967) 560,000 to 570,000
14 Penny Lane / Strawberry Fields Forever (1967) 530,000 to 540,000
15 Paperback Writer (1966) 530,000 to 540,000
16 Yellow Submarine / Eleanor Rigby (1966) 510,000 to 520,000
17 Please Please Me (1963) 340,000 to 350,000
18 The Ballad Of John And Yoko (1969) 300,000 to 320,000
19 Love Me Do (1962) 290,000 to 300,000
20 Lady Madonna (1968) 250,000 to 300,000
21 Let It Be (1970) 250,000 to 300,000
22 Something/Come Together (1969) 200,000
EPs
1 Twist And Shout EP (1963) 670,000
2 Magical Mystery Tour Double EP (1967) 620,000
3 The Beatles Hits (1963) 350,000 to 450,000
4 All My Loving (1964) 250,000 to 350,000
5 Long Tall Sally (1964) 250,000 to 350,000
6 The Beatles No1 (1963) 250,000 to 300,000
Copyright Simon Walters 2002.
The source is http://www.beatlelinks.net/forums/showthread.php?t=1351
I'm looking for "TOP POPS/MUSIC NOW" and "MERSEYBEAT / MUSIC ECHO" Charts to complete my 60's singles charts collection.Comment
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Yes andrej, I gave this link on page one of this thread and based my estimates on these figures for the UK Singles and UK EP posts on this thread.Originally posted by andrej
However, useful to have the whole article here as people can do their own maths.
I did find that the total fell short of the 20.8 million singles total given by EMI at the end of 2002. See page one of this thread - UK Singles.See Page One of my threads for all updatesComment
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The Beatles USA Hit Singles and EP's
Vee-Jay
1964 Please Please Me - 3
From Me To You - 41 (reached 116 in 1963)
1964 Do You Want to Know A Secret - 2
Thank you Girl - 35
MGM
1964 My Bonnie - 26
1964 Why - 88
Tollie
1964 Twist and Shout - 2
There's A Place - 74
1964 Love Me Do - 1
PS I Love You - 10
Swan
1964 She Loves You - 1
1964 Sie Liebt Dich - 97
Atco
1964 Ain't She Sweet - 19
Capitol Singles
1964 I WANT TO HOLD YOUR HAND - 1
I SAW HER STANDING THERE - 14
1964 ALL MY LOVING - 45
ROLL OVER BEETHOVEN - 68
1964 CAN'T BUY ME LOVE - 1
YOU CAN'T DO THAT - 48
1964 A HARD DAY'S NIGHT - 1
I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN BETTER - 53
1964 AND I LOVE HER - 12
IF I FELL - 53
1964 I'LL CRY INSTEAD - 25
I'M HAPPY JUST TO DANCE - 95
1964 MATCHBOX - 17
SLOWDOWN - 25
1964 I FEEL FINE - 1
SHE'S A WOMAN - 4
1965 EIGHT DAYS A WEEK - 1
I DON'T WANT TO SPOIL THE PARTY - 39
1965 TICKET TO RIDE - 1
YES IT IS - 46
1965 HELP - 1
I'M DOWN - 101
1965 YESTERDAY - 1
ACT NATURALLY - 47
1965 BOYS - 102 (Starline Label)
1965 WE CAN WORK IT OUT - 1
DAYTRIPPER - 5
1966 NOWHERE MAN - 3
WHAT GOES ON - 81
1966 PAPERBACK WRITER - 1
RAIN - 23
1966 YELLOW SUBMARINE - 2
ELEANOR RIGBY - 11
1967 PENNY LANE - 1
STRAWBERRY FIELDS FOREVER - 8
1967 ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE - 1
BABY YOU'RE A RICH MAN - 34
1967 HELLO GOODBYE - 1
I AM THE WALRUS - 56
1968 LADY MADONNA - 4
THE INNER LIGHT - 96
1968 HEY JUDE - 1
REVOLUTION - 12
1969 GET BACK - 1
DON'T LET ME DOWN - 35
1969 THE BALLAD OF JOHN & YOKO - 8
1969 COME TOGETHER - 1
SOMETHING - 1
1970 LET IT BE - 1
1970 THE LONG AND WINDING ROAD - 1
FOR YOU BLUE - 110
Later Capitol Singles
1976 GOT TO GET YOU INTO MY LIFE - 7
1976 OB LA DI OB LA DA - 49
1978 SGT PEPPER - 71
WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM MY FRIENDS - 71
1982 MOVIE MEDLEY - 12
1995 BABY IT'S YOU - 67
1995 FREE AS A BIRD - 6
1996 REAL LOVE - 11
Capitol EP's
1964 FOUR By The Beatles - 92
1965 4 By The Beatles - 68See Page One of my threads for all updatesComment
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The Beatles American Singles are posted above. I will add sales data shortlySee Page One of my threads for all updatesComment
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I'm looking forward to that.Originally posted by BasilComment
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Basil. I only have one quibble with your Beatles Singles positions! I see you have used the Record Retailer listings for their positions! Sure! I know it is claimed that because "Guinness" adopted them for their books-that those were "OFFICIAL" positions back in the 60's. NOT SO! in the 60's the R.R chart had little authority. It was the New Musical Express and Melody Maker charts that carried a lot of weight! In both of those-and on the B.B.C `Pick of the Pops` chart, "Please Please Me" Hit No1. This No2 position is a lie that messrs Gambiccinni, Rice, Rice & Reid got publicised by making false claims about the Record Retailer chart. I should know, as unlike them, I researched that chart, and was lucky enough to speak to ex staff members-who were happy to correct such a misconception!Comment
