Not that he needed them, but Jay-Z has just earned some extra bragging rights. According to Billboard, the hip-hop star landed in the No. 1 spot on the Billboard 200 with his 11th solo album, 'The Blueprint 3,' which means he's now surpassed Elvis Presley as the solo act with the most No. 1 albums in Billboard 200 history.
The highly-anticipated, third installment in the Blueprint series sold an impressive 476,000 copies despite being leaked onto the Internet a week before its official release.
and this guy remains only known by a few "privileged ones" in my country (France)...why am i not impressed ? I would not be surprised if he (what's his name again ?) starts boasting he has sold more physical records than the King & the Beatles combined and starts calling himself the king"(of what ? by the way) like another recently deceased usupator.
It's a different world, and different population, very different media and formats and means of measuring chart positions. Elvis will still be Elvis when "Jay-Z" fades back into the indistinguishable background of all the other forgettable nobodies putting out product instead of music today. It's a silly and pointless thing to say now, but I will say it anyway: no one is going to remember this Jay-Z clown more than 30 years after his death. It's like in baseball, where people keep breaking the records of Babe Ruth or Hank Aaron or Reggie Jackson, those are still the names we will remember (Actually I had to look them up; I don't watch baseball). Elvis blazed the trail; Elvis was the innovator, the first, the very definition of a rock star. The only record that Elvis needs to hold is simply that of being Elvis. Really nothing else matters anymore. Elvis holds the record for being Elvis. You can't top that. Period.
KingKreole, indeed...well said.
I am still waiting for Jay-Z's next country, gospel, rock n'roll, calypso, semi-operatic, jazz or blues album.
Jay...who???? As I said on my post on the last article on this matter yesterday, He's only famous because he married Beyonce. As for his music, I wouldn't give it the time of day. Elvis was, is and always will be number ONE!
Well said Judy and KingKreole WOW this Jay-z guy is only one album ahead of Elvis.. only one
means nothing... like JACK409 said previously " Elvis Will Be Back, I Guarantee it" and it will happen no doubt and eehh who is Jay-Z again? and i know also Beyonce loves Elvis. Always The King
Judy and Kingkreole are right. I couln't have said it better. Say his name is JayZoo????
"..and the grass won't pay no mind...." Neither do I!
The thing people need to realize is comparing how Elvis charted decades ago to the way recording artists chart today is really apples & oranges to me. Today's artists have the advantage of downloads, the Internet, high quality sound, instant communication & TV & satelite with 500 plus channels. Elvis EARNED his achievements without all of the above. Although I'm not a Jay Z fan, I am willing to accept whatever achievements he has gained based on how music is charted today. In all honesty, had Jay Z had to EARN his status by the same standards Elvis & the other musicians had to decades ago without the Internet, without instant downloads, without the help any of the technology of today's standards, I don't think Jay Z could hold a candle to Elvis. Had Elvis had the advantage of instant downloads, 500 plus channels, & all of today's technology during the 1950s and 1960s, I believe Elvis would have exploded bigger than ever & set even bigger records. Again comparing how artists today achieve records to how Elvis & all the rest had to 30, 40 and 50 years ago is apples and oranges. If today's artists had to chart the way they did decades ago, I imagine most of them would not make it. But, that's my opinion.
KingCreole and Dixieland Rock, I fully agree with your well writen comments. That's the way I see it too.
elvis will be back!-at least JZ aint got as many number 1 hit singles as Elvis!!..and Elvis still holds the record for the most top ten top twenty hits ever..jz got a lot of CATCHING UP to do before critics even start to compare him to The king!!!,..(on a positive note:isn't it good that critics are still comparing artist success against elvis' legacy-proving that Elvis is the artist everyone still looks up too and every new and successfull artist today is compared to him still.)
