It's a huge week for both Robbie Williams and the U.K. Album charts.
Williams tops the Official Chart Company's Albums for this week with Swings Both Ways, the one-thousandth different album to hit that spot in the 57-1/2 year history of that chart. Even bigger for Williams is that his personal idol, Frank Sinatra, had the first number one album with another swing album, Songs For Swingin' Lovers. To see a full list of the U.K.'s 1,000 number 1's, go to the
Official Chart Company's site.
On the personal front, this is Williams' eleventh number 1 album as a solo artist which ties him with Elvis Presley as the male solo artist with the most chart topping albums in the U.K.
Williams' eleven number one albums:
•Life Through a Lens (1997)
•I've Been Expecting You (1998)
•Sing When You're Winning (2000)
•Swing When You're Winning (2001)
•Escapology (2002)
•Greatest Hits (2004)
•Intensive Care (2005)
•Rudebox (2006)
•In and Out of Consciousness: Greatest Hits 1990 - 2010 (2010)
•Take the Crown (2012)
•Swings Both Ways (2013)
Only one of Williams' studio albums, 2009's Reality Killed the Video Star didn't top the chart, making it only to number 2. Not included in that total are three additional number ones as a member of Take That, Everything Changes (1993), Nobody Else (1995) and Progress (2010).
In the U.S., Williams biggest album was Escapology which only rose to number 43.
Holdovers by veteran artists also did well this week as Celine Dion's Loved Me Back to Life dropped only 3 to 4 in its second week, The Nation's Favorite Elvis Songs held at number 5 in its third week and Andre Rieu and the Johann Strauss Orchestra's Music of the Night rises from 11 to 7.
Gabrielle celebrates the twentieth anniversary of her first hit, Dreams (1993 / #1) with the release of Now and Always: 20 Years of Dreaming which opens at 38.
In addition, Rush's Clockwork Angels Tour debuts at 65 and the Waterboys start at 84 with Fisherman's Box.
Behind Williams on the Album chart are Eminem with The Marshall Mathers LP 2, Jake Bugg with Shangri La, Dion and Presley.
On the singles chart, Lily Allen has her third number 1 with her cover of the Keene song Somewhere Only We Know followed by Of the Night by Bastille and another Take Five member, Gary Barlow and Let Me Go.
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