Taylor Swift sees her tenth studio album “Midnights” become her tenth No.1 Album in Australia this week.
“Midnights” (Republic)” becomes the 962nd No.1 Album in Australia (1965 to 2022), the 813th for ARIA (1983 to 2022), the 597th Album to debut at the top, the 32nd No.1 for 2022 and the 21st for the record label Republic, with their last being The Weeknd’s “Dawn FM” for three broken weeks on January 17th and 24th and again on February 7th of this year. Plus all thirteen tracks from the album have landed within the top fourteen spots on the singles chart this week, with “Anti-Hero’ leading the pack at No.1.
Taylor Swift first hit No.1 in Australia almost twelve years ago (11 years and 51 weeks) when “Speak Now” spent a week at the top on November 8th, 2010, which was followed by “Red” for three weeks from October 29th, 2012, with her longest running No.1 occurring with “1989” (9 overall weeks from Nov. 3rd, 2014 to Feb. 9th, 2015), with that album returning to the Top 10 this week, up five spots to No.9 (No.11 vinyl). Her “Reputation” saw a two weeks stay from Nov. 20th, 2017, while her “Lover” set logged just one week on Sept. 2nd, 2019.
Her next five No.1 albums have all occurred during this decade, with “folklore” (4 weeks from August 3rd, 2020) and it’s partner set “evermore” (also 4 weeks from Dec. 21st, 2020), after which her redone sets saw single weeks at the top; “Fearless (Taylor’s Version)” (April 19th, 2021) and “Red (Taylor’s Version)” (Nov. 22nd, 2021). All of these No.1 Albums have racked up a total for Taylor of 27 weeks at No.1 in Australia, moving her to 15th on the list for ‘Accumulated Weeks at No.1: Albums (1965 to 2022)’ just ahead of Skyhooks (27 weeks from 2 No.1’s), while her next target is the 30 weeks racked up by Michael Jackson (from six No.1 Albums).
Taylor Swift’s tenth No.1 Album in Australia now places her equal fourth on the list for ‘Most No.1 Albums (1965 to 2022)’ alongside John Farnham and Bon Jovi, while this new set has also pushed her to outright leader during this decade (so far) for ‘Most Weeks at No.1: 2020’s’ as she has racked up eleven weeks at the top with her five No.1 Albums, while Harry Styles is now in second spot with ten weeks this decade. “Midnights” has also landed the No.1 spot on this week’s vinyl sales chart, plus has entered at the top in England, Ireland, Scotland, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Sweden and New Zealand so far.
This new No.1 Album becomes the fourth time that the word ‘Midnight’ has appeared in a chart topping album, the last being Foo Fighters “Medicine at Midnight” (1 week on Feb. 15th, 2021), with two others being One Direction’s “Midnight Memories” (1 week on Dec. 2nd, 2013) and Linkin Park with “Minutes to Midnight” (1 week on May 28th, 2007), while it’s the first time that the plural “Midnights” has been within a No.1 Album’s title. The new No.1 Album is also the 336th by an American Artist to hit the top in Australia (the 10th for 2022) and the 154th by a Solo Female Artist (local or overseas), with it also sixth for 2022 by a solo female singer.
The seventh studio album for British act Arctic Monkeys called “The Car” has parked in the No.2 spot this week (the same spot in England, Ireland, Scotland, France, The Netherlands and New Zealand), while the high entry continues the bands’ Top 4 unbroken record in Australia, with all seven studio and one Live albums landing at No.4 or higher (the ‘Live at the Royal Albert Hall’ in 2020 and their fourth set “Suck it and See” both debuted and peaked at No.4).
The sixth studio album for Kylie Minogue issued on October 22nd, 1997 (in some territories) was “Impossible Princess”, which saw a 25th Anniversary and vinyl edition released last week. The album this week returns to the chart at a new peak of No.3, surpassing the No.4 entry and peak it saw on it’s original chart entry date of January 25th, 1998 (the album was delayed after it’s initial release was around the passing of Princess Diana in August of 1997, and was first issued in Asian markets in October of 1997). The album has also returned to the charts at higher positions in England (No.10 in 1998, No.5 this week) and Scotland (No.10 in 1998, No.4 this week). The top three albums this week also match their positions on the vinyl sales chart, with Taylor at No.1, Arctic Monkeys at No.2 and Kylie at No.3.
With only eight weeks to Christmas, the first entry for the 2022 season comes in at No.4 (No.1 Classical Albums this week) for the Bocelli family, father Andrea and his son Matteo and daughter Virginia, who enter at No.4 with “A Family Christmas”. Matteo previously sang with his father on his 2018 album “Si”, while Virginia is making her first appearance as a singer, while all up this is Andrea’s ninth Top 10 album in Australia and his first since his last Top 10 entry “Believe” (HP-5, Dec. 28th, 2020).
