LONDON - Classic hits by the Beatles and David Bowie will challenge the likes of Beyoncé, Coldplay and Leona Lewis for the No 1 spot when the singles chart opens up to golden oldies.
With Top of the Pops dead, and downloading mums and dads revitalising the music market, the Top 40 chart will undergo the most far-reaching change in its 54-year history on New Year’s Day. A “single” will no longer mean a physical item, be it vinyl — EPs count — or a CD, bought in stores. Any song from pop’s archive will qualify for the chart. The track must have been bought in the previous week, most likely through a download store such as iTunes. In three years downloads have doubled the UK singles market to 65.1 million units this year.
The most immediate effect is that the new chart is likely to be domination by the most recent celebrity to die.
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