But there’s a corollary to this: if Westlife come and go so quickly, it’s a stretch to suggest that they themselves were a ruinous force in pop music. There’s barely a sign of crossover to a wider singles-buying audience. Westlife are the ultimate fanbase band: almost every one of their many, many hits is a one-week wonder and gets out of the Top 10 sharpish.
Even so, the degree of success says very little good about how the charts were working by 1999, as a finely staged ballet of release date scheduling and fanbase priming. Westlife are a group like any other, with fans they speak to and mean a lot to, and deserve to be considered as more than just a statistical anomaly.
This idea – Westlife as a sign of pop catastrophe – is a mix of the true and the false and the condescending. The scale of Westlife’s success, more than almost any other factor, was enough to convince even sympathisers that the charts were broken, that pop was broken, a damaged transmitter no longer capable of processing the cultural signals around it. One of these things is not like the others, apparently. Look at the list of the most successful Number One acts – Elvis, the Beatles, Westlife. Implicit in the jokes is a feeling that Westlife are different. There have been times when I’ve wondered myself what on earth I would say, given that from a standing start I could barely remember two of them. Thankyou for looking, hope to see you again.Westlife have always been this blog’s nemesis, the doom encoded in its premise: however entertaining the song or era I’m writing about is, at some point I will have to deal with fourteen Westlife number ones. FEEDBACK Please contact me to resolve any problem or if you are unhappy with any aspect of your purchase BEFORE you leave any feedback.
(E-Cheques may take up to 7 days to clear) International: PayPal only RETURNS Full refund given if item is returned within 7 days of receipt. UK Orders: PayPal, Personal Cheque, Postal Orders. After 4 days an 'Unpaid Item Case' message may be sent if payment is not received and the item will be re-listed unless a prior arrangement is made. PAYMENT Please pay within 2 days of purchase to avoid automatic e-Bay payment reminder messages. U: Singles £3.00 + 40p P&P for each extra REST OF THE WORLD: Singles £4.00 + 50p P&P for each extra Multiple Purchases If you intend to buy more than one single, please wait for final invoice when all bids have finished to receive combined discount. UK : Add 30p P&P for each extra single E. If you require recorded delivery please contact me before ANY payment is made. I always obtain proof of posting and cannot be held responsible for damage in transit or non-delivered items. (Multiple singles are bubble-wrapped/boxed) N.B. POSTAGE Individual singles are protected in a clear plastic sleeve and sent in cardboard mailer by 1st Class Post/Air Mail. Sleeve may have folds, scuffs, spine splits, discolouration, writing, stickers. FAIR (F): Heavy surface marks with possible crackle, distortion, jumps. GOOD (G): Surface marks with possible crackle/distortion. Sleeve may have ring mark, edge wear, writing, stickers.
VERY GOOD (VG): Light surface marks/scratches, possibility of some surface/background noise. Sleeve may have minimal wear or creasing. EXCELLENT (E): One or two barely visible surface marks. Label/Cat No: RCA (2166206 7JB ) VINYL GRADING MINT (M): Unsealed.New/Unplayed NEAR MINT (NM): No obvious marks. Without centre Sleeve Type: New white paper sleeve. WESTLIFE Swear It Again (Radio Edit) 7'' (1999) Very Rare B-Side: Forever Vinyl Grade (see below): Excellent.