James Masterton
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
James Masterton (b. September 2 1973) is a headline columnist for the music website Yahoo! Launch. He writes a weekly column analyzing new entries in the UK Singles Chart. Masterton also works in information technology for a radio production company and is a technical producer for a national radio station on the weekends. He has made several media appearances, most recently on Channel 4's "100 Worst Pop Records".
Masterton began posting his weekly comments about the latest singles chart on Usenet in 1992. In 1995 he became an important element of BT's Dotmusic website, an online hub for the UK music scene and one of the few sites that posted the entire UK top 75 every week. His commentary on new entries in the chart was fully integrated into the site. When Dotmusic was purchased from BT by Yahoo! on October 28, 2003, Masterton's commentary moved to Yahoo! Launch with it.
Masterton is popular for the depth and scope of his weekly analysis and for his wit. He not only explains the significance of an individual song, but also examines its place within an artist's career by citing past records and predictions. Masterton also occasionally makes comments about trends and records within the UK Singles Chart itself, tracking its evolution and making wry comments about the trend away from singles sales. Masterton also predicted and analysed the impact of download sales being incorporated into the chart and he sometimes references developments in US Billboard music charts. He is sure to mention when a particular release goes against the trend in its chart performance or its marketing and he often comments about a popular release's economic or cultural impact.
