Music | December 17, 2008 | 22 comments

Jeff Buckley's Hallelujah third in UK midweek charts

source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1095631/Will-X-Factor-winner-Alexandra-beaten-C...

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Alexandra Burke's hopes of a Christmas number one with Hallelujah are under threat from another cover version of the same song.

The X Factor winner's debut single can already boast being the fastest-selling download single ever in Europe.

But the renewed interest in the Leonard Cohen classic has seen demand for Jeff Buckley's 1994 version gather pace. It is third in provisional midweek charts.

Will it work? Can Jeff Buckley really beat Simon Cowell's one-hit-"wonder"?
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    Entertainment,   Music,   Current News UK
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    Entertainment,  Music,  Current News UK,  Simon Cowell,  2 more
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22 comments // Jeff Buckley's Hallelujah third in UK midweek charts

  • purplefox
    • 0
      purplefox  

    • aaargh, why does everyone have to cover that song?? and most cover versions are so awful as well, (including the X-Factor one, from what I've heard). At least Buckley's cover's good - hope he beats her!

    • 4 years ago
  • emmahill
  • phillyharper
  • J_Jammer
  • YellowAmber
    • 0
      YellowAmber  

    • I hope Buckleys wins,

      Actually hate the x factor,

      Load of rubbish,
      Since they make it look like the winners the only one getting a recording contract.
      When in fact, all finalists do, just not as good.

      so,
      Yeah
      Buckley ftw!

      :)

    • 4 years ago
  • tbkahn
    • 0
      tbkahn  

    • come on people. It's been covered by everybodyyyy. Just punch in Hallelujah + Cohen and see how many covers there are.It's the songwriter that is great. I'll listen to anything by Leonard, from Tower of Song to Bird on a wire, to Blue Raincoat, etccccc.

    • 4 years ago
  • dirtyemowords
    • 0
      dirtyemowords  

    • Buckley's version is the best. I didn't even know Alexandra Burke did a cover of it until we got a stack of the cds at work...

      There should be certain songs that the hacks leave alone...this being one of them.

    • 4 years ago
  • AnnieMole
    • 0
      AnnieMole  
    • Image

    • Defintely sounds like Cohen needs the money too

      "Cohen was last in the news when a court ruled that his manager had stolen £5.4m which he was unlikely to recover. So there may be another kind of joyous cry this Christmas - the kind that means "a beautiful woman has sung my song and restored my financial solvency". Hallelujah."

    • 4 years ago
  • tbkahn
  • Social_Fuzz
    • 0
      Social_Fuzz  

    • I hope this happens. Alex raped this beautiful song. Go Buckley! His version actually makes your hairs stand on end. The x-factor version just makes you want to turn off the radio.

      Exploiting this classic for money. Angryness.

    • 4 years ago
  • J_Jammer
    • 0
      J_Jammer [removed]  

    • I like Jeff's version as well as Rufus's.

      I think there are some songs that women just can't do...and this is one of them.

      There are also songs men just can't do.

      Of course personal choice. ha. But I just don't think females have the right voice for this song.

    • 4 years ago
  • phillyharper
    • 0
      phillyharper  

    • There's no beating around the bush to be had here. Alex Burke's version is a massacre, it's a Greek riot, a burned out car, an empty, nothing, dry, drab and sickeningly void cover of a once epic and staggeringly beautiful song.

      I hate pop culture's relentless stampede over all that is truly holy. I hate you Simon Cowell. I hate you...

    • 4 years ago
  • frampo
    • 0
      frampo  
    • phillyharper:

      you can't hate him as much as i do mate! it's making me ill i really want him to die, he and all those like him talentless 'businessmen' are not fit to lick the great Mr. Cohen's boots. His (Cowell's) sort are a reflection of the sad state of a brainwashed public force-fed so much s**t throughout the media, whilst, as is often the case, genuine talent and hard work count for nought. Don't despair though; we shall overcome one day. I hope Cowell burns in hell, but as an atheist it is a concept I don't believe in.... oh, unless you count Saturday evenings on BBC or most channels more and more lately; just a diet of less than mediocre dross. I've tried to avoid the foul language and real vitriol I feel vindicated in using towards this T**t but it hasn't been easy! long live rock 'n'roll.

    • 4 years ago
  • ksimpson
    • 0
      ksimpson  

    • At least Leonard Cohen will be getting royalties. I'm not hating it so much, i have to say... except for the backing track surge at around 2.17 which I'm hating with a vengence. I think she's quite sweet in an overemotional kind of way.. I hope she has a lovely christmas and goes out and buys lots of Leonard Cohen and Jeff Buckley.

    • 4 years ago
  • richjm
    • 0
      richjm  

    • I've been moaning far too much about somebody covering a song that has already been done so well by Jeff Buckley but I'm starting to think it's actually a good thing.

      It's hardly going to open the floodgates and lead to other songs he's done being covered - Hallelujah is a Leonard Cohen song so the Buckley estate didn't have a say - and if it means more people get into his incredible music, so be it.

      Here's Jeff Buckley doing Hallelujah live. There's no Beyonce or Louis Walsh in sight but it's still lovely and epic.

    • 4 years ago
  • ThatBastardBeej
    • 0
      ThatBastardBeej  

    • Considering Rufus Wainwright did a pretty awesome version of the song, and U2's wasn't half bad...not to mention the original, it's pretty sad to see it subjected to pop hackery

    • 4 years ago
  • AnnieMole
    • 0
      AnnieMole  

    • As much as I like Alexandra Burke I would soooooo like Buckley's at least in the charts even if it doesn't get to number one. I joined the Facebook group on Saturday! It now has over 75,000 members!

    • 4 years ago
  • mattbrawn
    • 0
      mattbrawn  
    • AnnieMole:

      I think there's a good chance he'll be in the top 3 if he doesn't win it. The X Factor version is like serving caviar off of a dirty garden shovel... great content just badly served up.

    • 4 years ago
  • mattbrawn
    • 0
      mattbrawn  

    • Sadly I think Mr Cohen's gonna be hard pushed to scoop the Xmas no.1, Alex Burke's butchering of it has set a European record for fastest selling single. The joy.

    • 4 years ago
  • phillyharper
    • 0
      phillyharper  
    • mattbrawn:

      There's no beating around the bush to be had here. This is a massacre, it's a Greek riot, a burned out car, an empty, nothing, dry, drab and sickeningly void cover of a once epic and staggeringly beautiful song.

      I hate pop culture's relentless stampede over all that is truly holy. I hate you Simon Cowell, I hate you...

    • 4 years ago
  • phillyharper
    • 0
      phillyharper  
    • mattbrawn:

      There's no beating around the bush to be had here. This is a massacre, it's a Greek riot, a burned out car, an empty, nothing, dry, drab and sickeningly void cover of a once epic and staggeringly beautiful song.

      I hate pop culture's relentless stampede over all that is truly holy. I hate you Simon Cowell, I hate you...

    • 4 years ago
  • J_Jammer
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