George Harrison's Decades-Old Album Enjoys A 12,000% Sales Bump
George Harrison was always known as the “quiet Beatle,” as he was the least gregarious and outgoing of the bunch. That nickname stuck even after the band broke up and all four men pursued solo careers. While he may have been fairly soft-spoken, his music did a lot of the talking for him, and it was plenty loud enough.
One of Harrison’s most famous albums, Living in the Material World, returns to the Billboard charts this week. The decades-old collection was recently re-released as a collectible vinyl, and fans of the late rocker and former Beatle musician bought the title in large numbers—ones that become especially impressive when compared to how the title was performing before it was reissued.
In the past tracking week, Living in the Material World sold another 6,800 copies throughout the U.S., according to Luminate. That’s up massively from the period before, when there were very few people in America who wanted to buy the classic.
Before it was re-released, Living in the Material World sold a little more than 50 copies in the United States in the prior tracking week. From one frame to the next, the title soared 12,550% in pure purchases.
Several versions of Living in the Material World were made available to celebrate the title’s fiftieth anniversary, and they were offered in limited quantities, which likely spurred the buying frenzy. All editions included the original full-length, as well as various other extras, like a book, a seven-inch vinyl of one single, and even previously unreleased tracks—the kind that would surely intrigue longtime lovers of Harrison’s work.
All those purchases help Living in the Material World debut on two Billboard charts. While the project was a quick top 10 smash on the Billboard 200 when it was first released in the ‘70s, it now lands on a pair of tallies that weren’t around at the time.
Source: Hugh McIntyre/forbes.com
