1997 in British music

This is a summary of 1997 in music in the United Kingdom, including the official charts from that year.

ummary

Oasis released their highly anticiapted 3rd album, "Be Here Now", on August the 21st (in the UK). It sold 695,761 copies in its first three days to become the fastest selling album in UK history. Radiohead's third album, OK Computer, was released in May and topped the UK album charts for two weeks. Met with widespread critical acclaim, it was voted the greatest album of all time by Q Magazine readers barely months after its release. [ [http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B000002UJQ Amazon.co.uk: O.K Computer: Music: Radiohead ] ]

Compared to just five years earlier, singles sales were very high this year. From 22 June right through to the end of the year, every single #1 sold at least 100,000 copies a week. Like the previous year, 24 singles topped the chart, double as many as 1992.

The Spice Girls continued their success from 1996, once again getting three number 1s. The first was "Who Do You Think You Are" in March, which doubled as that year's official Comic Relief single. This ensured the group became the first act to have their first four singles all reach number 1. This was followed by "Spice Up Your Life" in October, and "Too Much" in December, which once again gave them the Christmas number one single. They had now become the first act to have their first six singles reach number 1, but this run would be broken in 1998, with "Stop" only reaching #2. Six singles released this year went on to sell over a million. The first to do so was Puff Daddy & Faith Evans' "I'll Be Missing You", a tribute to the late rapper The Notorious B.I.G.. In November and December, three consecutive number 1s all sold over a million, for only the third time in UK chart history (it had previously happened in 1984 and 1995/6). These were Aqua's "Barbie Girl", the Children in Need charity single "Perfect Day", and "Teletubbies Say 'Eh-Oh", the theme tune to the popular children's television series Teletubbies. In addition, All Saints' "Never Ever" was released in November and also sold over a million, though it wouldn't reach number 1 until January 1998.

By far the biggest selling single of the year, though, came from Elton John. In August this year, Diana, Princess of Wales was killed in a car crash. At her funeral, he played a rewritten version of "Candle in the Wind" known as "Candle in the Wind 1997", a song originally written about Marilyn Monroe (made #11 in 1974, with a live version reaching #5 in 1988). When released this year, it quickly overtook 1984's "Do They Know It's Christmas?" to become the biggest selling UK single ever, selling 4.86 million copies, and the biggest selling in the world, selling 37 million. It continues to hold the record to this day.

Charts

No. 1 Singles

Top 10 albums

Music awards

BRIT Awards

The 1997 BRIT Awards winners were:

*Best British producer: John Leckie
*Best soundtrack: "Trainspotting'"'
*British album: Manic Street Preachers – "Everything Must Go"
*British breakthrough act: Kula Shaker
*British dance act: The Prodigy
*British female solo artist: Gabrielle
*British Group: Manic Street Preachers
*British male solo artist: George Michael
*British single: Spice Girls – "Wannabe"
*British Video: Spice Girls – "Say You'll Be There"
*International breakthrough act: Robert Miles
*International female: Sheryl Crow
*International group: The Fugees
*International male: Beck
*Outstanding contribution: Bee Gees

Mercury Music Prize

The 1997 Mercury Music Prize was awarded to Roni Size/Reprazent - "New Forms.

References

External links

* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/chart/ BBC Radio 1's Chart Show]
* [http://www.theofficialcharts.com/ The Official United Kingdom Charts Company]