Way Down was released on 6 June 1977. It entered the UK charts on 13 August, and Elvis died three days later.
Way Down reached No. 1 on 3 September. On the same date, eight re–released singles entered the charts, giving Elvis a record nine singles concurrently in the UK charts (top 50). Of the eight re–releases, only It's Now or Never made the top 40, reaching no. 39.
Way Down stayed at No. 1 for five weeks.
Elvis was credited with a second posthumous No. 1 in 2002, when JXL's remix of A Little Less Conversation made the top spot. (JXL is the nom de guerre of a Dutch DJ, real name Thomas Holkenborg – a.k.a. Junkie XL.) Then in 2005, all 18 of Elvis's previous UK No. 1 singles were re–released as a CD boxed set. They were also available individually (priced at £3.99 each), so each one had a chart placing; three of them – Jailhouse Rock, One Night, and It's Now or Never – made No. 1 for a second time.
© Haydn Thompson 2017