In 1989 the UK Album Chart was split into two separate charts. The Mainstream Artist Album Chart (which already had Budget Albums removed) and the Compilation Album Chart.
The Compilation Chart was, and still is, for those records credited to Various Artists and Original Soundtracks. Basically, the Compilation Albums. Over the years records that should have been on the Compilation Album Chart have crept into the Artist Album Chart (Most notably the Evita Soundtrack which got to Number 1 in 1997) and the Phantom of The Opera Soundtrack (currently on the chart of 08-Jan-2005).
Also, several albums which should have been on the Artist Album Chart made it into the Compilation Chart. Some of these (such as 'Frantic Euphoria' credited to Anne Savage in the current chart of 08-Jan-2005) are actually the name of the Master Mixer (as it where) who put the album together. They are still true compilation Albums. But then we have the album from 'Elton John And Bernie Taupin' which got to number 1 in 1991/2. Surely an Artist Album?
Current chart rules state
Compilation Album chart: includes original soundtracks unless all tracks feature same artist, multi-orchestral recordings, and "1 artist per side" albums (if not new).
Artist Album Chart: includes single artist compilations, original cast recordings, original cast performance soundtracks and single orchestra recordings.
But why split these from the main chart at all? The reason is that of the 19 number 1's in 1988, 6 where Various Artist releases (4 of which where Now... compilations). 12 Soundtrack albums hit the chart, 4 going top 10 in 1988. The Various records numbered 70 - with 6 peaking in the Top 5 (excluding number 1's). The record industry where complaining that compilation albums where doing better than the artist albums and could they please have a shot at number 1? Instead of Now... every other week!
And so the chart was split.
The Week of 07-Jan-1989 was the final Top 100 chart published and the next week the Chart was split into it's present official form - A Top 75 Artist Album Chart and a Top 20 Compilation Album Chart. And that is how it remains today.
Or is it? From September 1992 a Top 100 Artist Album Chart was published and since February 1994 a Top 150 (later a Top 200, from November 1996) has been compiled and published through selected magazines. In late September 1992 Charts Plus (the predecessor of Hit Music and the current Charts+, though Charts+ is by a different company) began publication and started printing a Top 50 Compilation Album Chart. This continues to this day. So really, today is actually a Top 200 Artist Album Chart and a Top 50 Compilation Album Chart,
My database currently holds the complete Compilation Album Charts Top 20 from 14-Jan-1989 to 19-Sep-1992 (when the chart slowly expands to a Top 50 over three weeks) and continues to the present.
Many thanks to PTerry for completeing my database for me! Over the next few weeks these will be typed up and added, but this will not impact on this Thread at all.
It is my intention to post an analysis of each chart week by week below, at some point over the course of the next year. Analysis will be posted as and when I have the time.
KEY
UK COMPILATION ALBUM CHART ANALYSIS < DATE >
1 (1) Title - Artist (usually 'Various Artists', though I have a destinction - see below) - Weeks On Chart So Far
Current Entry Date - Peak So Far - Weeks So Far - Current Title
Chart Run:- Current Chart Run
I will also add, here, the complete history of the record. If it re-enters several times then the details will be presented here with a chart run for each re-entry - even the little one week on chart runs!)
The artist history is then presented.
Date Of Entry - Wks:- 00 - Peak:- 0 - Title
I have split some of the various artist records into a series - for example, "Various Artist - Now Series" - to aid me in searching the database. If the record is part of this series (and NOT credited simply to "Various Artists" or "Original Soundtrack") then a full history of the artist is presented. I can't (well, daren't!) post the full chart history of all Various Artist and Original Soundtrack records. It would fill three hundred posts (at least) for the more recent charts!
I ask that everyone check these posts to make sure that I've typed the information correctly. Hopefully you will be wasting your time
But with well over 1 million records in my database, there has to be a few errors. I have not put where these records are on the Billboard Albums, or on the NME Album Chart (which I have both of for much of the early days of the Compoilation Chart.) This is because I don't have the ful set, and it is a bit too much work at this stage to link everything together! It can be done (see my Download Chart Postings), but I just chose not to this time around.
So, sit back and relax as we turn the clock back to 1989.
but what a new masterpiece you're going to do!!!
