Today, I destroyed someone's world. That someone is Rusty, a friend of Ben's. Here's the story.
Rusty is a music aficionado. His musical knowledge seems to be on a par with that of Steve, and indeed that of my wife. While he doesn't know the surname of Charles, nor that of Eddie, he is confident that Nu Shooz' I Can't Wait topped out at Number 3 in August 1986, a fact that I have neither the will nor inclination to challenge.
Tonight, however, I destroyed his world, in claiming that the UK Singles chart was not based on sales for that specific week, but was instead based upon the total sales to date divided by the number of weeks for which the single had been available. This explains why singles don't drop straight out of the charts; instead they gradually fall down the rankings.
For someone who prides himself on knowing chart facts, this came as a body-blow. The whole foundation of his knowledge came into question. I am struggling to find evidence of the fact, but I firmly believe it to be true. It's now 12.45am, and I'm getting up at 6am, so the research will have to come later.
