ABBA’s Voyage is cruising to a bumper week in the U.K., where it should dock at No. 1.
At the midweek stage of the chart cycle, the Swedish pop legend’s comeback album (via Polar) is outselling the rest of the U.K. Top 40 combined.
Its 118,000 chart sales racked-up over the weekend should see Voyage pass Ed Sheeran’s = (Equals) (with 139,000 combined units) for the biggest first-week sales of 2021, and perhaps register a first-week tally that hasn’t been seen in four years, the OCC reports.
Voyage leads the Official Chart Update and is already the fastest-selling physical release and biggest first-week pure sales (physical and digital) of the year to date, according to the charts compiler.
If the album does hold course, it’ll give ABBA its 10th U.K. No. 1, and first studio set to lead the Official U.K. Albums Chart since 1981’s The Visitors, their final album before disbanding.
Voyage contains the U.K. Top 10 single “Don’t Shut Me Down” (No. 9), and the previously released songs “I Still Have Faith In You” (No. 14), and “Just a Notion” (No. 59).
Brits have a deep connection with ABBA. The 1992 retrospective ABBA Gold has notched a record 1,018 weeks on the Official U.K. Albums Chart and is one of the territory’s best-selling albums of all time.
Fans there will have a unique opportunity to see the group play classic hits and tracks from Voyage, when digital avatars of Benny, Björn, Agnetha and Frida perform at a purpose built arena in London next year for the virtual ABBA Voyage residency.
Meanwhile, Sheeran’s latest Asylum effort drops to No. 2 on the chart blast, while Radiohead’s Kid A Mnesia (XL Recordings), a special anniversary re-issue of previous chart-toppers Kid A (from 2000) and Amnesiac (2001), arrives at No. 3.
Pop artist James Arthur is on track for his fourth Top 10 with It’ll All Make Sense In The End (Columbia), bowing at No. 4 on the midweek chart, and U.S. R&B artist Summer Walker is chasing her career peak position with Still Over It (Interscope), new at No. 5.
Further down the list, Diana Ross’ Thank You (Decca) could score the pop legend her first Top 10 album since 1995’s Take Me Higher. It’s at No. 6, ahead of new releases from Gregory Porter (Still Rising at No. 7 via Decca) and Bullet For My Valentine’s self-titled set (No. 8 via Spinefarm).
The Official U.K. Albums Chart is published late Friday, local time.
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