Nice that surveys always compare what ELVIS done to the mover and shakers in the pop world?? a loose term i know. Nobody will ever have the impact Elvis Presley brought to the world and music, of course records will be broke, so called music makers in today's world have to rely on record sales that are so different to 50's, 60, and the 70.s. Music will always change and people come and go but i bet you in 10,20 or 30 years time historians will always look back at the way a man named ELVIS PRESLEY changed the way music was going to be. all other followers will always be in the shadows of this great man. end of story.
good discussion and comments. yes, elvis is the one to be compared to. speaking of classic unforgotten artists... i'm a fan of glenn miller, the great swing band leader of the 40s. comparisons and reminders are still there of what he did waaay back then. i want to include bing crosby in this also. to go even further, gershwin, mozart and beethoven as musical greats still are honored. i think elvis is in that category. i believe elvis will continue to be 'the one to beat' and many of these other artists will not. the key is 'sustainability' and 'impact'. i'm already looking forward to someone beating out mariah carey ;) but the record will still be compared to ELVIS PRESLEY.
King Creole and Dixieland Rock said it all ! Good comments guys ! Always El.
ALSO - Painter Thomas Kincaid has sold more paintings and made more money than Leonardo Da Vinci and Vincent Van Gogh combined. But he still sucks. Shrek 2 grossed more money at the box office than Gone With The Wind, Casablanca and Citizen Cane. Ed Hammer invented those new florescent compact light bulbs. Ever heard of him? Think we'll remember him in even 10 years?How about Thomas Edison? That's the name we'll remember. Thomas Edison used to hold the record for the most patents. Know who broke the record and holds the most patents now? Shunpei Yamazaki. "Jay-Z" is a nobody compared to Elvis.
Let it go guys, let it go - Here in the UK Michael Jackson had numerous albums in the charts breaking Elvis's stats and last week the Beatles had 17 albums in the top 60 - Elvis can't compete on this level anymore certainly in relation to albums - Elvis's catalogue has suffered from very poor branding and strategy - an Elvis album is not an event - there is no imagination or plan - the Beatles remastered catalogue was released at the same time as the Beatles rock band game and in tandem with a week of specially commissioned programmes on the BBC - fantastic marketing - unfortunately many artists will surpass Elvis's chart stats in the near future - I would delete every album and remove him from iTunes and start again with a carefully thought out 5 year plan full of innovation and freshness
Hi everybody! I don't care who or how many others beats Elvis' records.The one important thing to me is that I know how great Elvis really is(and he never stops surprising me with yet another aspect of his music i was not aware of). Elvis is sooooo good compared to other artists. I love listening to other artists but everytime when i come back to Elvis i'm "shocked" by his genius. And no record set by any other artist will take the most important thing of Elvis away....and that's his incredible music.For every mood i'm in there's an Elvis song.
Elvis was mainly a singles artist. Albums up until the late 60's were an afterthought for most artists. The thing was AM radio and to have a hit single. The Beatles changed all that and they deserve to have the most # 1 LPs. Elvis was the greatest singles artist of all time and he deserves that. Many of his biggest LPs were compilation albums made up of hit singles. Never a concept album except for Elvis Country. Also I agree, the marketing of some of these artists make Elvis' label look like little leaguers. The Beatles have been kaput for 40 years and look at the marketing campaign they just had. Elvis cannot compete with this. To say he'll be back with another # 1 album is wishful thinking unless a unique idea to market him is thought of. There was a pretty decent marketing campaign for From Elvis In Memphis, arguably his greatest album and it hardly caused a ripple on the charts.
Eventually Elvis will lose all his records. But surely in 30 years Jay-Z probably will be living and no one will know him. By then Elvis will be dead for over 60 years and everyone will remember him and his music.
A little word of advise to today's artists, you have it easy today with the internet and all the media, if they went back to 50 years ago when Elvis first started and the whole industry was totally 100% different and much much harder to crack and sell records, they would not accomplish NOTHING!
What Elvis did is far more than remarkable and todays artists don't have a clue of what it would be like not to have the media and the internet. You want to compare todays artists to Elvis, take away all the media in todays world and take away all the internet sales and go back to strictly record sales and you would see that todays artists would not even be in the same air space as Elvis.
