UK Chart News,
Album Releases, Country News (Babies), Music News, Gossip, Birthdays, Links to
Articles & Videos.
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For the latest Billboard Country Charts Blog Post go HERE
UK CHART NEWS
Official UK Top 100 Singles Chart (Week Ending 28 December 2017)
22 December 2017 - 28 December 2017
Eminem beat Ed Sheeran in the battle for the Christmas No.1 album this week but Sheeran has the Christmas
singles crown all to himself for the first time ever with Perfect - the fourth
single from ÷ - remaining atop the chart for a third week on sales of 85,397
copies, including 40,171 from sales-equivalent streams.
Boosted by the release of a Beyoncé duet
version on its second week at the summit, Perfect received a further boost with
the release of an Andrea Bocelli duet version in the latest frame. The
combination of all three versions and streaming was enough to beat off a strong
challenge from River, the star attraction from Eminem's new album, Revival, not
least because Sheeran himself is featured vocalist on the track, which debuts
at No.2 on sales of 67,263 copies - making it the first No.2 to breach the 50k
mark for 22 weeks. It is Eminem's 33rd Top 10 hit, and both his and Sheeran's
fifth No.2.
In a video message >> YouTube to his fans, Ed told
OfficialCharts.com: “Thank you very much for making Perfect Christmas Number 1.
This is an actual dream come true and I’m very proud and happy. Thank you so
much and have a very Merry Christmas, happy holidays and a Happy New Year.” The
track has (Dec 22) been certified double
platinum by the BPI, achieving 1.23m
combined UK sales and streams to date.
Perfect has held off several competitors from the snowy summit this week;
its nearest rival, Eminem’s River (which also features Ed), finishes at Number
2, while a campaign to get Wham’s
Last Christmas to the top to mark one year since George Michael’s death
finishes at Number 3.
Official UK Top 100 Albums Chart (Week Ending 28 December 2017)
22 December 2017 - 28 December 2017
Eminem had the Christmas No.1 album for the second time in his career, topping the
list with REVIVAL, 12 years after
compilation Curtain Call: The Hits did likewise.
Eminem's ninth studio album, Revival was
strong enough to end the sixth reign of Ed Sheeran's ÷, which was dispatched to
No.2 on sales of 120,546 copies.
Helped by a bumper contribution of 19,400
from sales-equivalent streams and the immediate success of Sheeran
collaboration River – which opens at No.2 on the singles chart – Revival sold 131,622 copies last week (131,622 =
112,222 pure sales + 19,400 streaming units), and is Eminem's ninth No.1 album,
although it sold fewer copies to take the title than immediate predecessor The
Marshall Mathers LP 2, which opened on sales of 143,034 in less than five days
in 2013.
Christmas With Daniel O'Donnell fell 28-36 (7,500 estmated
sales)
Overall album sales are up 24.24%
week-on-week at 3,900,520, 2.27%
below same week 2016 sales of 3,991,149. Streaming accounted for a record
881,398 sales – 22.60% of the total.
In the same week in 2005 – in a chart that covered the slightly later period of 18-24 December
– album sales reached an all-time high of 10,581,571, a tally which included
only physical releases. Nineteen albums sold more than 100,000 copies,
including one compilation (Now! 62), and 131 albums (33 of them compilations)
sold more than 10,000 copies.
Official UK Country Album Top 20 (Week Ending 28 December 2017)
22 December 2017 - 28 December 2017
Glen Campbell with ADIOS rose 2-1 (28 weeks; #1
peak)
Luke Bryan with WHAT MAKES YOU COUNTRY rose
4-2 (2 weeks; #2 peak)
Chris Stapleton with FROM A ROOM - VOL 2 fell 1-3
(3 weeks; #1 peak)
Tim McGraw & Faith Hill with THE REST
OF OUR LIFE rose 5-4 (5 weeks; #2 peak)
Shane Richie with A COUNTRY SOUL fell 3-4 (6
weeks; #1 peak)
Lady Antebellum with HEART BREAK rose 7-6 (28
weeks; #2 peak)
Chris Stapleton with FROM A ROOM -Vol 1 slipped 6-7
(33 weeks; #1 peak)
Margo Price with ALL AMERICAN MADE held at No.8
(9 weeks; #1 peak)
Kelsea Ballerini with UNAPOLOGETICALLY held at No.9
(7 weeks; #2 peak)
Brothers Osborne with PAWN SHOP held at No.10 (29
weeks; #5 peak)
Outside the Top 10
Cadillac Three with LEGACY held at No.11 (17
weeks; #2 peak)
Lisa McHugh with WHO I AM lifted 20-12 (6
weeks; #7 peak)
Lucinda Williams with THIS SWEET OLD WORLD fell
12-13 (8 weeks; #2 peak)
Nathan Carter with LIVE AT 3ARENA climbed 15-13
(2 weeks; #13 peak)
Official Americana Albums Chart Top 40 (Week Ending 28
December 2017)
22 December 2017 - 28 December 2017
This Week/ Last Week/ Title/ Artist
1 1 Carry Fire Robert Plant
2 2 A Deeper Understanding War On Drugs [Tagged Alt]
3 3 Lotta Sea Lice Courtney Barnett & Kurt Vile [Tagged