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I don't disagree with you asm. I don't use charts much in my posts because the way they were compiled in the UK up to about 20 years ago was just plain duff. The LP charts are particularly annoying. Also up to 1991 the Billboard Album Charts were at least as bad - their singles charts still are!Originally posted by asm
That's why I'm more interested in finding sales - they seem more real.
The consequences of those Rice/Read chart books were quite serious. The Beatles One would have been a whole lot better if they had ditched "Love Me Do" and "Eight Days A Week" and replaced them with "Please Please Me" and "Strawberry Fields".
I've read all the threads concerning all these early UK charts. When at school the Record Mirror ones were taken as gospel. It was horrifying to find out the truth.
Worst of all these Chart Books could be fixed but they won't do it - both singles and albums. Seems they don't have the bottle.See Page One of my threads for all updatesComment
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Basil. Britain sadly never really resolved the question of having an `official` chart pre February 1969. The fact of how it was in that period, was that NME and MM charts were most respected, with Disc and R.Retailer just behind! Thats how it was then! "Please Please Me" most definatly a acknowledged chart topper in 1963. Just an update on some Beatles U.K sales. Some of your figures are from very old sources (J Murrells possibly?) "Hard Day's Night" Definatly at the 900.000 mark now. "Ticket To Ride" over 750.000 and "Hello Goodbye" at about 850.000.Comment
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As I said asm I don't disagree with you and agree that Please Please Me should be acknowledged as a No.1.Originally posted by asm
Source for sales was Simon Walters 2002 - see the very last post on page two. Would be interested in your comments.
Thanks for the singles sales updates.
Cheers - BasilSee Page One of my threads for all updatesComment
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Getting precise sales figures from the 60's is nigh on impossible! Many Record companies did not keep exact details-plus all the corrupt practices that were involved with royalty rates make that period a labryinth to get any meaningful figures! One can only use broad figures! "Paperback Writer" is definatly over 600.000 nby now (Don't forget the 1976 re -promotion that saw this and other Beatles singles selling well enough to hit the charts again) The figures you have on Get Back, Ballad, Something and Let It Be are the ones Alan Klien gave out in 1970! Get Back is certainly over 600.000 now, and the rest have certainly added 100.000 between them!Comment
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I found this post at Beatlelinks regarding the recent Beatles lawsuit vs. EMI:
"Couple of years back, Ringo Starr, George Harrison and Yoko Ono filed a 25 million quid lawsuit against EMI/Capitol by claiming it had tried to punish them for a long drawn out legal battle (i.e. the 1970 one) by delaying the release of their albums on CD.
The action filed in the Manhatten Supreme Court saw two ex-Beatles, Yoko Ono and the Apple Co. allege that Capitol and the parent company EMI held up the release of CDs for 2 years in order to force them to drop a long standing claim over royalties. They also demanded the return of master tapes of their albums. Their lawyer Leonard Marks said the company were "cheating them out of millions".
The battle, according to the lawyer, had commenced in 1980 over another matter and that was a bid to win $50 million in damages from Capitol for what the claimants saw as an attempt to camouflage the sales of 19 million copies of Abbey Road by claiming they were scrapped, so denying them royalties. As well as the alleged delay in issuing CDs the claimants say Capitol deprived them of royalties by charging 25% of the list price of the discs for "repackaging" when the true cost was one sixth of that.
Note Paul McCartney is not involved here at this stage."Comment
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