vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Jan 24, 2012 10:38:26 GMT 1
There is the occasional instance where an act has a tendency towards some unusual features of their chart career. A few are as follows.
Troggs Syndrome – people forget your biggest hit in favour of something that was less successful but much more memorable. Other exponents: A-ha, Kaiser Chiefs.
Supergrass Syndrome – you get your biggest hit through an embarrassing novelty and try to avoid ever referring to it again. Other exponents: Streetband, (almost) REM.
Somerville Syndrome – you forget how to write a hit so you keep making cover versions that are, embarrassingly, loads more successful. Other exponents: UB40, Tin Tin Out.
Oldfield Syndrome – you have a great success, and when your hits dry up you just repackage that to re-emerge from obscurity. Other exponents: Meatloaf, Gerry Marsden.
Any others?
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borneoman
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Post by borneoman on Jan 24, 2012 11:04:50 GMT 1
why A-ha and Kaisers in the Troggs Syndrome? sure A-ha's biggest hit is Take on Me? REM would qualify there as their biggest chart hits (E-bow the Letter and The Great beyond sure are not their most memorable)
there's the Duffy Syndrome - your debut album is a huge success mostly on the back of your debut single, sells massively for one year. Then the sophomore album comes and underperforms. Doesn't help your voice is rating. Other examples: Mika and James Blunt.
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Jan 24, 2012 11:44:04 GMT 1
why A-ha and Kaisers in the Troggs Syndrome? sure A-ha's biggest hit is Take on Me? Proving the point - their biggest hit is "The Sun Always Shines..."  Kaisers will be remembered more for "I Predict A Riot" than "Ruby", I doubt even the Kaisers remember how the latter goes. |
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SheriffFatman
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Post by SheriffFatman on Jan 24, 2012 11:48:56 GMT 1
why A-ha and Kaisers in the Troggs Syndrome? sure A-ha's biggest hit is Take on Me? REM would qualify there as their biggest chart hits (E-bow the Letter and The Great beyond sure are not their most memorable) there's the Duffy Syndrome - your debut album is a huge success mostly on the back of your debut single, sells massively for one year. Then the sophomore album comes and underperforms. Doesn't help your voice is rating. Other examples: Mika and James Blunt. I'm sure there's loads of people with Duffy syndrome. David Gray for a start. |
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Jan 24, 2012 12:05:01 GMT 1
why A-ha and Kaisers in the Troggs Syndrome? sure A-ha's biggest hit is Take on Me? REM would qualify there as their biggest chart hits (E-bow the Letter and The Great beyond sure are not their most memorable) there's the Duffy Syndrome - your debut album is a huge success mostly on the back of your debut single, sells massively for one year. Then the sophomore album comes and underperforms. Doesn't help your voice is rating. Other examples: Mika and James Blunt. I'm sure there's loads of people with Duffy syndrome. David Gray for a start. Indeed, it's called Second Album Syndrome and is well observed. After all, you have a lifetime to make your first, but 12 months to make your second... (Note the reference to Radiohead's fear of Supergrass Syndrome in the linked article btw.) Oasis Syndrome - you gain massive, massive critical acclaim, with a release that's frankly pants, and as soon as one person has the guts to turn on it there's a deluge of antipathy. |
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TheThorne
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Post by TheThorne on Jan 24, 2012 12:51:51 GMT 1
Chinese Democracy Syndrome or StoneRoses Syndrome
You spend too many years making an album that will never live up to the hype and is usually disappointing at best or horrific at worst.
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Post by mjdangerous on Jan 24, 2012 13:05:27 GMT 1
One of the largest sympromes in the pop industry - I release my first hits package that sells a lot but then people forget I can still release new songs and following studio albums flop.
Examples: Chicago, Lenny Kravitz, Prince, Queen (US), Anastacia, Dire Straits, Michael Jackson, David Bowie, Britney Spears, Madonna, The Carpenters etc.
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borneoman
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Post by borneoman on Jan 24, 2012 13:05:44 GMT 1
guess many rock acts would fit under the Stroggs syndrome... Snow Patrol (highest hit: Signal Fire)!!! or Nirvana's highest not being Teen Spirit!!
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Jan 24, 2012 13:26:00 GMT 1
Astley Syndrome: you decide to show the world that you aren't some mere mouthpiece that's promoted on the basis of looks rather than the talents of others and go in your own direction for your later hits. Only you don't get any. Other exponents: NKOTB, Bros.
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Post by evansabove on Jan 24, 2012 14:35:47 GMT 1
^^^which Madonna album you consider a flop?  Presumably the 16m selling Ray Of Light or 10m selling Confessions On A Dance Floor  |
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Post by mjdangerous on Jan 24, 2012 14:49:51 GMT 1
^^^which Madonna album you consider a flop? Her popularity went downhill post-hits packages even through she has always been able to recover. She was massive with her first 4 albums, released TIC and then was nowhere near as big with Erotica and Bedtime Stories. Then she recovered with ROL and Music, released GHV2 and flopped with American Life before recovering again with COTDF. That's on unconsciousness of people and radios, when an act release a Greatest Hits, that's like the best is in the past and everything new released is by default considered inferior. |
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Post by paulgilb on Jan 24, 2012 18:36:46 GMT 1
Albatross Syndrome: you have a big hit with a song that is not typical of your sound, and thus find it hard to achieve further success e.g. East Of Eden, Fiddler's Dram
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Post by suedehead on Jan 24, 2012 18:45:20 GMT 1
Stevie Wonder Syndrome - you write and perform some classic songs before scoring your only number one with some utter dreck, e.g. Billy Joel.
