Mika, Norah Jones Rule U.K. Charts

[Cautionary Wife]

Mika only mentioned in paragraph one here, but this article details strong competition in the UK album chart. Next week will be interesting. And if Billboard is listening, then America is listening..... I think.

 

CW.

 

BILLBOARD

February 05, 2007

Paul Sexton, London

 

As Mika's "Grace Kelly" (Universal Island) started a third week atop the U.K. singles chart, there was a No. 1 debut on the album survey for Norah Jones' "Not Too Late" (Blue Note). It's Jones' third straight bestseller on the British charts, following "Come Away With Me" (2002) and "Feels Like Home" (2004).

 

There were no new entries in the top 20 of the singles chart, but as is now the norm under new eligibility rules, there were several climbers. Fall Out Boy's "This Ain't a Scene, It's An Arms Race" (Mercury) jumped 6-2 and Bloc Party's "The Prayer" (Wichita) 13-4, beating the No. 5 peak of its previous highest-charting single "So Here We Are"/"Positive Tension" in 2005.

 

"I Wanna Love You" (Universal) by Akon featuring Snoop Dogg continued its steady progress, 56-35-16-11-9, and the Fray's "How To Save a Life" (Epic) also progressed into the top ten with a 16-10 move. Kelis scored a new top 20 hit as "Lil Star" (Virgin) featuring Cee Lo improved 37-19. The highest new entry on the survey was Kasabian's "Me Plus One" (Columbia) at No. 22.

 

With opening sales of 60,000, Jones' third album held off the challenge of rock newcomers Klaxons, who debuted at No. 2 with "Myths of the Near Future" (Polydor). Last week's bestseller, the View's "Hats Off to the Buskers" (1965), fell to No. 3, while south London rapper Jamie T's debut album "Panic Prevention" (Virgin) came in at No. 4.

 

Just Jack, whose rap/pop single "Starz in Their Eyes" (Mercury) spent the second of two weeks at No. 2 last week, opened at No. 6 with the album "Overtones," while Madonna's "The Confessions Tour" (Warner Bros.) came in at No. 7.

 

Nelly Furtado rebounds to the top on both of Billboard's pan-European sales charts to lead them simultaneously for the first time. "Loose" (Mosley/Geffen) moves 2-1 on European Top 100 Albums, which it led for a week two weeks ago, while "All Good Things (Come To An End)" belies its title by returning to the helm of Eurochart Hot 100 Singles 2-1, after topping that list for one chart frame three weeks ago.

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