Sunday, January 30, 2011

UK Singles Chart, February 4, 2011


1. We R Who We R - Ke$ha

American pop singer Ke$ha knocks Bruno Mars from #1 this week with "We R Who We R." It's her first #1 hit in the UK, after breaking out big last year with 3 top 10 hits and 3 others that peaked within the top 20. This is the third #1 hit in a row that was also a #1 hit in the US. The last time there were so many consecutive British #1s that were also American #1s was 1987, when Madonna's "Who's That Girl" started a run of four consecutive singles that were also U.S. #1s, followed by Los Lobos' "La Bamba," Michael Jackson's "I Just Can't Stop Loving You" and Rick Astley's "Never Gonna Give You Up."

5. Blind Faith - Chase & Status (feat. Liam Bailey)

British electronic duo Chase & Status score their second top 10 hit on the eve of the release of their second album, No More Idols. It's a great dance single, featuring an easily recognizable sample of Loleatta Holloway's "Love Sensation." Their album is chock full of big-name guests (Dizzee Rascal, Tinie Tempah, White Lies, Clare Maguire and Cee Lo Green), so I expect there will be more singles to come.

10. Yeah 3x - Chris Brown

Chris Brown scores his fifth top 10 hit with "Yeah 3x," the lead single from his upcoming album, F.A.M.E.

14. Let It Rain - Tinchy Stryder (feat. Melanie Fiona)

Tinchy Stryder climbs 11 notches to #14 with "Let It Rain," the fourth single from his album Third Strike. After missing the top 10 and even the top 20 with his last two releases, Stryder looks to be turning things around with this track. It gets its official single release tomorrow, so perhaps it will be top 10 next weekend.

17. Higher - Taio Cruz

Taio Cruz climbs 19 notches to #17 with "Higher." So far, the song has been charting in its original album version, but next week should chart as the single version which came out this weekend. As a single, there are different versions featuring Kylie Minogue and Travie McCoy, both of which are available for purchase. Although the Kylie version has been promoted as the "main" version in Europe, the Travie McCoy version is the one getting played on stations like Radio 1 and Capital FM. Presumably, the sales of all these versions will be combined next week, so it will be impossible to tell whether the Kylie, Travie or original version is really the most popular.

21. F**kin' Perfect - Pink

Pink debuts at #21 with "F**kin Perfect," the follow-up to "Raise Your Glass," well ahead of its Feb. 20 release date. "Raise Your Glass" was a #1 hit in the US but underperformed in the UK, peaking at #13.

31. The Roller - Beady Eye
32. Post Break Up Sex - The Vaccines

Rock music seeks to be suffering on the charts of late. I'd have expected both of these to be easy top 10s, if not #1 contenders, but instead they can't even make the top 30. Wow.

36. Someone Like You - Adele

So hot is Adele's new album that its second single, "Someone Like You," is already charting as a track download. This is her sixth top 40 hit. Adele's new album, 21, is #1 on the albums chart this week, while her last album, 2008's 19, is #4, giving her the rare distinction of having two albums in the top 5, neither of which are greatest hits releases. I believe the last time such a thing happened was early 1999, when The Corrs were in the top 5 several times with both their newer album, Talk on Corners, and their older album, Forgiven, Not Forgotten.

3 comments:

rcLoy said...

I'm so in love with Pink's Fuckin' Perfect. Good songs with a themed like this need to be #1! When are you going to do a review of Adele's 21?

Cook In / Dine Out said...

I'm sorry. I'm really behind on album reviews. I have Decemberists, Anna Calvi, Adele and Destroyer to review. I might try to write much shorter album reviews this year--just distill the main theme and key tracks. We'll see.

Myfizzypop said...

God the UK loves Adele right now. As they should.

God I love Pinks song. As I should. It's magnif.