News June 22, 2017

Grenfell Tower charity track has “biggest first-day sales of any single this decade”

The star-studded Grenfell Tower single Bridge Over Troubled Water has delivered the “biggest first day sales of any single this decade” in the UK, reports the Official Charts Company.

It shifted 120,000 downloads and streaming equivalent sales in its first day of sales, and is almost guaranteed to come straight into the UK charts at #1 later today.

In its first day, the single has earned over £200,000 (A$335,970) through Artists For Grenfell, while the video amassed 350,000 views.

Bridge Over Troubled Water is outperforming its nearest rival, Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber’s Despacito, by 40,000 units.

Proceeds raised from the single will go to The London Community Foundation. You can also donate to the victims at artistsforgrenfell.com.

The recording of the single began on the night of the fire by music mogul Simon Cowell.

He told The Metro: “I was watching the news and then I drove up to see the building which is around the corner.

“I’ve seen a lot of bad things and not far from where I was sitting.

“It dawned on you. It sent chills through you.

“What hit home was seeing that wall and seeing all those messages.

“I saw how residents turned up with water and clothes and that’s when I thought I’m not going to sit here and do nothing.

“For someone in my position to do nothing would be appalling.”

The death toll from the fire has now risen to 79, and is expected to rise further.

Bridge Over Troubled Water was written in 1970 by Paul Simon for the album of the same name.

It was written as a gospel song, and Simon readily admits that he was inspired by US gospel group Swan Silvertones’ 1958 song Mary Don’t You Weep, which had the line “I’ll be your bridge over deep water if you trust in me.”

Simon later met with the band’s leader Claude Jeter, admitted the inspiration, and handed him a large cheque.

The song, which came so quickly to Simon that he was surprised, was initially written on guitar.

But he later worked on it on is piano, to get a gospel sound and to fit Art Garfunkel’s voice. Initially Garfunkel liked Simon’s falsetto on the demo and suggested he should sing it solo.

The original version only had two verses, but Garfunkel thought it too short and insisted Simon write another one. It had a line “sail on silvergirl” about how his wife at the time, Peggy Harper, who noticed her first grey hair.

The single went on to sell 6 million copies. It went to #1 in the US (for six weeks), the UK, Canada, France and New Zealand.

In Australia it peaked at #2.

Fifty artists have done cover versions, including Elvis Presley and Aretha Franklin.

Cowell says about the newest version, “Honestly –it’s unbelievable. I mean chills. It sounds beautiful.”

The full list of the 50+ artists featured on Bridge Over Troubled Watera:

Angel

Anne-Marie

Bastille

Brian May (Queen)

Carl Barât (The Libertines)

Craig David

Deno