Although musicwizard, king creole & dixieland certainly have a handle on this whole situation, we also have to remember that we are talking about one person - not music. Jay-Z is not a singer, is not an artist, unless you want to consider anyone who ever uttered a sound on a record as an artist. What he represents is a gimmick, something really different for some people to grasp onto who really have no understanding or appreciation for music. Jay-Z and this stuff will fade (something else will come along) but real music & those who create/perform real music - Elvis -will remain alongside the many other great contributors to history. Jay-Z better invest his money.
Jay-Z, never heard of him! Perhaps that's my personal shame, but do I care? - not really. When I bought an Elvis single or Album I'm sure, like most of you guys, this accounted for a fair amount of my disposable weekly / monthly income and they had to be a 'considered' purchase. It wasn't, by comparison, like buying a burger or hot dog as it is nowadays. If 99c or $1.99 'cheap as chips' downloads were available in Elvis' time his success and popularity would have mind blowing.
However statistics don't lie, or do they? What would be interesting to see is what is the comparable total sales of his 11 No1's is compared to Elvis' 10 solo No1's. Jay-Z's (impressive?) sales of 476,000 on his latest success seems like in the old days he'd get a silver disc... not a gold. Maybe the total sales stat would redress the balance?
ah Elvis will be number One again, just look at the latest Cargo Record compilation..
bestoftherest - maybe i can be of assistance re the sales.... Taken from Ernst's day by day. Something for everybody - 300,000. Roustabout - 450,000. Aloha from HAwaii - 500,000. GI blues 700,000. Loving you - 350000. Just to give you some indication.
CEP : good comment buddy ! There is no comparison possible ! This is only 2009, and not 1956 -2009 ! Our man will always be THE MAX. !!! and this has nothing to do with fanatism. Also : never compare Elvis with The Beatles ! The Beatles were a group, not a solo artist ! Always El.
Jay-Z's new album might be No.1 in the U.S.A. in it's first week but in the UK he can only manage Top 5 and Vera Lynn is currently 10,000 albums ahead among others, including Peter Andre.
So the question is fellow Elvis fans - how do we make this happen? Who can we contact to contribute ideas for the future branding and marketing of Elvis - how can we be constructive and create a fans think tank - I've got a few ideas but who can I pitch? Brian do you know? There a so many WOW moments and inspirational performances from Elvis's career they need new exposure - most people have either never seen what all the fuss was about or if they have not in a way which makes it shareable and cool - there are so many Elvis albums it is no wonder people can't tell which are the good ones and the hit singles are so legendary most people don't realise how deep and rich the rest of the Elvis catologue is - could you imagine what the marketing team behind the Beatles could have done with the Elvis legacy over the last 10 years? Instead our guys just follow their lead - Number1s, Cirque Soleil etc
CEP, the answer is simple, PROPER MARKETING. That's why someone like Jay Z or whoever, including the latest Beatles re-releases are doing well. I think Elvis could be called "The King of MISSED Opportunities". This goes back to the record label itself & to E.P.E. failing to PROPERLY seize opportunities. Over the years, I've seen so many opportunities that both could have captialized on but didn't because in general they seem to be on auto pilot. Every anniversary reshuffle the track listing of the Greatest Hits songs, then release a "new" compilation and the hit the snooze button & watch the money roll in. Why weren't representatives from both E.P.E. & Sony/BMG not making appearances on talk shows plugging this 40th Anniversary of Elvis Memphis recordings release? It would have been cool to see people that were a part of those sessions talking about those & make the release an event. The "new" Elvis concerts, why doesn't E.P.E. & Sony records not plug these on talk shows & actually have the TCB band performing a song of two from these shows. CEP until they get off auto pilot & grab the throttle & start MARKETING Elvis each opportunity as an event, you're going to see more of the same.
