Lewis Capaldi enjoys a heavenly ascent on the U.K. chart where his sophomore album returns to the summit.
The Scottish singer and songwriter bags the first No. 1 of 2024 with Broken By Desire To Be Heavenly Sent (EMI), up 72-1, an album that topped the national chart for two consecutive weeks following its release in 2023.
Its new chart wings grew out of a surprise “special edition,” which includes five previously-unreleased cuts, available on new physical and digital formats.
The love extends to Capaldi’s chart-topping debut LP Divinely Uninspired To A Hellish Extent, which improves 46-28. Divinely Uninspired has logged 10 weeks at No. 1 since its release in 2019.
The 27-year-old artist gave fans an update and some insights into his own battles, by way of a lengthy — and positive — New Year’s Eve message in which he pointed out an improvement in his overall health. “I’m currently taking some time off to focus on my health and wellbeing and it’s been going great,” he explained. He’s still not ready to step back into the spotlight, some six months after he announced a hiatus from touring.
Meanwhile, Taylor Swift’s former leader 1989 (Taylor’s Version) holds at No. 2 on the Official U.K. Albums Chart, published Friday, Jan. 5, and is the best-placed of Swift’s seven LPs inside the top 40. Further down the list is 2022’s Midnights (No. 8), 2020’s folklore (No. 9), 2017’s reputation (No. 12), 2019’s Lover (No. 13), 2020’s evermore (No. 24) and the original 2014 recording of 1989 (No. 40). According to data published last week by the Official Charts Company, 1989 (Taylor’s Version) was the U.K.’s best-selling LP on vinyl in 2023.
Completing the top 3 on the latest tally is The Weeknd’s career retrospective, The Highlights (Republic Records/XO), while ABBA’s jewel, Gold: Greatest Hits (Polydor), lifts 5-4, its highest position since 2008. Gold extends it all-time record to 1,131 weeks on the chart.
Finally, Vermont, U.S.-born singer and songwriter Noah Kahan enjoys a new peak with his third studio album Stick Season (Island), up 8-3. The title track from it leads the Official U.K. Singles Chart for the first time.
