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Writer and editor Home > Blogs > Brain Droppings > Archives > 2008 > April > 03 > Entry
Better than Elvis or the Beatles? Mariah Carey?!?
Music fans of all sorts will note with interest, and possibly a raised eyebrow, that Mariah Carey has now passed Elvis Presley as a chart-topper, with the Beatles next in line. Eventually, unless something odd happens, she will pass them, too.
This is the sort of thing that raises the hackles of blue-haired Elvisites and all the Beatles fans who think there has never been any other band in the world other than their fab faves (I tire of them…).
But give ol’ Mariah credit where due. She does not at all claim to be better than either Elvis nor the Beatles, not at all. Her comments in the story are properly modest. She isn’t the greatest pop artist of all time, not be a long shot, and knows it. We all know it.
What this is about is consistency, focus and longevity. She has taken good enough care of herself that she didn’t flame out healthwise, as fat Elvis finally did, and she has kept her career together better than the fractious, squabbling Beatles turned out to be able to do. Ta-da! She’s been around longer, doing what she does.
As somebody … Lincoln? Einstein? I forget … once said, the main part of getting the job done is just showing up. Mariah knows that. She’s a pro, whether you think she’s a great musician or not. I happen to like her, too, but in this case she gets the headline for not having screwed up her good deal.
Whaddayouthink?
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By Jim
April 18, 2008 6:04 AM | Link to this
No, Its not simply about longevity. It is about learning from marketing errors such as the Beatles made and technology. 3 0f the Beatles biggest selling albums had a combined total of 2 singles, 1 side of Mariahs new LP will likely have 3. All of Mariahs well known songs have been released on singles, less than half of Beatles were. Some big errors, Come together and Some thing on one single - Penny lane and Strawberry fields on one Yellow submarine and eleanor rigby could have been 2 No. 1’s, I am the Walrus, Here Comes the Sun, Norwegian Wood, The Fool on the Hill were never on singles. There were no Singles From Sgt Pepper. Massive amounts of singles are downloaded via internet today. Mariah’s recrd will be short lived - Beatles online via I tunes will dominate charts worldwide for months including likely new #1’s.By Jim
April 18, 2008 6:03 AM | Link to this
No, Its not simply about longevity. It is about learning from marketing errors such as the Beatles made and technology. 3 0f the Beatles biggest selling albums had a combined total of 2 singles, 1 side of Mariahs new LP will likely have 3. All of Mariahs well known songs have been released on singles, less than half of Beatles were. Some big errors, Come together and Some thing on one single - Penny lane and Strawberry fields on one Yellow submarine and eleanor rigby could have been 2 No. 1’s, I am the Walrus, Here Comes the Sun, Norwegian Wood, The Fool on the Hill were never on singles. There were no Singles From Sgt Pepper. Massive amounts of singles are downloaded via internet today. Mariah’s recrd will be short lived - Beatles online via I tunes will dominate charts worldwide for months including likely new #1’s.