Jack - is it you that is brainwashed about the Lennon statement. At no time did he say Elvis' music was all crap after the Army. I never heard that at all. A Rolling Stone interview with him even quoted him as saying Elvis is sounding great again regarding the 1969 American sessions. I also recall he was a big fan of His Latest Flame. What he meant by 'Elvis died after the Army', was his musical soul was basically lost in his Hollywood years. The iconic groundbreaker he was in the 50's was transformed into a plastic movie star who sold out to the Colonel & Hal Wallis by turing out so many trashy soundtrack albums & movies that meant nothing to the fans of the 'real' music he started. I kind of agree with that in many aspects.
dgirl is spot on. It was a general summary by Lennon not his distaste for all Elvis after the Army. Let's face it. After the late 50's the most pivotal period in pop music was probably 1964-68, a period where Elvis turned out arguably his worst work overall. Spotty singles, bad to worse movies and some very bad soundtracks. A period where he basically sat back and let other pass him by musically. Sure there was some nice spots. But for every Viva Las Vegas, there were 3 Clambake films. Elvis was not relevant to my high school mates by 1965.
don't you think that Lennon liked Clambake or liked to bake clams?..
Interesting discussion. I think that 1965, when Elvis only recorded soundtrack music, was as dark a year to his musical soul as it was to those of his fans and in himself the turning point to new beginnings: the 1966 How Great Thou Art album, trying different directions with his 1966-1968 studio recordings (only to be spread hodge-podge amongst the weaker movie albums) and coming out to tell the world about it in 1968.
All of this discussion is interesting but makes me glad that I am older than most of the contributors to this forum. My friends who were Elvis fans in the 50's are Elvis fans today & never stopped. We didn't let a couple uninspiring songs or bad movies change our interest in him. I remember my dad telling me about the bad "phase" that Sinatra went through after his divorce from Ava, i.e., bad songs, the alcohol was affecting his voice, etc. But Dad & all his fans hung in there knowing he would come back with a vengence & he did. Stuff happens but a true artist will always rebound. And dad always liked Elvis.
Ruthie, how right you are!
Guess what, happened to catch Jay-Z on the Andrew Marr show yesterday in the UK - you guessed right he just happened to mention the fact that he now has more No.1 albums than Elvis.
I couldn't name a single track by him - if he was that good his music would cross all genres and age groups (not that I'm that old!!) like Elvis - just proves the point already mentioned, todays numbers don't equal those of days gone by. Saying that he seemed like a nice enough guy - but it was a Sunday morning politics show!!!
No one stopped being an Elvis fan in the 60's I certainly did not. I kept buying everything he put out , going to every film and kept being let down for the most part. I mean how can you compare LPs like Kissin Cousins, Harum Scarum, PHS, F&J, etc etc to what other artists like Dylan & The Beatles, The Stones were producing. Yes, Elvis was subordinate to those artists during a few years stretch. The product was sub-par. I think if you do not see this you are in denial. As far as Jay-Z, who cares? It is totally meaningless and his record will be broken one day as the rules keep changing.
I was just at Graceland last week again and the international crowd that a house can draw is amazing. Nothing against Jay-Z I dont like his style of music but no one will be visiting his house 30 years after his death and selling albums and every product you can think of with his face on it. As for marketing Elvis I am in my late twenties and I have virtually every master Elvis recorded and I like to collect any live show I can, maybe missing some 60's sountrack stuff thats it. I was excited when an artist that I love became #1 again in the US in 2002-2003 and this was someone that died 5 years before I was born. I think that year the marketing was done well. But honestly as far as music goes it is not EPE or FTD or anyone elses fault. The music is available how else can you market it? you can't have Elvis do press or record a new album like you need to normally to sell albums. Besides remixing and duets what can you do? I am not a casual fan so I will buy the majority of new music projects that come out with. But I think they have to continue to market his absolut best music to draw in new fans. I became a fan because of the image when I was a young kid then hearing his "best music" and "biggest hits" when I was a young kid then I dove deeper and became an obsessive fan. I give EPE credit for trying new things to keep Elvis alive despite the massive complaints on this site by fans and I always enjoy and look forward to making the 17 hour drive to go see Graceland and that is because of the way they have ran and took care of the his legacy even though I think it speaks for its self.
TCB16 just offered the most refreshing & intelligent commentary I have read in a long time. I am very thankful for the younger fans & the impact they will have in the future.
jack409, i agree with you 100%, about time somebody said what you said.