Well, no surprise at what is number one this week then, needless to say Band Aid 20's version of 'Do They Know It's Christmas is currently at the top of the singles chart. Whether or not Tony Blair buying a copy at the Edinburgh branch of HMV on Friday helped the charity song seize the top slot we're not sure (presumably my failure to buy a copy didn't help), but nevertheless Band Aid was by far the best seller this week. Whether it will continue to be the biggest seller for another two weeks - ie enough to secure the Christmas number one - remains to be seen.
Commenting on selling a copy to Tony Blair, the manager of HMV Edinburgh told reporters this weekend: "When the store opened at 8.30am, there were, what I thought at the time, some slightly suspicious looking people hanging around the front entrance, and it was only later, when the Prime Minister came in, that I realised they must have been carrying out a security check. When Mr Blair came in unannounced, we were all pretty gobsmacked, to say the least. Our customer helper approached him to see if he needed any assistance, and it was only then we realised he wanted to buy copies of the Band Aid single rather than the latest album from Eminem, which is our current best seller."
Should President Bush wish to make a similar gesture he will need to get himself a digital music player. Although import copies of the track are selling well in LA and New York, the Universal Music Group has confirmed they have no plans to give the record a proper release in America. It is, however, available to download globally via Band Aid 20's official website.