For the first time EVER a second soundtrack from a film series has not only topped the ARIA Albums chart but has also debuted in the No.1 spot, as this week the “Fifty Shades Darker” soundtrack takes out the top spot of three high new entries.
“Fifty Shades Darker” becomes the 797th No.1 Album in Australia (1965 to 2017) and the 648th for ARIA (1983 to 2017), plus the 441st to debut at No.1 and the fourth soundtrack to do so (the first being “Fifty Shades of Grey” (16th Feb, 2015), and it also now the fourteenth No.1 album for the Univeral (direct) label, and finally the 49th film/TV soundtrack to make it to the top of the Australian Albums chart.
As I mentioned at the top of the albums section, this is first time that a second soundtrack from a film series has also topped the albums chart after the first soundtrack did, as two years ago the “Fifty Shades of Grey” set become the first ever soundtrack to debut at No.1, spending four weeks at the top. Now the second lands a No.1 debut, and it also becomes the second ever sequel soundtrack to make it to the top, as “Shrek 2” spent a single week at No.1 on the 26th of July in 2004 (the first ‘Shrek’ soundtrack peaked at No.2 for three weeks in January 2002). We have had two soundtracks from a TV series claim No.1’s though, as the Glee Volume 3 (2 wks from 31st May, 2010) and Volume 5 (1 wk on 21st March, 2011) both topped the Australian Album charts, but as I said earlier, this is the first time a film series has landed two No.1’s sets here, not even a second No.1 for the Grease, Bridget Jones, Twilight or High School Musical series, but there are plans for a sequel to ‘Frozen’ (#1 for 2 wks from 5th May, 2014, TW back up nineteen spots to No.76), so that could be the next double-up of soundtracks at the top.
The fourth studio album for Blue Mountains, NSW trio Thundamentals entitled “Everyone We Know” debuts at No.2, becoming the Aussie hip-hop acts third chart entry, second Top 10 album and now highest charting set, as they previously peaked at No.3 with their third album “So We Can Remember” (May 2014), whilst they first charted with their second album “ForeverEvolution” (HP-64, Aug 2011). The new album has so far seen two singles chart, “Late Nights” (HP-97, July 2016) and “Think About it” (HP-93, Nov 2016)
New at No.3 is the debut album for British singer Rag’N’Bone Man (Rory Graham) entitled “Human”, which debuted at No.1 in his home country this week too, and here it has seen the singles “Human” (HP-17, TW-34) and “Skin” (HP-87, TW-88) chart so far. Five time Grammy winner this past week was Adele and her album “25”, which picked up ‘Album of the Year’, and sees it climb back up three places to No.4, and with Guns N’ Roses touring the country at the moment, their “Greatest Hits” is this week up five spots to land at a new peak of No.5, having formerly made it to No.6 for four broken weeks in April and May of 2004.
There are still three soundtrack albums within the Top 10 again this week, with the new fifty#2 entering at No.1, it sends the ‘Sing’ set out, but still in is the “Trolls” set, down four to No.6 and falling five spots to No.9 is the current New Zealand No.1 set ‘Moana’. Also falling this week are Human Nature with “Gimme Some Lovin’; Jukebox Vol.II” to No.8 and “x” for Ed Sheeran to No.10. In between all of those dropping albums is the fourth Top 10 debut for this week, the twelfth studio album for local country singer Adam Brand entitled “Get on Your Feet”, which by landing at No.7 this week becomes his fifth Top 10 album, one place lower than his January 2016 eleventh album “Adam Brand & the Outlaws” (HP-6).
UP:
* Grammy winner and performer on the night in Beyonce sees her “Lemonade” set blast back up thirty spots this week to No.12.
* Guns N’ Roses not only land a new peak for their GH set, but they also have four albums within the Top 40 this week, with their breakout album “Appetite for Destruction” jumping up twenty-one spots to No.19, whilst their dual sets “Use Your Illusion” both surge back up, Vol.II (63 to 33) and Vol.I (59 to 35).
* Adele’s third album isn’t the only one rising, as her second set “21” is back up ten spots to No.28 and her first album “19” is up twenty-seven places to land at No.50.
* Flume’s Grammy win for ‘Electronic Dance Album” for “Skin” sees it rise six places to No.29.
* Metallica’s bad-tech-filled Grammy performance with Lady Gaga doesn’t diminish a rise for their latest album “Hardwired… to Self Destruct”, back up seven places to No.30.
