Sale of the Century (song)

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"Sale of the Century"
SaleoftheCenturycoverart.png
Single by Sleeper
from the album The It Girl
Released22 April 1996 (1996-04-22) [1]
Genre Britpop
Length4:35
Label Indolent
Songwriter(s) Louise Wener, Andy MacLure
Producer(s) Stephen Street
Sleeper singles chronology
"What Do I Do Now?"
(1995)
"Sale of the Century"
(1996)
"Nice Guy Eddie"
(1996)

"Sale of the Century" is a song by Britpop band Sleeper, written by the band's vocalist/guitarist Louise Wener and drummer Andy Maclure. In Europe, "Sale of the Century" was the second single to be released from their second album The It Girl in 1996 and became the group's first top ten hit on the UK Singles Chart. [2]

Contents

Louise Wener said of the protagonist of "Sale of the Century": "Love makes you a little insane, yet rationality always kicks in. Dreamy persistence fascinates me, but so does powerlessness, ruined lives, and people who can't or don't get what they want." [3]

"Sale of the Century" was backed with "Atomic", the band's cover of the Blondie hit single, recorded for the Trainspotting soundtrack.

Single release

In the United States, Arista positioned "Sale of the Century" as the lead-off single for the North American release of the album, submitting a radio edit of the track to alternative radio. [4] Billboard magazine were quick to point out that the single and the band were distinctive from other Britpop acts by not borrowing from The Beatles. [4] "Like all great Top 40 gems, this song has wit, lyrical power, melodic beauty, and a muscular backbeat", Larry Flick wrote in his Billboard review for "Sale of the Century", adding that the song was "one of the most thrilling summer singles for years". [4] "Sale of the Century" preceded the release of The It Girl, which impacted stores across North America on 18 June 1996. [3] Nevertheless, it still failed to reach any North American chart positions.

Track listings

Comprehensive Charts

Chart (1996)Peak
position
Scotland Singles (The Official Charts Company) [5] 13
UK Singles (The Official Charts Company) [6] 10

Related Research Articles

Louise Jane Wener is an English writer, songwriter, singer and guitarist of the band Sleeper. She is the younger daughter of Donald Wener, an Inland Revenue tax inspector from East Ham who had served in the RAF, and Audrey, a bank clerk and former nurse. She attended Manchester University where she met Jon Stewart, eventually leading to the formation of Sleeper. Her elder sister was the writer Sue Margolis. Their brother, Geoff, managed Sleeper after attending Cambridge University.

Sleeper are an English rock band formed in London in 1992. The group had eight UK Top 40 hit singles and three UK Top 10 albums during the 1990s. Their music was also featured in the soundtrack of the pop cultural hit movie Trainspotting. The band split up in 1998, but reunited in 2017.

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References

  1. "New Releases: Singles". Music Week . 20 April 1996. p. 27.
  2. Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 507. ISBN   1-904994-10-5.
  3. 1 2 White, Timothy (4 May 1996). "Sleeper: Nobody Does "It" Better". Billboard . Retrieved 29 November 2018.
  4. 1 2 3 Flick, Larry (6 July 1996). "Reviews & Previews: Singles; Rock". Billboard . Retrieved 29 November 2018.
  5. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100; 28 April 1996 - 04 May 1996". The Official Charts Company . Retrieved 26 November 2018.
  6. "Official Singles Chart Top 100; 28 April 1996 - 04 May 1996". The Official Charts Company . Retrieved 26 November 2018.