Alternative]
4 7 Songbook Frank Turner [Tagged Alt]
5 5 Roll With The Punches Van Morrison [Tagged Blues]
6 10 Pure Comedy Father John Misty
7 6 Life Love Flesh Blood Imelda May [Tagged Singer/Songwriter]
8 4 The Visitor Neil Young/ Promise Of The Real [Tagged Rock]
9 12 Crack-up Fleet Foxes [Tagged Alt]
10 8 Adios Glen Campbell [Tagged Country]
Outside The Top 10
11 11 Hitchhiker Neil Young [Tagged Rock]
12 9 From A Room - Vol 2 Chris Stapleton
UK COUNTRY
ALBUM RELEASES
(19 Dec 2017) Red
Marlow - The Complete Season 13 Collection (The Voice Performance) 2017
Republic Records,
He finished in 4th Place
Age: 40
From: Rogersville, Alabama
Current City: Dickson, Tennessee
The Voice has given him Red is as country as it
gets, with a love of skeet shooting, fishing and hunting. His dad is a
preacher, so growing up he was exposed to a lot of bluegrass and gospel. At 22,
Red decided to move to Nashville to further his music career and ended up
becoming a demo singer. He was fortunate to make a living singing songs for
songwriters for about 15 years, but being a musician is difficult and he's
struggled to break through as a solo artist. Recently, Red took a step back
from music in order to support his family. He started his own construction
company called Mr. Fix All, and though he enjoys it, The Voice gave him one
last shot to see if he could make music his full-time job.
BABY NEWS
(22 Dec 2017) Lady
Antebellum: We'd like to welcome our beautiful Christmas gift Lillie Renee Haywood. Born today at
11:14am, at 7 lbs 6 oz, 19 in. She is named after both of her grandmothers.
Kelli and Lillie are happy and healthy, and Cash is already a great big
brother. God is good! – Dave Haywood
(Instagram)
(23 Dec 2017) Tyler Hubbard from
Florida Georgia Line and his wife Hayley
are proud parents! They have welcomed their first child, a baby girl.
Olivia Rose was born in Nashville on Dec. 23 at
4:56PM. She weighed 7 lbs., 13 oz. at birth. "We’re so overwhelmed with
joy and already more in love than we could have ever imagined with this little
angel that God has given us," her dad tells People, adding, "Olivia
is the best Christmas gift we could have ever asked for."
The couple announced they were expecting their first
baby on June 7, and Hayley showed off her baby bump that night on the red
carpet at the 2017 CMT Music Awards.
(27 Dec 2017) Jamie Lynn Spears has
announced that her and her husband Jamie Watson are expecting. This will be
their first child together, but Jamie already has a 9-year-old daughter,
Maddie. She shared a photo and message on Instagram.
(28 Dec 2017) Craig Wayne Boyd and
wife Taylor welcomed son Graydon Scott Dec. 28. "The last
week of December will forever be a huge week in the Boyd Family!" said
Boyd. - Instagram
MUSIC NEWS
(28 Dec 2017) Paul McCartney ‘One
on One’ tour was the highest grossing tour of 2017 with the tour earning over
$132 million this year.McCartney played 37 concerts between April and December
2017 to 907,610 fans averaging $US145 a ticket. All shows in Australia and New
Zealand were complete sell-outs.
According to Billboard, It is estimated that over the
past two years McCartney has sold 1.8
million tickets and earned over $240
million.
(30 Dec 2017) Billboard Bandcamp Releases 2017 Year-End Numbers, Including
Mind-Boggling Cassette Tape Stats
The company announced that 500 bands set up a Bandcamp
page each day in 2017, or approximately 182,500 new bands in the calendar year,
and that more than 17,000 cassette tapes were released this year alone.
(28 Dec 2017) Smart Speaker Sales More Than Tripled in
2017
Nearly 25 million were sold in the year, with about 11
million moved in the holiday quarter alone.
Internet-connected lights, locks and laundry machines
are close to becoming everyday household items, thanks in part to voice-activated
speakers such as Amazon’s Echo and Google Home.
SINGLE / ALBUM
NEWS
(21 Dec 2017) Sugarland's
new single “Still The Same” Available Now!
Sugarland shared:
We said new music by the end of the year and we meant it! We are thrilled to announce
our new single, "Still The Same", is available now. The title of the
song is so meaningful to us. We always knew we were going to make music again,
so this has been the best of both worlds. We were able to take time to feed our
personal passions, and we’re excited to come back together and create music as
a band again. We can’t wait for you to hear it! iTunes | Amazon | Spotify
ARTICLES
(21 Dec 2017) Thought Piece: Has Country Music Reached Its Peak In The UK? (James Daykin; Your Life In A Song)
(21 Dec 2017) Billboard: The 10 Best
Country Albums of 2017: Critics' Picks by Chuck Dauphin
Lindsay Ell’s The Project is named #1 Country Album!