* Prince’s back catalogue was placed on streaming services for the first time this past week, and that has helped his “Very Best of” collection to return to the chart at No.45 this week.
* Italian Ambient Classical artist Ludovico Einaudi is touring Australia up until the 19th of February, which helps his current album “Elements” to rise thirty-one spots to a new peak of No.54 this week.
* Grammy-nominated (but no wins) Justin Bieber sees his “Purpose” set rise back up seventeen spots to No.56.
* The new James Blundell covers album “Campfire” rises this week thirteen spots to a new peak of No.58.
* Back up fifteen places to No.66 is the Robbie Williams set “The Heavy Entertainment Show”.
* Illy rebounds twenty-one places to No.72 with his former No.1 set “Two Degrees”.
* The Michael Jackson “Essential” set is back up twenty spots to No.79.
* The recent ticket sales for the upcoming Green Day tour help “Revolution Radio” to rise back up six places this week to No.88.
* The second of only four returning albums this week is back in at No.89, “The Very Best of” for Fleetwood Mac, whilst also re-entering is “Blackstar” for David Bowie, which won several Grammy Awards this week, back in at No.94, with Carrie Underwood resurfacing at No.99 with “Storyteller” set.
DOWN:
* Bruno Mars is only down one spot to No.13 with his “24K Magic”, which is the only new Top 100 certified album this week, now Gold (●) in sales.
* The first of four Top 10 dropouts is Kasey Chambers’ “Dragonfly” (HP-1×1, WI10-3), down five places to No.14, followed by the soundtrack to the film “Sing” (HP-2, WI10-6), down seven to No.15, and last weeks No.1 debut for Dune Rats in “The Kids Will Know it’s Bullshit” (HP-1×1, WI10-1) tumbles down sixteen places to No.17, but is nothing compared to the final Top 10 dropout, “The Rhapsody Tapes” for Ocean Grove (HP-5, WI10-1), which is down a massive fifty-eight spots to land at No.63 this week.
* The “La La Land” soundtrack drops five places to No.18, but could rise again once the Oscar wins start rolling in (maybe?).
* The McClymonts are down ten places to No.32 with their latest album “Endless”.
* After a Super Bowl surge last week, the latest Lady Gaga set “Joanne” is back down eleven spots to No.36.
* The Bruce Springsteen “Greatest Hits” set drops down fifteen spots to No.38.
* Train shuffle down fourteen places to No.41 with “A Girl, A Bottle, A Boat”.
* Now that their tour is finished, the self-titled QSP album drops fifteen places to No.47.
* Even though they won a Grammy Award this past week (and accepted it in their underwear), the twenty one pilots album “Blurryface” drops down twenty-four spots to No.57.
* Further big drops occur for Sampha (70 from 28), Elbow (71 from 16), I Prevail (75 from 48), Violent Soho (78 from 52), Big Sean (82 from 14), Brian & Jenn Johnson (86 from 53), Passenger (87 from 66) and Bethel Music (98 from 62), whilst leaving the Top 100 from last weeks fifty are Pete Tong (#20), Dear Evan Hansen cast recording (#34), Glass Animals (#45) and Tame Impala (#47).
NEW ENTRIES:
* #20 (EP#1) – Belmont Street (EP) by Jess & Matt is the pair’s first EP and second albums chart entry for the duo from the 2015 X-Factor series, as their self-titled debut album made it to No.9 in early January of 2016.
* #22 (LP#1) – Final Notice by Jay UF is the debut album for the Sydney rapper.
* #55 (LP#18) – The Grinding Wheel by Overkill is the first ARIA Albums Chart entry for the New Jersey thrash metal band.
* #81 (LP#23) – Songs of Cinema by Michael Bolton is his thirteenth albums chart entry (12 studios and 1 GH), and contains ten tracks from such films as “The Bodyguard”/”Best Little Whorehouse in Texas”, “Risky Business”, “Wizard of Oz”, the “Pirates of the Caribbean” series and many more.
* #85 (LP#2) – Malibu by Anderson.Paak is the second album (first released Jan 2016) for the US RnB and hip-hop artist who was nominated for a few Grammy Awards this past week, and this is his first solo chart entry, although he was a part of the duo NxWorries whose debut set “Yes Lawd!” made it to No.48 in November of 2016.
* #100 (LP#2) – Zombies on Broadway by Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness is the second studio album and first chart entry for California born alt-rock artist Andrew McMahon.
Compiled by Gavin Ryan for Australian-Charts.com
