An album is defined by British organisation the Official Charts Company (OCC) as being a type of music release that features more than four tracks and is longer than 25 minutes in duration.[1] On 9 April 2012, a record chart was broadcast on BBC Radio 2 that listed the 40 albums that had sold the most in the United Kingdom.[2] The programme was hosted by British DJ Tony Blackburn, and was entitled Tony Blackburn with the UK's Bestselling Albums.[2] The chart was compiled by the OCC, and was based on sales of albums in the UK from 1956, the year that sales were first monitored, to March 2012.[3] The record at number one was Greatest Hits, a compilation album by British band Queen, which, since its 1981 release, has sold approximately 5.87 million copies in the UK.[4][5] Queen's second greatest hits album, Greatest Hits II, has sold approximately 3.89 million copies since being released in 1991, and was featured at number 10 on Radio 2's list.[5][6]
Of the 40 albums listed on the chart, more than half are by British artists.[7] Nine are by American artists, with the rest being from Ireland, Canada, Sweden and Jamaica.[8] Five acts – The Beatles, Coldplay, Dido, Michael Jackson and Queen – feature on the chart with more than one album.[9] In promotion of the Radio 2 programme, Blackburn described the list as "a real mixed bag".[10] The most-represented record label is Parlophone with five entries, while the decade that appears the most is the 2000s, with 14 of the entries having been released during that period.[7] BBC News remarked on the day of the chart's broadcast that the 2000s had been the most-represented decade despite its "general background of declining sales and internet piracy".[8]
Sales of albums in the UK were first published on 28 July 1956 by music magazine Record Mirror, who compiled a weekly chart of the country's five biggest-selling records[11] – their first number one was Songs for Swingin' Lovers! by Frank Sinatra.[12] Since then, three albums have gone on to sell more than five million copies each: Greatest Hits by Queen, Gold: Greatest Hits by ABBA and Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band by The Beatles.[13] The top eight best-selling albums have each sold at least four million copies.[5] As of 2012[update], sales of albums are monitored by the OCC, and compiled weekly as the UK Albums Chart.[14]
Sales certifications for UK album sales are awarded by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI).[15] The BPI began awarding certifications soon after it was founded in April 1973.[16] Initially, certifications were based on the revenue received by the album manufacturers – records that generated revenue of £75,000 were awarded silver certification, £150,000 represented gold and £1 million was platinum.[16] Over the following six years, the thresholds for silver and gold certifications both grew twice – the threshold for platinum certification remained at £1 million. In January 1979, this method was abolished, and certifications were instead based on unit retail sales: sales of 60,000 were awarded silver, 100,000 for gold and 300,000 for platinum.[16] Multi-platinum awards were introduced in February 1987; digital downloads have been counted towards unit sales since 2004.[17] As of April 2012[update], the highest-certified album is 21 by Adele, which has been awarded platinum certification 16 times.[18]
Best-selling albums edit
| † | Released before UK music recording certifications were introduced in April 1973 |
| No. | Album | Artist | Record label[a] | Released[a] | Sales[b] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Recuerdos II | Juan Gabriel | BCA | 1984 | 8,000,000 |
| 2 | 20 Triunfadoras de José José | José José | RCA | 1982 | 7,500,000 |
| 3 | Romance | Luis Miguel | WEA Latina | November 1991 | 7,250,000 |
| 4 | Hoy Platique con Mi Gallo | Vicente Fernández | Sony Music | 1986 | 7,000,000 |
| 5 | Timbiriche VII | Timbiriche | Fonovisa | October 1987 | 6,000,000 |
| 6 | Canta A Juan Gabriel | Rocío Dúrcal | Ariola | 1984 | 5,500,000 |
| 7 | Flans | Flans | Fonovisa | 1985 | 5,000,000 |
| 8 | Busca Una Mujer | Luis Miguel | WEA Latina | November 1988 | 4,500,000 |
| 9 | Paulina | Paulina Rubio | Universal Music Latino | May 23, 2000 | 3,000,000 |
| 10 | Tu Ángel de la Guarda | Gloria Trevi | Ariola | September 1991 | 2,800,000 |
References edit
- General (chart positions)
- Presenter: Tony Blackburn (9 April 2012). "Tony Blackburn with the UK's Bestselling Albums". BBC. BBC Radio 2. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
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- Specific
- ^ "Rules For Chart Eligibility – Albums" (PDF). Official Charts Company. January 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 June 2007. Retrieved 29 July 2011.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link) - ^ a b "Tony Blackburn with the UK's Bestselling Albums". BBC Radio 2. 9 April 2012. Archived from the original on 4 May 2012. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
- ^ "Radio 2 reveals top 40 albums since 1956". BBC. 9 April 2012. Archived from the original on 4 May 2012. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
- ^ Hall, Richard (9 April 2012). "Well, it is jubilee year... Queen's 'Greatest Hits' is Britain's best-selling album of past half-century". The Independent. Independent Print. ISSN 0951-9467. OCLC 185201487. Archived from the original on 4 May 2012. Retrieved 11 April 2012.
- ^ a b c "Adele overtakes Dire Straits to become UK's sixth biggest selling album of all-time". Official Charts Company. 23 March 2012. Archived from the original on 4 May 2012. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
- ^ Garland, Ian (9 April 2012). "All hail Queen! Glam rockers' Greatest Hits is Britain's best-selling album of the past 50 years". Daily Mail. Associated Newspapers. Archived from the original on 4 May 2012. Retrieved 11 April 2011.
- ^ a b Murison, Krissi, ed. (9 April 2012). "'Queen's Greatest Hits' named biggest-selling UK album of all time". NME. IPC. ISSN 0028-6362. OCLC 317997735. Archived from the original on 4 May 2012. Retrieved 11 April 2012.
- ^ a b "Queen retain UK album sales crown". BBC News. 9 April 2012. Archived from the original on 4 May 2012. Retrieved 11 April 2012.
- ^ Lane, Dan (10 April 2012). "The Official Top 40 biggest selling albums of all-time". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 4 May 2012. Retrieved 11 April 2012.
- ^ "Queen reign at top of chart for album sales". The Herald. Glasgow: Newsquest. 9 April 2012. Archived from the original on 4 May 2012. Retrieved 11 April 2011.
- ^ Mawer, Sharon (2008). "1956". The Official UK Charts Company. Archived from the original on 8 March 2009. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
- ^ "Albums chart: 50 chart facts". Music Week. 5 August 2006. ISSN 0265-1548. OCLC 60620772. Retrieved 15 July 2011.
... The first number one album – Songs For Swingin' Lovers by Frank Sinatra ...
- ^ Kreisler, Laura (18 May 2012). "ABBA join The Beatles and Queen in 5 million sellers' club". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 18 May 2012. Retrieved 18 May 2012.
- ^ "Official UK Albums Top 100". Official Charts Company. 2010. Archived from the original on 4 May 2012. Retrieved 18 April 2012.
- ^ "About Us". British Phonographic Industry. Archived from the original on 4 May 2012. Retrieved 18 April 2012.
- ^ a b c "Certified Awards – A Timeline" (PDF). British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 18 April 2012.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Certified Awards". British Phonographic Industry. Archived from the original on 4 May 2012. Retrieved 18 April 2012.
- ^ a b "Certified Awards". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
- ^ "Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. 2010. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
External links edit
- "ABBA overtake The Beatles as Gold becomes the UK’s second biggest selling album of all-time" – sales data given by the OCC for the top five biggest-selling albums in the UK as of 19 May 2013[update]
- Official UK Albums Top 100 at the Official Charts Company