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Post by raliverpool on Jan 24, 2012 18:48:20 GMT 1
there's the Duffy Syndrome - your debut album is a huge success mostly on the back of your debut single, sells massively for one year. Then the sophomore album comes and underperforms. Doesn't help your voice is rating. Other examples: Mika and James Blunt. Ah the good old "sophomore slump" Except Duffy's debut single was (the UK #45) Rockferry and not (the UK #1) Mercy. One of the largest sympromes in the pop industry - I release my first hits package that sells a lot but then people forget I can still release new songs and following studio albums flop. Examples: Chicago, Lenny Kravitz, Prince, Queen (US), Anastacia, Dire Straits, Michael Jackson, David Bowie, Britney Spears, Madonna, The Carpenters etc. So David Bowie's career was basically all over after he released his 1976 Changesonebowie compilation?  So no seminal Berlin trilogy of albums; no Sound & Vision; Heroes; Ashes To Ashes; Under Pressure; Absolute Beginners; and his biggest selling album of his career (and the 4th biggest selling album in the world in 1983 the Nile Rodgers produced "Let Dance" containing the global #1 title track and the global top 10 hits China Girl & Modern Love); then no record breaking Serious Moonlight world tour; etc. And as for Madonna post 1990 Immaculate Collection ..... you are having a laugh, surely. |
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borneoman
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Post by borneoman on Jan 24, 2012 19:09:27 GMT 1
there's the Duffy Syndrome - your debut album is a huge success mostly on the back of your debut single, sells massively for one year. Then the sophomore album comes and underperforms. Doesn't help your voice is rating. Other examples: Mika and James Blunt. Ah the good old "sophomore slump" Except Duffy's debut single was (the UK #45) Hometown Glory and not (the UK #1) Mercy. One of the largest sympromes in the pop industry - I release my first hits package that sells a lot but then people forget I can still release new songs and following studio albums flop. Examples: Chicago, Lenny Kravitz, Prince, Queen (US), Anastacia, Dire Straits, Michael Jackson, David Bowie, Britney Spears, Madonna, The Carpenters etc. So David Bowie's career was basically all over after he released his 1976 Changesonebowie compilation? So no seminal Berlin trilogy of albums; no Sound & Vision; Heroes; Ashes To Ashes; Under Pressure; Absolute Beginners; and his biggest selling album of his career (and the 4th biggest selling album in the world in 1983 the Nile Rodgers produced "Let Dance" containing the global #1 title track and the global top 10 hits China Girl & Modern Love); then no record breaking Serious Moonlight world tour; etc. And as for Madonna post 1990 Immaculate Collection ..... you are having a laugh, surely. Duffy's Hometown Glory... she's sure wishing she wrote that  guess you mean Rockferry, a 'soft'-release and not a proper full release |
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Post by raliverpool on Jan 24, 2012 19:09:28 GMT 1
Stevie Wonder Syndrome - you write and perform some classic songs before scoring your only number one with some utter dreck, e.g. Billy Joel. .... And Prince. Bridge Over Troubled Water syndrome - you spend half a decade or so around steadily building up your fan base then explode with a monumental hit single (and sometimes and album) which becomes too big/impossible to follow up, so you implode/split up. Examples: Simon & Garfunkel (BOTW); the Police (Every Breath You Take/Synchronicity); the Clash (in the USA - Rock The Casbah/Combat Rock); Bangles (Eternal Flame); etc. Dido syndrome - you have a significant selling first album, quickly followed up by (often) an even bigger selling second album preceded by a monster hit lead single, then you take a break and comeback with a third album that (relatively) tanks/bombs. Other examples: Culture Club; Spice Girls; Scissor Sisters... |
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Post by mjdangerous on Jan 24, 2012 19:09:50 GMT 1
Ah, that good old raliverpool trying to mock my point by commenting on something he extrapolated himself incorrectly, looks like a déjà vu.
btw I didn't know Scissor Sisters or Spice Girls second albums were "even bigger" than their debut...
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Post by raliverpool on Jan 24, 2012 19:33:58 GMT 1
Ah, that good old raliverpool trying to mock my point by commenting on something he extrapolated himself incorrectly, looks like a déjà vu. btw I didn't know Scissor Sisters or Spice Girls second albums were "even bigger" than their debut... I guess you need English lessons to understand what the word "often" means; and you should not jump in until I've edited my post. I bought both Hometown Glory & Rockferry on vinyl at the same time (and they both topped my personal charts - they are currently sandwiched between my copies of Corinne Bailey Rae's Like A Star and Lana Del Rey's Video Games vinyl singles - I wonder how much the four of them are worth ;D); but radio did not pick up on both acts until their second singles which were both released in the beginning of the following year when there was less new music around; and they had the hype of being the top two acts in the New Music of 2008 tag. Oh and going on about your original point, how could I possibly ignore Britney Spears Greatest Hits: My Prerogative. Prior to its late 2004 release she had just had just one USA #1 hit single ("... Baby One More Time"); and her next most successful US chart single peak was at USA #9 ("Oops!... I Did It Again" & "Toxic"); since its release she has had three more USA #1 hits ("Womanizer"; "Hold It Against Me"; "3") and her last two albums topped the US album charts); plus three other USA top 3 hits ("Gimme More"; "Circus" & "Till the World Ends" & a USA #7 hit "I Wanna Go". |
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Jan 24, 2012 19:51:54 GMT 1
Stevie Wonder Syndrome - you write and perform some classic songs before scoring your only number one with some utter dreck, e.g. Billy Joel. .... And Prince. Ohhhhhhhh, that's a PERFECT example. Think I'd call it Berry Syndrome, though, as Chuck was before them all. |
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guess you mean Rockferry, a 'soft'-release and not a proper full release