A record seven new entries in the top eight of the artist album chart provide the sector with enough impetus for sales to climb 12.3% week-on-week to 2,360,471, while a recovering compilation sector improves by 16.2% to 567,905, writes Alan Jones
The overall album market improves by 13% to 2,928,376. The market last week was the fifth highest of the year, but trailed 8.9% behind the same week last year, when 3,212,948 albums were sold.
Despite the high density of new entries at the top of the chart, even the new number one artist album - Jamiroquai's High Times: The Hits 1992-2006 - sold fewer copies (78,957) last week than any of the top four (Il Divo, Westlife, Kate Bush and Robbie Williams) managed in the same week in 2005.
In addition to High Times, there are also Top 10 debuts for Angelis' self-titled first album at number two (65,050 sales), Damien Rice's 9 at number four (57,742), Welsh mezzo-soprano Katherine Jenkins' Serenade at number five (50,273), McFly's Motion In The Ocean at number six (44,225), Paul Weller's Hit Parade compilation at number seven (41,840), and Cliff Richard's Duets at number eight (35,631). From last week's Top 10, only the top three remain in the upper echelon: The Sound Of Girls Aloud slips 1-3 (60,926), Robbie Williams' Rudebox crashes 2-9 (33,100) and Amy Winehouse's Back To Black shrinks 3-10 (27,763).
High Times is Jamiroquai's fourth number one. It's not the band's best first week seller - Synchronized was one of their more modest albums in overall sales but opened with a big sale of 98,834 in 1999, while A Funk Odyssey also opened bigger in 2001, with first week sales of 80,209. The last Jamiroquai album, Dynamite, debuted at number three on sales of 64,150 in June 2005. Jamiroquai's all-time best seller, Travelling Without Moving, never reached pole position. It debuted and peaked at number two in 1996, behind REM, with first week sales of 65,263 but has gone on to sell 1,200,274 copies.
Of the 111 albums to sell more than a million copies in the 21st century, none peaked lower than O by Damien Rice. The Irish singer/songwriter's July 2002 debut took time to get into its stride but eventually peaked at number eight exactly two years later, and has thus far sold 1,087,732 copies. Pent-up demand for follow-up 9 was released on Monday, and the album instantly beats O's peak, debuting at number four. First single, 9 Crimes, is released in a fortnight (27 November).
First midweek sales flashes on Tuesday suggested that McFly were on their way to a third straight number one album with Motion In the Ocean. But it wasn't to be. In fact, although the album's first single Star Girl secured the second best first week sale of the band's 10 singles Motion In The Ocean only manages a number six debut on sales of 44,225. McFly's two previous albums were both instant number ones. Room On The 3rd Floor (2004) and Wonderland (2005) opened with sales of 61,589 and 71,517 respectively.
Although McFly had a poor week, failing by some distance to secure their third number one album, it could have been worse - Jamiroquai's success prevented Simon Cowell's new pop/classical vocal group Angelis from taking McFly's record of being the youngest group to have a number one album. McFly's average age was 18 when they topped with Room On The 3rd Floor in 2004. Angelis' average age is just 12 - Joe, Amy and Moray are all 11, Camilla is 12, Natalie is 13 and Sam is 14.
Back with EMI after spells with Papillion and Decca, Cliff Richard debuts at number eight with Two's Company: The Duets on sales of 35,631. The album, containing collaborations old and new with Olivia Newton-John, Elton John, Barry Gibb, Daniel O'Donnell and others, is Richard's 59th chart entry - a total exceeded only by Elvis Presley, James Last and Frank Sinatra. Richard was 66 last month but is far from being the oldest artist to have a hit album - Tony Bennett became the first octogenarian to do it last week when his similarly themed new album Duets - An American Classic charted, beating previous record holder John Lee Hooker, who was 79 when he charted for the last time with Don't Look Back in 1997.
Just outside the Top 10, The Magic Numbers open at number 11 with second album Those The Brokes, on sales of 25,463, while Abba's Number Ones makes a somewhat less stellar start than similar albums by fellow giants The Beatles, Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson and The Bee Gees, debuting at number 15 on sales of 24,384.
