Which albums have spent over a year in the charts?
It’s probably not going to be at the top of many people’s ‘most listened to’ this year, but would you believe that the soundtrack from The Sound of Music is the second longest-running album ever to remain in the charts, clocking in at well over six years consecutively inside the top 40? Or that not one but three of Ed Sheeran’s albums also make the cut, having each respectively spent over a year in the charts since their release?
Whether that fact makes you want to cry into the abyss or not, the point remains that a marker of an iconic album is its longevity, and when something can still comfortably cling on to a decent chart position even long after it first hit the airwaves, you know you’re on to a winner.
By rounding up which albums have spent over a year in the charts, we’re effectively just curating a list of the best albums of all time. We’re thinking Fleetwood Mac, Queen, Oasis… and South Pacific?
Yes, believe it or not, another theatrical offering does qualify, ranking above even the likes of Legend by Bob Marley and the Wailers and Bat Out of Hell by Meatloaf. Thankfully, the rest are much more plain sailing, a real celebration of the music we have loved so much throughout the decades.
Starting with some of the earlier contenders, there’s A Bridge Over Troubled Water by Simon and Garfunkel, released in 1970, followed by Tubular Bells by Mike Oldfield and The Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd, both from 1973. What these albums have in common is the chunks of history that have played roles within them – Tubular Bells was the first album produced on Virgin Records, A Bridge Over Troubled Water was Simon and Garfunkel’s fifth and final ever album, and The Dark Side of the Moon infamously has all those swirling rumours about its connection to The Wizard of Oz. Magical.
But iconic albums don’t have to just contain fantastical elements; sometimes, the lore behind them can be as dramatically rock and roll as it gets. Just look at Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours, released in 1977 but still rightfully sticking to its place in the charts. Although among their most acclaimed albums, it depicted a particularly turbulent time in Fleetwood Mac’s journey, full of band romances and break-ups – not least Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham’s explosive tensions. It wouldn’t probably be an album of the fondest memories, but certainly with the healthiest looking cheques.
There are also some more relatively recent but equally loved entries. Of course, everyone’s favourite Mancunian brothers make an appearance with (What’s the Story) Morning Glory?, but there’s also Dua Lipa’s self-titled debut album, released in 2017 – as well as Sheeran’s +, x, and Divide, but we’ll keep going. It’s a look to the future – what might this list look like in another 50 years, and will any of our most exciting up-and-coming acts be topping the bill?
Then we get to the greatest hits section. Who doesn’t love it – an album chock full of classic banger after classic banger, sorting the weak from the chaff and not having to sit through those filler tracks no one will remember in five years? Only the best of the best. Here we see the likes of the top tracks by Queen and Simon and Garfunkel – again – as well as other repeat appearances in 50 Years – Don’t Stop by Fleetwood Mac and Time Flies – 1994-2009 by Oasis. There are also single compilation entries in the form of Curtain Call by Eminem and Diamonds by Elton John, securing their spots among the all-time best. But there’s another greatest hits album left, and to this day, it’s the one still leaving them all for dust.
That would be Swedish royalty ABBA and their classic Gold album of hits. Whether your preferred karaoke tune of choice might be ‘Dancing Queen’ or ‘Mamma Mia’, it really is true that ‘The Winner Takes It All’ in terms of ABBA’s dominance at the top of the list. It was the first-ever album to surpass over 1000 weeks in the UK Top 100, a position from which it’s now likely never going to slip. Very few other albums or artists will ever come near to that feat, so the four-piece are the rightful owners of the crown. Just be thankful that’s not The Sound of Music.
