?? UK CHART COMMENTARY from JAMES MASTERTON
In at an impressive Number 3,??'Fairytale Of New York' was first released by the Pogues back in 1987, the single ending up at Number 2 for Christmas but since going on become an acknowledged Christmas classic. This is the second time the single has reappeared in the Top 40 since, the track having been released again back in 1991 when it appeared on the TV special 'The Ghosts Of Oxford Street'. Back then though it was a mere four years old and could only limp to Number 31. In 2005 it is a different story, the 17 year old hit being welcomed back like an old friend. The single has been selling in impressive quantities online for a couple of weeks now and would in fact have made the Top 20 last week but for the fact it was at the time chart-ineligible. This week all that changes as the physical copies hit the stores, returning the single to the Top 3. To give the track added poignancy the single has been re-released to publicise a new campaign for an investigation into the death five years ago of Kirsty McColl who has a starring role on the single and for that fact alone even a 17 year old re-release manages to rank as the most worthy new hit of the week. |