The Magic Numbers' album follows hot on the heels of first single Take A Chance, which reached number 16, but makes a slower start than the quartet's self-titled debut album, which entered at number seven on sales of 38,436, and has gone on to sell 604,819.
Abba's back catalogue has, of course, been the subject of numerous high profile, big selling compilations, most notably Abba Gold, which has sold more than 4m copies to date, and explains the more modest performance of its successors Their last frontline compilation, The Definitive Collection, was released in 2001, and debuted and peaked at number 17. Its first week sale was 14,966.
On the singles chart, The Rose, from Westlife's new long player The Love Album, instantly provides the Irish group with its 21st top five hit in a row., debuting in pole position on sales of 44,305. Surprisingly, the song failed to chart here for Bette Midler, when it served as the theme to her film of the same name in 1980, although it reached number three in America for her. Subsequent remakes by several artists, including Michael Ball have also fallen short of the Top 40.
The Rose is Westlife's 14th number one single, putting them equal with Cliff Richard and behind only Elvis Presley and The Beatles in the all-time league table.
U2's Saints Are Coming collaboration with Green Day climbs 6-2 on sales of 32,338.
Moving 11-3 on sales of 25,401, Rock Steady must be regarded as a successful note on which All Saints resume their career, as it extends their run of Top 10 hits to nine. Despite charting higher than three of their previous singles, Rock Steady could still end up as All Saints' lowest seller, as the market now is much smaller than when they last had a single out in 2000. Thus far, Rock Steady has sold 35,467 copies, All Saints' next lowest seller, All Hooked Up sold 54,699 copies. Their biggest hit, Never Ever, sold 1,263,658 copies. Rock Steady matches both of those singles in one respect - it tops the airplay chart this week.
Fedde Le Grand's Put Your Hands Up For Detroit suffers a 1-4 decline - a bit harsh considering its sales were off only 28.7% at 24,506. Beyonce's Irreplaceable had a smaller 12.9% dip in sales to 17,860 and falls 4-5.
Making a faster decline, Bodyrox's Yeah Yeah slides 2-6 on sales of 16,919, and Girls Aloud's Something Kinda Ooooh! is also down four notches, falling 3-7 on sales of 16,048.
Follow Me Home, from The Sugababes' Taller In More Ways album, caused shock waves when it peaked at number 32 in June, becoming their smallest hit to date. Latest single Easy - taken from their new Overloaded compilation - jumps 30-8 this week on sales of 14,745. The bad news is that it's a smaller hit than rival girl groups Girls Aloud and All Saints' current singles. The good news? It's charting higher than estranged former member Mutya's This Is Not Real Love collaboration with George Michael, up 79-15 on sales of 9,614.
Of Madonna's 61 previous hits, only Borderline debuted lower (number 74) but Jump lives up to its name this week, springing 59-9 on sales of 13,864., and becoming Madonna's biggest climber ever. It's the fourth Top 10 single lifted from her current Confessions On A Dance Floor album, which is now exactly a year old, and has sold 1,178,702 copies. The album hasn't been in the Top 75 for 10 weeks but Jump's release has sparked only a revival in its fortunes - it climbs 192-146 this week on sales of 1,654.
Last place in the Top 10 is taken by My Chemical Romance's Welcome To The Black Parade, down 5-10 on sales of 13,785.
Of singles released on download only last week, Akon and Eminem's Smack That shows most promise, debuting at number 12 (11,205 sales), while Justin Timberlake's My Love is in at number 14 (10,052).
Robbie Williams is less well placed with Lovelight at number 28 (4,833). Ditto Christina Aguilera, whose Hurt can be felt by all at number 33 (4,083).
Finally, they topped the chart for nine weeks earlier this year with Crazy but who cares for Gnarls Barkley's third single? Although fully released on 2 CD variants and 7-inch and is also downloadable, only 2,094 bothered to buy Who Cares last week, earning it a 125-60 climb. With no more cards to play, it seems unlikely to climb any further. After the juggernaut that was Crazy, Gnarls Barkley's second single Smiley Faces peaked at number 10. Resistance to Who Cares translates into bad news for their album St. Elsewhere too - it dips 34-46 this week, on sales of 7,839.
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