The fifth consecutive new entry this week comes in at No.5, the seventh studio album and first in five years for Anthony Callea called “Forty Love”, which by entering within the ten becomes his fifth Top 10 Album locally. This is followed by two of the three remaining Top 10 Albums from last week, with The Weeknd’s “The Highlights” down two places to No.6 and “Harry’s House” for Harry Styles dipping one spot to No.7 (No.20 vinyl), while “SOUR” for Olivia Rodrigo is the third survivor, down two places this week to No.10.
The fifth new and seventh overall entry to the Top 10 this week is the tenth studio album for Architects called “the classic symptoms of a broken spirit”, which enters at No.8 becoming the British metalcore acts fourth Top 10 and fifth albums chart entry in Australia, with their last album “For Those That Wish to Exist” debuting and peaking at No.1 on March 8th, 2021, which was their first (and only) chart-topping album here.
UP:
Taylor Swift not only has two Top 10 Albums this week, she also climbs back up the chart with “Lover” (25 to No.15, No.14 vinyl), “folklore” (20 to No.17), “Red (TsV)” (39 to No.27, No.17 vinyl), “Reputation” (42 to No.35) and seventh and final is “evermore” (68 to No.50). The other big climbers this week are current tourists Tame Impala, who see two albums leap in the Top 50, “Currents” (45 to No.19, No.6 vinyl) and their last album “The Slow Rush” (72 to No.42, No.12 vinyl).
The second 25th Anniversary Edition album to return to the chart this week is the self-titled 1998 issued debut album for Queens of the Stone Age, which returns to the chart at a new all-time peak of No.22 (No.4 vinyl), with the album not charting upon its original release in 1998, but a repackaged edition hit No.34 on March 7th, 2011. The Arctic Monkeys new album has pulled their “AM” set back up seven places to No.26 (No.15 vinyl), while the only other climbing album is a rise to No.37 for Lewis Capaldi’s “Divinely Uninspired to a Hellish Extent” due to his upcoming visit to our shores in November, also appearing at the ARIA Awards.
DOWN:
Six of the seven Top 10 dropouts land within the Top 50 this week, with last week’s No.1 entry for The 1975 and “Being Funny in a Foreign Language” down ten places to No.11 (continuing their trend of one-week-within-the-Top-10 after a No.1 debut), followed by a seven place slide to No.12 for the Stray Kids EP “Maxident” (WI10-2). Both Billie Eilish albums are now outside of the Top 10, as her “When We All Fall Asleep…” (WI10-91) drops six places to No.16 and her “Happier Than Ever” falls five places to No.20.
The new entries from last week for Red Hot Chili Peppers and “Return of the Dream Canteen” (2 to No.24, No.18 vinyl), “Low Altitude Living” by Ocean Alley (3 to No.39, No.13 vinyl) and “It’s Only Me” for Lil’ Baby (7 to No.40, U.S.A. and Canada No.1 this week) all fall hard, with last week’s No.9 album for Alter Bridge leaving the Top 50 this week.
Ed Sheeran’s “= (equals)” album dips one spot to No.14 and logs its one-year chart anniversary (52 weeks), while Luke Combs sees all three of his albums drop down; “This One’s for You” (11 to No.18; No.1 Country Album this week), “What You See…” (16 to No.21) and “Growin’ Up” (17 to No.28). Maroon 5’s “Singles Collection” falls six places to No.25, its lowest position since the second week of the year, while also down six is the XXXTentacion doco soundtrack “Look at Me: The Album” to No.29.
“Future Nostalgia” by Dua Lipa leaves the Top 30 for the first time ever by sliding down nine places to No.31, followed by an eleven place drop to No.32 for The Weeknd’s “Starboy” set, while his “After Hours” album falls six spots to No.46. “Fine Line” for Harry Styles falls ten places to No.36, while “Planet Her” for Doja Cat leaves the Top 30 for the first time and falls thirteen places to land at No.41. Also dropping are “Dangerous” for Morgan Wallen (30 to No.43), “Shoot for the Stars” by Pop Smoke (35 to No.45), recent tourist Bruno Mars’ “Doo-Wops and Hooligans” halving it’s position from last week (24 to No.48) and “Born Pink” by BlackPink (34 to No.49).
FURTHER NEW ENTRY:
* #30 (LP#5) – Takin’ it Back by Meghan Trainor (Epic) is the fifth studio album and first new music since her third set “Treat Myself” (HP-13) charted in February 2020. Her last album was a seasonal set “A Very Trainor Christmas”, while she saw her first two albums land within the Top 10, “Title” (HP-1, January 2015) and “Thank You” (HP-3, May 2016). The album has seen two songs issued so far, the June 2022 first single “Bad for Me” and this week’s chart entry “Made You Look” (TW-58).
HP = Highest Position
LW = Last Week
WI10 – Weeks in Top 10
*ARIA Chart info is based on sales for the week from the 21st to the 27th of October 2022.
Written, Compiled and Researched by Gavin Ryan.
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Gavin Ryan reports with thanks to Australian-Charts.com
