The Beatles posing together. From left to right: musicians George Harrison, John Lennon, Paul ... [+]
The Beatles never have a hard time moving copies of their music. They still rank as one of the most successful and bestselling artists in U.S. history, even though they haven’t released a new album in decades. This frame, one of the group’s most successful compilations is back on a pair of Billboard charts, proving that the American masses are still in love with their work today, just as they were half a century ago.
1 by The Beatles returns to two Billboard rankings this frame. That title wasn’t present on any lists last week, so its comeback is a bit unexpected, but perfectly welcome.
On the Billboard 200, 1 reappears at No. 172. The compilation blasts back onto the list of the most-consumed albums of all styles, ages, and genres thanks to 8,644 equivalent units shifted. That sum includes 413 actual sales, according to Luminate.
The same title also manages to crack the Top Rock & Alternative Albums roster as well. That list ranks the most-consumed albums and EPs in the U.S. that Billboard classifies as rock or alternative, which of course The Beatles’ music fits.
1 lands at No. 41 on the Top Rock & Alternative Albums chart this week, easily breaking back onto the 50-spot list. It has previously risen as high as No. 3 on that ranking, and it’s now managed 311 weeks somewhere on the tally.
Last week, The Beatles appeared on both of these charts, but not with 1. Last frame, their compilation 1967-1970–sometimes referred to as the Blue album–sat on these rankings, but it’s been replaced by 1. This can happen sometimes when fans’ buying and streaming habits transfer from one group of songs to another. If the hits on 1 outpace those on 1967-1970, which seems to have been the case here, the more popular of the two collections will appear on the charts the following frame.
The Beatles released 1 in November 2000, and the compilation was a massive success. The CD has sold tens of millions of copies, and it brought the band back to the top spot on the Billboard 200 after a lengthy absence from the highest rung on that tally.
