English rock band Kasabian registered their third consecutive U.K. No. 1 album yesterday (Sunday) as “Velociraptor” (Columbia/Sony Music Entertainment) debuted at the top. Dappy, aka north London-born Costadinos Contostavlos, a member of pop/hip-hop group N-Dubz, scored his first solo No. 1 single with “No Regrets” (All Around The World/Universal Island).
Kasabian made their album chart debut with a self-titled No. 4 success in 2004. They first hit the summit in 2006 with “Empire” and repeated the feat in 2009 with “West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum.” Opening sales for the new set were 94,000, as its first single, “Days Are Forgotten,” fell 28-42 on the new chart.
Their No. 1 debut forced last week’s chart-topping debut, Ed Sheeran’s “+” (Asylum/Warner Music), down to No. 2. But the fast-rising singer-songwriter still saw his breakthrough hit from it, “The A Team” climb back 13-7, reclaiming the top ten berth it previously held for 11 straight weeks. The album’s second single “You Need Me I Don’t Need You” fell 12-20.
With Adele’s “21” (XL Recordings) down 3-4 and Joe McElderry’s “Classics” (UCJ/Universal) back up 5-4, the new Official Charts Company album survey showed two more top ten debuts. Tony Bennett’s “Duets II” (Sony Music) arrived at No. 5, the veteran vocal stylist’s highest-ever ranking on the U.K. album chart. It extends his album chart span in the territory to 46 years, since “I Left My Heart In San Francisco” charted at No. 20 in May 1965, a week before peaking at No. 13. Also opening in the top ten, at No. 9, was Christina Perri’s “Lovestrong” (Atlantic/Warner Music), which follows her No. 4 singles hit last month with “Jar of Hearts.”
“Superheavy” (A&M/Universal), the self-titled album by the “supergroup” featuring Mick Jagger, Joss Stone et al, debuted at No. 13, having been showing inside the top ten in sales data earlier in the week. Swedish metal band Opeth, who’ve been releasing albums since 1995, achieved a No. 22 start, their best in the market, with their tenth studio set “Heritage” (Roadrunner).
Two longtime chart artists also had new entries, Tori Amos at No. 27 with “Night of Hunters” (Deutsche Grammophone/Universal) and the Waterboys at No. 30 with “An Appointment With Mr. Yeats” (Proper). On the compilation chart, “Now! That’s What I Call Music 79” (EMI/Virgin/UMTV) is now in a tenth straight week at No. 1.
Dappy was a featured artist on Tinchy Stryder’s 2009 U.K. chart-topper “Number One” and has three top ten singles to his name as a member of N-Dubz, but “No Regrets” is the 24-year-old’s first solo chart-topper. It sold 95,000 copies last week, according to the OCC. “Moves Like Jagger” (Octone/A&M/Universal), by Maroon 5 featuring Christina Aguilera, started a fourth week at No. 2, as last week’s bestseller, boy band One Direction’s “What Makes You Beautiful” (Syco Music/Sony Music Entertainment), fell to No. 3.
Jason Derulo’s “It Girl” (Warner Bros./Warner Music) arrived at No. 4 and multi-platinum British singer-songwriter James Morrison returned at No. 5 with “I Won’t Let You Go” (Universal Island), the first single from his third album “The Awakening,” which is released in the U.K. today (Monday). Damien Rice’s “Cannonball,” from his 2002 album “O” and a No. 32 single the following year, continued its revival after being performed in an “X Factor” audition by contestant John Adams, racing 39-9.