British Phonographic Industry recently published their quarterly review of music industry in the UK. The report features sales numbers for 7inches which jumped 87.3% for 2004. By the way, the jump had nothing to do with our record (or hiphop).
BPI Quarterly Review – July 2005 : 11:7:2005
> Download sales top ten million
> British indie rock fans spark seven inch vinyl revival
> UK music enjoys US renaissance
> Second quarter round up; artist albums buck high street downturn
> Download sales top ten million
Vinyl gains add gloss to the single’s 2005 revival
Meanwhile 2005 looks set to be a bumper year for the seven inch vinyl, with quarterly sales up by 87.3% on last year.
Vinyl is not the only format to have improved in 2005. Impressive gains in DVD single sales have, alongside downloads, more than compensated for the decline in the CD single. Overall there has been a 52.4% improvement in single sales (including downloads).
Seven Inch Vinyl
2004 154,216
2005 288,780
% Change 87.3%
Source: The Official UK Chart Company
> British indie rock fans spark seven inch vinyl revival
Annual sales of seven-inch vinyl singles now approach 1.4 million units, representing a massive 64% improvement year-on-year and the best 12 months for the format since 1998, according to data compiled by BPI
With vinyl firmly back in fashion, the seven inch’s improving fortunes have been attributed to fans of British indie and rock acts.
Best-selling seven inch single in the year to March 2005 was a limited edition reissue of Iron Maiden’s Number of the Beast. Elsewhere the format is dominated by a new generation of UK rock acts including the Libertines, Babyshambles, Kaiser Chiefs and Franz Ferdinand.
BPI Chairman Peter Jamieson said: “Despite the incredible growth in download sales, there is still a huge demand for the collectible physical formats. It would be wrong to write-off physical formats just yet. Record companies are committed to meeting consumer demand in whatever format people want their music ”
The Vinyl Top 20; 12 months ending March 31 2005
1 The Number Of The Beast – Iron Maiden (EMI Records)
2 Killamangiro – Babyshambles (Rough Trade)
3 Can’t Stand Me Now – The Libertines (Rough Trade)
4 Oh My God – Kaiser Chiefs (B Unique)
5 Matinee – Franz Ferdinand (Domino Recordings)
6 Wonderful – Brian Wilson (Atlantic Records)
7 An Honest Mistake – The Bravery (Polydor)
8 What Became Of The Likely Lads – The Libertines (Rough Trade)
9 Boulevard Of Broken Dreams – Green Day (Warner Bros)
10 American Idiot – Green Day (Warner Bros)
7 inch single sales, 12 months ending:
March 31 1998 1,637,000
March 31 1999 910,000
March 31 2000 601,000
March 31 2001 504,000
March 31 2002 455,000
March 31 2003 530,000
March 31 2005 1,380,000
