ThePensmith's Top 20 Singles Chart

Good afternoon people, the weekend's almost upon us and it's time for my brand new personal top 20. Has Olly Murs managed to make it four weeks at number one and withhold the might of new entries from George Ezra, Michael Bublé and The Vamps, or a climber from Rak-Su? Let's find out...

THEPENSMITH'S TOP 20 SINGLES CHART

Week ending 26th October 2018

© AM LIMITED 2018

1. (3) RAK-SU - I Want You To Freak

2. (HNE) GEORGE EZRA - Hold My Girl

3. (1) OLLY MURS FEAT. SNOOP DOGG - Moves

4. (2) TAKE THAT - Out Of Our Heads

5. (4) LITTLE MIX FEAT. NICKI MINAJ - Woman Like Me

6. (NE) MICHAEL BUBLÉ - Love You Anymore

7. (5) LSD - Thunderclouds

8. (6) LAUV - I Like Me Better

9. (7) CLAIRE RICHARDS - End Before We Start

10. (NE) THE VAMPS - Just My Type

11. (NE) MARVIN HUMES - All My People

12. (8) JESS GLYNNE - All I Am

13. (9) ROBYN - Honey

14. (NE) ED DREWETT - The Unfortunate Gent

15. (NE) ZARA LARSSON - Ruin My Life

16. (10) NOW UNITED - Who Would Think That Love?

17. (11) CHRISTINE & THE QUEENS - 5 Dollars

18. (13) SHAWN MENDES - Lost In Japan (Zedd Remix)

19. (15) SILK CITY & DUA LIPA - Electricity

20. (14) RITA ORA - Let You Love Me

Compiled from my own personal listening in the last seven days across streaming, digital and physical formats.

KEY

(1) - last week's position

(HNE) - highest new entry

(NE) - new entry

CHART COMMENTARY

If we learnt anything from last week, it's that nothing is certain in my personal chart. After debuting and holding for a fortnight at #2 three weeks ago, and then falling to #3 last week, it appeared that Rak-Su had shot their bolt for chart glory where their latest release was concerned, right? Right? Wrong. For 'I Want You To Freak' has actually shown surprising resilience in that time, merely dropping a place to accomodate the arrival of the Take That and Little Mix singles last week. And now, after a boost from their homecoming performance on last weekend's X Factor, Myles, Ashley, Mustafa and Jamaal can finally declare themselves the proud owners of a number one single on my personal chart.

In doing so, they not only knock their soon to be tour buddy Olly Murs off the top after a three week stint with 'Moves', but are now also the eighth former alumni of the ITV talent show to achieve a chart topper on my personal chart. With its interpolation of Adina Howard's 1995 hit 'Freak Like Me', it also marks the first time a song has been both sampled and covered in seperate number one singles on my personal chart. The second incarnation of Sugababes, of course, were the first to take it to the top, with their Gary Numan sampling cover of Howard's original in April 2002.

George Ezra's last two singles - 'Paradise' and 'Shotgun' - both debuted lower down my personal chart before they embarked on runs of five and seven weeks at number one respectively, and both are now also among my top 10 biggest singles this year. 'Hold My Girl', the newly promoted fourth single off his second album 'Staying At Tamara's', is now aiming to be the third in a row, and makes a promising if agonising start by debuting at #2. If he does make it in the coming weeks, he'll be the first artist on my personal chart this year to have had as many as three number one hits.

The future of Michael Bublé's career has been rife with speculation in recent weeks, following a highly candid interview in the national press where he apparently stated he would be retiring after the release of upcoming album 'Love', citing his disillusionment with the industry following the ordeal of his son Noah's battle with cancer, statements which have since been vehemently refuted by his PR team. 'When I Fall In Love' hit our top 20 a couple of weeks ago, but fell away quickly. The #6 entry point for his first single proper off the album, 'Love You Anymore', indicates that it will do much better than its predecessor at least. If this is indeed his last ever single, it's nothing less than his eighth top 10 hit on my personal chart.

Also back inside my top 10 at #10 this week, and just a few weeks removed from the fifth anniversary of their debut hit 'Can We Dance' are The Vamps. 'Just My Type' is the second single from the recently released 'Day' version of their chart topping third album 'Night & Day' from last year, and is now their sixth top 10 hit.

Almost five years removed from the disbanding of JLS, and Capital FM DJ and producer Marvin Humes is once again proving himself to be the most successful former member of the 'Beat Again' and 'She Makes Me Wanna' hitmakers. Including the three top 20 singles he scored with his dance collective LuvBug between 2014 and 2016 (biggest of which being the #2 hit 'Resonance'), he has now had six top 20 hits since going out on his own - albeit behind the mixing desk. 'All My People' is the latest release of his to hit my chart, entering at this week's #11.

It's just over five years ago also, since we last heard from Ed Drewett. As a songwriter, he's never been too far away, penning the likes of Little Mix's 'Black Magic' and Jonas Blue's 'Mama' amongst others. But his last hit as a performer was a #19 entry in July 2013 with 'Undefeated', the second single off a purported debut album called 'Blink' that never saw the light of day.

A botched by the media attempt at auditioning for Britain's Got Talent the following year saw him retreat behind the mic again, but next year he will release 'Ten', a songbook album comprising his own versions of the hits he has written for others as well as some new material. 'The Unfortunate Gent' is the first product of this new release, and debuts at this week's #14 - his third top 20 hit.

Almost 18 months on from reaching the top of my personal chart as vocalist on Clean Bandit's 'Symphony', Zara Larsson returns and is our final new entry this week, debuting at #15 with 'Ruin My Life', the first single from her as yet to be titled second album. It is now her seventh top 20 hit, three years on from her debut as guest vocalist on MNEK's 'Never Forget You" which made #2 this very month in 2015.

FLASHBACK TOP 10

Your chance to see how my personal top 10 was looking on this week in the last 20 years. This week in 1999: Ann Lee climbs to the top in her third week with '2 Times', plus new entries from Backstreet Boys, Destiny's Child and Tina Turner

1. (2) ANN LEE - 2 Times

2. (6) MACY GRAY - I Try

3. (1) CHRISTINA AGUILERA - Genie In A Bottle

4. (HNE) BACKSTREET BOYS - Larger Than Life

5. (5) S CLUB 7 - S Club Party

6. (NE) DESTINY'S CHILD - Bug-A-Boo

7. (3) ATB - Don't Stop

8. (7) SHANIA TWAIN - Man! I Feel Like A Woman!

9. (4) STEPS - After The Love Has Gone

10. (NE) TINA TURNER - When The Heartache Is Over