WATCH
(19 Dec 2017) "Wrap Me Baby" by Katie Austin (Official Music Video) >> YouTube
2017 is turning out to be quite a year for Katie
Austin. She was a top five finalist in
the national Folgers Jingle Contest
in which she co-wrote a jingle called, “Rise
And Shine”. With that momentum, Austin isn’t slowing down for the holidays
just yet! She celebrated the digital release of her original, upbeat Christmas
song, “Wrap Me Baby,” (released Dec 1, 2017) available on iTunes, Spotify and digital retailers.
Earlier this year (May 12, 2017) Austin also released
her breakout single “Broken Record” (iTunes) and chose to enter it into the national Nash Next
competition affiliated with NASH FM, Cumulus Media, Big Machine Label Group and
Country Inns and Suites. After several months and rounds of the competition,
which included fan participation and live performance judging, she landed a
spot in the top ten finals judged by Kix Brooks of Brooks & Dunn,
Songwriter Hall Of Fame writer Desmond Child, chart-topping entertainer
Brantley Gilbert, Big Machine Label Group’s president/CEO Scott Borchetta and
Cindy Watts of the Tennessean.
C2 Media Relations
(19 Dec 2017) Reba's MY KIND OF CHRISTMAS - "I'll
Be Home For Christmas" >> YouTube
In celebration of the holiday season, Reba released
video performances of Christmas classics from her MY KIND OF CHRISTMAS album. Props
to Balsam Hill for the beautiful Christmas decorations!
Reba McEntire The Complete Christmas Collection Spotify Playlist
(28 Dec 2017) Julia Cole - Heaven's
Right Here (Lyric Video) #SandSessions >> YouTube
Priority (Acoustic Mixtape) on iTunes. Full EP releasing on Spotify, iTunes, Apple Music,
etc. on Jan. 12, 2018!
COUNTRY GOSSIP
(20 Dec 2017) Michael Ray, a country music singer from Eustis
who had a No.1 country hit in 2015 and is making a name for himself in
Nashville, was arrested early Wednesday outside a McDonald’s for driving while intoxicated and possession of
marijuana, according to an arrest report.
The 29-year-old, whose song “Kiss You in the Morning”
soared to the top of the Billboard
Country Airplay charts, was arrested 4 a.m. by Eustis police after he
crashed into the car in front of him at the McDonald’s drive-through, the
report said. He was arrested under his legal name, Michael Ray Roach.
Michael Ray, of Eustis, performs at the Eustis High
School pep rally on Thursday, October 25, 2012. (Orlando Sentinel File)
Driving a 2012 orange Jeep, “Michael said he was in
the drive thru and his foot slipped off the pedal causing him to hit the back
of the” 2016 blue Scion in front of him, the report said.
Michael Ray has released a statement after being
arrested early Wednesday morning (Dec. 20) for driving while intoxicated, and
he says he's sorry.
"I want to apologize to my fans, family, and my
hometown community for placing myself in this situation," he noted.
"I am so very sorry for the disappointment these events have caused
everyone. I know it will take time; however, I will do everything I can to
rebuild your trust."
He was released from the Lake County Jail earlier in
the day, where he was being held on $6000 bond.
Police also found a bottle with liquid, which Ray said was his "weed oil." He has a court date set
for Jan. 18. The possession of marijuana charge was for "THC Hash
Oil."
BIRTHDAYS
Birthdays in the weeks ahead
December 18: Tracy
Byrd (1966), Cledus T Judd (1964)
December 19 the late Bill Carlisle (Carlisles) (1908; died March 17, 2003 (aged 94)),
the late Little Jimmy Dickens (1920;
died Jan 2, 2015 (aged 94), Janie Fricke
(1947)
December 21 Albert
Lee (1953), Lee Roy Parnell
(1956), Christy Forester (Forester
Sisters) (1962)
December 22: Hawkshaw
Hawkins - (1921; died March 5, 1963 (aged 41); in the 1963 plane crash that
also killed country stars Patsy Cline and Cowboy Copas), Red Steagall (1937), Lori
McKenna (1968)
December: 25 Jimmy
Buffett (1946), Barbara Mandrell
(1948), Steve Wariner (1954), the
late Kimber Clayton (1964; died Aug
14, 2006 at the age of 41 due to kidney disease complications) Alecia Elliott (1982)
December 26: Rattlesnake
Annie (1941), Audrey Wiggins
(1967)
December 27: Karla
Bonoff (1951), Georgia Middleman, the
late John Hughey (1933; pedal steel; died Nov 18, 2007 (aged 73),
December 28: Joe
Diffie (1958), Marcus Hummon
(1960), Marty Roe (Diamond Rio)
(1960)
December 29: Ed
Bruce (1939), Jessica Andrews
(1983)
30 Suzy Bogguss
(1956), the late Skeeter Davis
(1931; died Sept 19, 2004 (aged 72), John Hartford - (1937; died June 4, 2001
(aged 63), Michael Nesmith (1942),
Brooke Eden
31 the late Rex
Allen (1920; died Dec 17, 1999 (aged 78), the late John Denver (1943; died Oct 12, 1997 (aged 53)) Catherine Britt, Abi Bridgeman (UK)
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