The Beatles seemed poised to score a record-extending 16th No. 1 album on the U.K. chart, but Taylor Swift had other ideas. The pop superstar’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) has claimed the top spot on the U.K.’s Official Albums Chart for a third consecutive week, denying the Fab Four’s expanded reissue of their 1967-1970 compilation, also known as “The Blue Album,” from debuting at No. 1 on the tally.
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The 1967-1970 reissue lands at No. 2 on the chart, while the expanded reissue of its companion compilation, 1962-1966, aka “The Red Album,” debuts at No. 3.
[RELATED: The Beatles’ “Now and Then” Is Now a Top 10 Hit on the Billboard Hot 100]
Interestingly, the original versions of “The Blue Album” and “The Red Album,” which were released in 1973, also peaked at No. 2 and No. 3, respectively, on the U.K. albums chart.
The Beatles still hold the record for the most No. 1 albums in their U.K. homeland, with 15.
In other U.K. album chart news, Vermont singer/songwriter Noah Kahan’s Stick Season jumped from No. 22 to No. 6, The Rolling Stones’ Hackney Diamonds dropped from No. 4 to No. 8, Olivia Rodrigo’s Guts moved down from No. 6 to No. 9, and New Order’s 1987 compilation Substance reentered the tally at No. 10.
Meanwhile, The Beatles’ recent single, “Now and Then,” which appears on the expanded version of “The Blue Album,” and which ascended to the top of the U.K. singles chart last week, has been replaced at No. 1 this week by Jack Harlow’s “Lovin on Me.” This marks the American rapper/singer’s first chart-topping single in the U.K. As for “Now and Then,” it dropped five spots to No. 6.
Lengthy radio specials focused on the 1962-1966 and 1967-1970 compilation reissues and featuring track-by-track commentary by various celebrity Fab Four fans, are available now at SiriusXM’s The Beatles Channel. In addition, a video clip showing a Times Square display promoting the channel and its coverage of “Now and Then” has been posted on the band’s social media pages.
Photo by Don Paulsen/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
