Music

With Christmas out of the way, Taylor Swift is eying a return to the U.K. chart throne by week’s end.

Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) (via EMI) leads the midweek U.K. chart, up 2-1, and is on track for a fourth non-consecutive stint at No. 1.

It’s not just at the pointy end of the midweek chart where Swift marks her territory. 1989 (Taylor’s Version) is one of seven Taylor LPs projected to impact the top 40, the Official Charts Company reports, including 2017’s reputation (at No. 9), 2022’s Midnights (No. 10), 2019’s Lover (No. 11), 2020’s folklore (No. 14) and evermore (No. 26), and the original, 2014 release of 1989 (No. 39).

Meanwhile, ABBA’s juggernaut, Gold: Greatest Hits, could rebound to No. 3, its highest chart position since 2008. The career retrospective has already logged a record 1,130 weeks – and counting – on the Official Chart.

Also on the rise is Noah Kahan’s Stick Season (Island), which is set to lift 8-6, for a new peak, as its title track has a shot at No. 1 on the national singles chart.

Also on the way up, based on midweek sales and streaming data published by the OCC, are collections from Fleetwood Mac (50 Years – Don’t Stop, up 13-7 via Rhino), Michael Jackson (The Essential up 26-18 via Epic), Post Malone’s (The Diamond Collection, up 27-19 via Republic Records) and Elvis Presley (ELV1S: 30 #1 Hits, up 48-35 via RCA).

Festive records should begin their annual pilgrimage down and out of the chart, including Michael Bublé’s Christmas (Reprise), the leader on the most recent tally, published Friday, Dec. 29.

All will be revealed when the Official U.K. Albums Chart is published this Friday, Jan. 5.

Miley Cyrus’ “Flowers” bloomed in a big way, as her pop hit ended 2023 as the U.K.’s biggest single.

The lead track from Cyrus’ chart-leading eight studio LP Endless Summer Vacation (Columbia), “Flowers” captured 198 million combined audio and video streams in the U.K., according to data published by the Official Charts Company — good enough for the most-streamed song and music video for the year.

Along the way, “Flowers” logged 10 weeks at No. 1 on the Official U.K. Singles Chart, raking in some 1.7 million U.K. chart units since its release in January 2023. Also, its 91,000 downloads led all tracks in 2023.

Coming in at No. 2 on the OCC’s tally of biggest tracks for 2023 is Dave and Central Cee’s “Sprinter” (via Live Yours/Neighbourhood), a different type of athlete that spent 10 consecutive weeks at No. 1 and collected 161 million audio and video streams in the territory. “Sprinter” ends 2023 with 1.2 million U.K. chart units. Following its release last June, “Sprinter” set a new record for the biggest streaming week for a rap single in U.K. (13.4 million streams and 108,200 chart units in its first tracking week). By the end of its run, another record for a rap track.

Completing the year-end singles podium is Raye and 070 Shake’s “Escapism” (Human Re Sources), with 1.2 million total U.K. chart units, a sum that includes 142 million audio and video streams.

Taylor Swift appears twice on the tally, with Midnights cut “Anti-Hero” (at No. 4 via EMI) and 2019 Lover album track “Cruel Summer,” which was finally issued as a single in 2023, for a No. 2 peak on the weekly chart and No. 11 appearance on the year-end list.

Christmas only comes once a year, though two festive classics make the year-end cut. Wham’s “Last Christmas” (Epic) which set a new record for endurance when it became the U.K.’s coveted Christmas No. 1 single for 2023, 39 years after release, comes in at No. 18 on the year-end list, which Mariah Carey‘s “All I Want for Christmas is You” (Columbia) is at No. 29.

Official Top 40 Biggest Songs of 2023: