Black Eyed Peas – Meet Me Halfway climbs to #1 this week, beating Leona!

Well I certainly didn’t see this coming, Black Eyed Peas beat Leona to #1 in one of the tightest singles chart battles for some time. At the beginning of the week, it looked like Meet Me Halfway was going to do just that within the top 3 by rising to #2. However with the gap getting less and less, now the hip hop group emerges victorious. This means that the peas are the first act to score 3 #1 singles in 2009; this is even more of an achievement when you consider that their album has already sold very well and spawned 2 previous #1 singles. The last act to score 3 #1s in one calendar year were Westlife in 1999.

 

Leona Lewis – Happy enters at #2

Leona Lewis of course rose to fame after winning a certain TV singing contest and went on to have the obvious #1 A Moment Like This. Not so obviously, this was then outsold by the legendary Bleeding Love, then came #2 Better In Time, #5 Forgive Me and #1 cover of Snow Patrol’s Run - all from her debut album Spirit. The first single to be taken from her forthcoming second album Echo, Happy was expected to enter at #1 with ease after lots of promotion (including X-Factor itself). However in the end, she still gets a #2 new entry to maintain her “Run” of top 5 hit singles so I'm sure her and Simon will still be very “happy”.

 

N-Dubz – I Need You enters at #5

Now for a hip-hop collective who aren’t Black Eyed Peas, N-Dubz score their own biggest hit to date this week by entering at #5 with new single I Need You. Previously the group has had 4 top 40 hits, the biggest being Strong Again which hit a #19 peak. N-Dubz have of course had a Number One alongside Tinchy Stryder which lived up to its name earlier on this year. The release of their second album Against All Odds is due next week … nothing to do with the Phil Collins / Westlife song I trust.

 

Britney Spears – 3 enters at #7

Britney Spears gets this week’s second highest new entry, crashing straight in at #7 (and not #3) with new single named 3. This is a new track taken from her second hits compilation album, due for imminent release. It thus provides Ms Spears with her 20th top 10 hit since her 1998 debut Baby One More Time became the first of her 5 number ones. Every single she has released since has made the top 20, with the exception of Radar which missed the top 40 after its belated release in July 2009. Whilst it has not made top 5, it is a good result given that tracks from hits compilations don't tend to do that well.

 

Sugababes – About A Girl enters at #8

And the prize for most amount of line-up changes by one group goes to the Sugababes! Now with none of their original line up left (there are rumours that they are to form another band), the three-some now score another top 10 hit with About A Girl. This follows up the #2 hit Get Sexy as the 2nd release from their appropriately named 7th studio album Sweet 7. It is now the girl group’s 17th top 10 hit in total and 4th #8 hit. This may also be a bit lower than some expected, however for a second single and the strong competition it is not too bad a position really.

 

Robbie Williams – You Know Me enters at #17

Now for the big album track new entry of the week for Robbie Williams, just 4 weeks after Bodies entered at #2. Robbie has been promoting forthcoming new single You Know Me alongside his album, as a result the track enters the top 20 at #17. There is a strong possibility of this track climbing further in the coming weeks as it gains airplay etc.

 

Pixie Lott – Cry Me Out enters at #25

Hot new female singer Pixie Lott has had a meteoric rise to fame this year with 2 #1 singles in the shape of Mama Do and Boys & Girls but quite a modestly selling debut album. Now she enters at #25 with forthcoming third single Cry Me Out, largely seen as a highlight from the aforementioned album Turn It Up. This is another track that is very likely to rise in the coming weeks, as the full release of the single is still a few weeks away.

 

Chartjackers – I’ve Got Nothing enters at #36

The Chartjackers are a new boy band but with a slight difference, in that they have been exclusively crowd-sourced from YouTube. The new single was sewn together from fans wallposts on Facebook and the melody was conjured by an online competition. The result is top 40 hit I’ve Got Nothing, entering at #36 this week.

 

This week’s almost but not quite hits

Amongst the tracks missing out this week are the bizarrely named electro group Ou Est Le Swimming Pool with their Dance The Way I Feel. Indie group Athlete miss out again as they release their Black Swan Song. Ash are releasing a single every 2 weeks, none of which so far have found many buyers. 2 of the big names from a few years ago seem to be struggling now with their respective new singles - Joss Stone and Will Young.

 

JLS pip Robbie to the post for the #1 album

Another very tight chart battle has been ensuing all week between X-Factor created boy band JLS and a certain Robbie Williams. In the end JLS have only just made #1 this week with their debut self titled album, being sold with 5 different coloured covers would have helped. In a very close second place this week is Robbie Williams with his 8th studio album and first ever to miss number one (as yet) Reality Killed The Video Star, it still has the second highest first week sales by any album this year – about 238k. Snow Patrol’s greatest hits album Up To Now enters at #3 this week, featuring hits from their each of their 5 albums to date. Scottish band Biffy Clyro get a new entry in at #8 with their 5th studio album Only Revolutions, with 3 top 20 hits already from the album. Chart veteran Rod Stewart enters at #10 with his latest album of covers, entitled Soul Book. Hot new jazz/pop singer Jamie Cullum enters the top 20 with his 6th studio album release, 2003’s 20 Something remains his biggest making #3.

