February 23, 2004
Ultimate Pop Star
Surveys are only as good as the source group. Ask who is the greatest pop star of all time and answers will vary widely. One way to avoid asking opinions and yet get a reliable answer is to look at the actual number of records sold. Or more specifically, singles.
So who has sold more singles in the UK than any other artist or group? I was surprised at who wasn’t on top. It wasn’t the Beatles. It wasn’t Elvis. It wasn’t even Elton John. And the biggest surprise of all – it was a Christian. Someone who is actually well known as a Christian in this godless land and almost unknown in the USA.
Sir Cliff Richard has sold 20.96 million singles in a career that has spanned five decades. In fact, he is the only artist to have had a Number 1 hit the 1950s, ‘60s, ‘70s, ‘80s, and ‘90s. He’s still after his first Number 1 of the ‘00s. He is a clean-living, soft-spoken, scandal-free man – enormously wealthy and not at all flashy – hardly the proper example of a pop star.
Good old Riff Pilchard. Even my father has stopped calling him a girl's blouse but that's only because he can't think of anything better for Hugh Grant.
Posted by: Havdala at February 24, 2004 12:34 PMI am SO GLAD he won. He deserves it. He is my favorite pop male singer. It is nice that a decent man and person finally gets a top spot to let the phrase "nice guys finish last" did not apply to him. He got it by singing and not dressing silly and acting silly and vulgar as a lot of the pop singers nowadays do. The older singers can sing so much better than most of the younger ones coming up nowadays. I am from the U.S. and I know who he is. I have liked his singing for about 24 years. I am glad he won.
Posted by: Kim at February 25, 2004 04:57 PMare you sure he's real? ;-)
Posted by: Katherine at February 27, 2004 01:25 AMYes he is real! He is a Christian.
Posted by: KIm at February 27, 2004 06:55 PMCliff's been hiding that one well for ages hasn't he? I always thought he was a poor man's Elvis really. There must be more people who are fans of his music than I thought!
Posted by: Emma at February 28, 2004 09:10 AMIn his own way he can sing as good as Elvis. He has the best singing voice of all the male British pop singers I think along with Tom Jones. Sting for example I have nothing against him. I just don't think his singing voice is as good as Cliff's voice is. Cliff has made movies and sang all these years and is consistent hitmaker in the U.K.
Posted by: KIm at March 2, 2004 06:27 PMIn his own way he can sing as good as Elvis. He has the best singing voice of all the male British pop singers I think along with Tom Jones. Sting for example I have nothing against him. I just don't think his singing voice is as good as Cliff's voice is. Cliff has made movies and sang all these years and is consistent hitmaker in the U.K.
Posted by: KIm at March 2, 2004 06:27 PM