Ed Sheeran’s ‘Autumn Variations’ Sweeps to No. 1 In Australia
Written by djfrosty on October 6, 2023
It’s Ed Sheeran season on Australia’s albums chart as Autumn Variations (via Gingerbread Man) debuts at No. 1.
Produced by the National’s Aaron Dessner, Autumn Variations is Sheeran’s second leader on the ARIA Chart in 2023, and his seventh in total – all consecutive. Autumn Variations follows + ( plus from 2012), X (multiply from 2014), ÷ (divide from 2017), No. 6 Collaborations Project (2019), = (equals from 2019) and – (subtract from 2023) in hurtling all the way to the top.
Australians have adopted Sheeran like one of their own. Earlier this year, the British singer and songwriter completed another lap of stadiums in these parts – and broke several more records – for his Mathematics Tour.
When the “Shape Of You” singer last toured Australia, in 2018, also with Frontier Touring, he shifted more than 1 million tickets, a feat that wiped Dire Straits’ record for a single trek (950,000) that had stood for since the 1980s.
On the latest ARIA Albums Chart, the podium is completed by Olivia Rodrigo’s Guts (at No. 2 via Geffen/Universal) and the Weeknd’s The Highlights (at No. 3 via Universal), both unmoved from the previous week.
Meanwhile, U.S. pop-rock outfit Lany makes its first appearance on the ARIA Top 50 with A Beautiful Blur (Virgin/Universal), new at No. 4. That result crushes Lany’s previous best result, No. 53 for their 2017 self-titled debut LP.
Country music has been hot on Australia’s charts this year, and homegrown singer James Johnston gets in on the action with Raised Like That (Ditto Music), his debut album. Raised Like That starts at No. 7 on the ARIA Albums Chart, published Oct. 6. Its title track dropped in 2021 and became the fastest-ever debut single by an Australian country singer to reach one million streams, ARIA reports.
Also new to the top tier is Kimosabè, the fourth studio album by Angus Stone’s Dope Lemon project. It’s new at No. 9, and follows Rose Pink Cadillac (No. 2 in 2022), Smooth Big Cat (No. 2 in 2019) and Honey Bones (No. 11 in 2016). As a member of sibling duo Angus & Julia Stone, he claimed No. 1s with Down The Way in 2010 and Angus & Julia Stone in 2014, and, as a solo artist, reached No. 2 with 2012’s Broken Brights.
On Thursday Oct. 5, BMG announced it had acquired the Dope Lemon recordings catalog from Stone, in a deal that included those three earlier album and the 2017 EP Hounds Tooth. BMG released Kimosabè through a new recording deal.
Last week’s leader, Kylie Minogue‘s 16th studio album Tension (Liberator Music/BMG), tumbles 1-10.
Over on the ARIA Singles Chart, Doja Cat’s “Paint The Town Red” (RCA/Sony) enters a seventh week at No. 1, ahead of Tate McRae’s “Greedy” (up 3-2 for a new peak via RCA/Sony), and Kenya Grace’s “Strangers” (down 3-2 via Warner).
“Paint The Town Red” moves up the list of longest-reigning No. 1 tracks this year. Doja’s hit draws level with Dave and Central Cee’s “Sprinter” for third on a tally that’s led by Miley Cyrus’ “Flowers” (12 weeks), and Morgan Wallen’s “Last Night” (eight weeks).
Finally, BTS’ Jung Kook has the top debut on Australia’s singles chart this week with “3D” (Warner/Universal) featuring Jack Harlow. It’s new at No. 7. The K-pop star’s “Seven” featuring Latto peaked at No. 2 earlier this year, and impacts the top 40, holding at No. 38. Harlow now has a fourth top 10 in Australia, a list that includes “What’s Poppin” (No. 8 in 2020), “Industry Baby” with Lil Nas X (No. 4 in 2021) and “First Class,” which flew all the way to No. 1 for a two-week stint in 2022.