 

Next week’s contenders

Next week’s #1 single is more of a dead cert as X-Factor Finalists release their charity cover of MJ’s You Are Not alone. Jason Derulo, Alesha Dixon, James Morrison, Agnes and Little Boots are also expected to enter next week’s singles chart. New album releases are still plentiful, as Leona releases her second album Echo along side Ronan, Will Young, Norah Jones, Stereophonics, 50 Cent and more.

 

Personal Opinion of Mr Bond!

Whilst I actually quite like Black Eyed Peas, I’m not sure if Meet Me Halfway deserves to be #1 over Leona. I do also like Happy but I just don’t think it’s her best and having heard her album, I know there is much better on there. The jury’s still out on Britney’s 3, it is not her best but by no means her worst for me. Same for Sugababes, About A Girl is much better than the rubbish that was Get Sexy but I still feel that all their line up changes haven’t helped them much. I hate N-Dubz and frankly can’t get any tune out of this new one, their Tinchy Stryder collaboration Number One is Still far worse for me. I love Robbie’s new one You Know Me, whilst I really like Bodies I think this one is actually better. The album is fantastic and represents a return to form, and should never have been beaten by JLS with their multiple copies. I also love Pixie Lott’s new single Cry Me Out, it is her best song yet and I hope it helps the album a bit at least.

Edited November 15, 200915 yr by loudjamesbond

I like your enthusiasm about OR being Biffy's highest charting album to date, but sadly it isn't - it's #8, far off Puzzle's #2 peak.

 

Good read though

Edited November 15, 200915 yr by BrayFish

I like your enthusiasm about OR being Biffy's highest charting album to date, but sadly it isn't - it's #8, far off Puzzle's #2 peak.

 

Good read though

Thanks Bray ... for some reason I thought Puzzle made #12 until reading otherwise on here. Now corrected! ;-)

007 - Westlife, (1999), were not the previous Act, (to Black Eyed Peas), to have 3 No.1

Singles, in a Calendar Year. (Westlife did it in 2000 - 2 No.1's alone, & 1 with Mariah Carey).

 

Will Young & Gareth Gates did it in 2002 - 2 Solo No.1's each, & 1 as a Duet.

 

Elvis Presley had 3 No.1's in 2005.

 

Black Eyed Peas become only the 2nd USA Group to have 3 UK No.1 Singles in a

Calendar Year. The other was Blondie, in 1980. However - no entirely USA Group

has ever managed it. One of Blondie was British, & 1 of Black Eyed Peas is from the

Philippines.

 

JLS become the first all Male UK Black Group to have a UK No.1 Album. Since July

28th 1956 there have been over 880 No.1 Albums - but only 18 have been by Black

Groups. Only 4 of those were by UK Black Groups - Five Star, (1986), Soul II Soul,

(1989 & 1990), & JLS - 2009.

 

THE 13 BLACK GROUPS WITH UK No.1 ALBUMS

 

(Have I missed any? I've NOT counted Duo's)

 

1) Greatest Hits - Four Tops (1968)

2) Greatest Hits - Diana Ross & The Supremes (1968)

3) Diana Ross & The Supremes Join The Temptations (1969)

4) The Best Of The Stylistics - Stylistics (1975)

5) The Best Of The Stylistics Volume 2 - Stylistics (1976)

6) 20 Golden Greats - Diana Ross & The Supremes (1977)

7) Night Flight To Venus - Boney M (1978)

8) Oceans Of Fantasy - Boney M (1979)

9) Greatest Hits - Rose Royce (1980)

10) The Magic Of Boney M - Boney M (1980)

11) 18 Greatest Hits - Michael Jackson Plus The Jackson Five (1983)

12) Legend - Bob Marley & The Wailers (1984) @@@

13) Silk & Steel - Five Star (1986) ***

14) Club Classics Volume 1 - Soul II Soul (1989) ***

15) Volume II (1990 A New Decade) - Soul II Soul (1990) ***

16) Wu Tang Forever - Wu Tang Clan (1997)

17) Survivor - Destiny’s Child (2001)

18) JLS - JLS (2009) ***

 

*** = The only British Black Groups to achieve it. JLS being the only British

Male Black Group to do so. - Since W/E 28th July 1956, when the UK Album Chart

began.

 

@@@ = Alan Jones says that Bob Marley was 'Mixed Race'. However, the

Wailers weren't - so I count the entire Act as being Black.

 

 

Edited November 17, 200915 yr by zeus555