Chloe Adams
Candle in the Wind 1997 is a song by English musician Elton John and songwriter Bernie Taupin. It was released on 13 September 1997 as a tribute to Diana, Princess of Wales, who had died in a car crash in Paris on 31 August 1997. The song became the fastest-selling single in the UK, selling 658,000 copies on its first day of release and over 1.5 million in its first week. It has sold over 33 million copies worldwide and is the second-best-selling single in the world, according to the Guinness World Records. Now, onto the specifics of how many copies this popular single sold.
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What You'll Learn
Worldwide sales
"Candle in the Wind 1997", also known as "Goodbye England's Rose", is a tribute to Diana, Princess of Wales, who died in a car crash in Paris, France, on 31 August 1997. The song was released on 13 September 1997, just two weeks after Diana's death. It was a rewritten version of the 1973 song "Candle in the Wind", with new lyrics by Bernie Taupin. The song was produced by Sir George Martin and performed by Elton John.
"Candle in the Wind 1997" became the fastest-selling single in the UK, selling 658,000 copies on its first day of release and over 1.5 million in its first week. It debuted at number one on the UK Singles Chart and stayed there for five weeks, becoming the best-selling song in the UK. As of September 2017, the song had sold 4.94 million copies in the UK.
In the US, the song also debuted at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, with first-week sales of 3.5 million copies. It stayed at number one for 14 consecutive weeks, setting a record for a male solo artist. The song has sold over 33 million copies worldwide and is the second-best-selling single in the world, according to Guinness World Records. It is also the best-selling single since charts began in the 1950s.
In other countries, "Candle in the Wind 1997" also saw significant success. In Canada, the song spent three years in the top 20 on the Canadian Singles Chart and is the best-selling single of all time in Finland. In Germany, it is the 8th best-selling pop hymn ever and had 2 million pre-orders. In Australia, the song had 400,000 pre-orders and is one of the all-time best-selling singles, being certified 14 times platinum.
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Sales in the US
"Candle in the Wind 1997", also known as "Goodbye England's Rose", is a song by English musician Elton John and songwriter Bernie Taupin. It was released on 13 September 1997 as a tribute to Diana, Princess of Wales, with the global proceeds from the song going towards Diana's charities.
In the US, "Candle in the Wind 1997" sold 3.5 million copies in its first week. The song topped the Billboard Hot 100 for 14 weeks, becoming the best-selling single in Billboard history. It was the first single certified Diamond in the US, selling 11 million copies in the US alone.
There is some debate about whether "Candle in the Wind 1997" is the best-selling single of all time. In 2007, Guinness World Records concluded that Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" had sold 50 million copies worldwide, compared to 33 million for "Candle in the Wind 1997". However, due to the lack of sales data for "White Christmas", which was released before modern singles charts, some sources consider "Candle in the Wind 1997" to be the best-selling single since the 1950s.
In terms of physical single sales, "Candle in the Wind 1997" is considered the second highest-selling of all time, behind "White Christmas".
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Sales in the UK
"Candle in the Wind 1997", also known as "Goodbye England's Rose", is a tribute to Diana, Princess of Wales, who died in an accident on 31 August 1997. The song was released in September 1997, just two weeks after Diana's death. It was written and recorded by English musician Elton John and songwriter Bernie Taupin.
The song was an instant hit in the UK, selling a record-breaking 650,000 to 658,000 copies on its first day. It topped the UK Singles Chart, becoming John's fourth UK number-one single. In its first week, the song sold 658,000 copies, and in its second week, sales rose to 1.54 million. By its fourth week on sale, "Candle in the Wind 1997" had become the biggest-selling single of all time in the UK, surpassing the charity song "Do They Know It's Christmas", which had sold 3.52 million copies at that point.
"Candle in the Wind 1997" spent five weeks at Number 1 in the UK and has sold 4.9 million copies to date. It is the UK's biggest-selling single of all time. The song has also been downloaded 27,000 times since it became available for download in 2007.
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Sales in other countries
"Candle in the Wind 1997" sold a total of 33 million copies worldwide, making it the second-best-selling single in the world. The song was a tribute to Princess Diana, who passed away in August 1997, and all proceeds from the song went towards her charities. Here is a breakdown of the song's sales in different countries:
United States
"Candle in the Wind 1997" sold 3.5 million copies in the US in its first week, making it the best-selling single in Billboard history. It was the only single ever certified Diamond in the United States at the time and shipped over 11 million copies. The song topped the Billboard Hot 100 for 14 consecutive weeks, setting a record for a male solo artist.
United Kingdom
In the UK, the song sold 658,000 copies on its first day and 1.5 million in its first week, becoming the fastest-selling single in the country. It debuted at number one on the UK Singles Chart and stayed there for five weeks. As of September 2017, the song had sold 4.94 million copies in the UK.
Canada
"Candle in the Wind 1997" spent three years in the top 20 on the Canadian Singles Chart, with 45 to 46 non-consecutive weeks at the top spot. However, on Canada's RPM Top Singles chart, the song only reached number 14.
Germany
In Germany, the song had 2 million pre-orders and is the 8th best-selling pop hymn in the country.
France
"Candle in the Wind 1997" had 250,000 pre-orders in France and reached platinum status the day after its release, with 500,000 sales.
Australia
The song had 400,000 pre-orders in Australia and spent six weeks at number one on the ARIA Charts. It is one of the all-time best-selling singles in the country, with 14 times platinum certification and 56 weeks in the Top 100.
Finland
According to Musiikkituottajat, the Finnish music industry federation, "Candle in the Wind 1997" is the best-selling single of all time in Finland, with quintuple-platinum certification.
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Pre-order sales
"Candle in the Wind 1997" by Elton John is one of the best-selling singles of all time. The song was released as a tribute to Princess Diana, who passed away in 1997.
Before the CD was even shipped, there were over 12 million pre-orders in the US alone. The song sold 150,000 pre-order copies in the Netherlands, 2 million in Germany, and 250,000 in France. In Australia, it had 400,000 pre-orders, and in the UK, it sold more than 650,000 copies in its first 24 hours, becoming the fastest-selling record in the UK charts.
In its second week, the song sold 1.54 million copies in the UK, and by its fourth week, it was the biggest-selling single of all time. In the US, the song sold 3.5 million copies in its first week, and by September 1997, it had sold nearly 3.5 million copies over six days, taking the American pop charts by storm.
"Candle in the Wind 1997" has sold over 33 million copies worldwide and is the second-best-selling single in the world, according to Guinness World Records.
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Frequently asked questions
"Candle in the Wind 1997" sold 658,000 copies in the UK on its first day of release.
"Candle in the Wind 1997" sold 33 million copies worldwide.
"Candle in the Wind 1997" sold 3.5 million copies in the US in its first week.
