Whoops.  Nearly forgot about this one.

From the look of it, virtually everyone decided to steer clear of releasing new material this week.  That could be because last weekend saw the final of Britain’s Got Talent; perhaps nobody wanted to risk going head to head with some viral sensation.  If so, they needn’t have worried, because there is no viral sensation.  The result is an almost totally dead chart, to the point where the lower end is propped up by a string of back catalogue material from the iTunes 59p sale.

Such as this…

40.  Pras Michel featuring Ol’ Dirty Bastard introducing Mya – “Ghetto Supastar (That Is What You Are)”

Yes, it’s really come to this.  This was a number 2 hit in 1998, one of three top ten hits for Pras that year.  He did release a follow-up album in 2005, which didn’t sell at all (though Wikipedia helpfully notes that the lead single made number 17 in Finland).  “Ghetto Supastar” was also the biggest UK hit for ODB (who died in 2004), and did spawn a few hits for Mya over the following years.  The biggest was, of course, her appearance with Christina Aguilera, Lil Kim and Missy Elliot on the Moulin Rouge version of “Lady Marmalade”, which made number 1 in 2001.  She’s still making records, but hasn’t had a hit since 2003.

For the real nit-pickers among you, this is technically not a re-entry, but a new entry of a reissue, because the download version counts as a separate release.  I know, thrilling, isn’t it?

39.  Justin Timberlake – “Mirrors”
38.  Christina Perri – “A Thousand Years” 

Hardy perennials.

36.  DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince – “Summertime”

You want to know how old this is?  YouTube has a clip of them performing it on Soul Train.

This reached number 8 in 1991, and had a previous re-entry three years later.  It was their biggest hit in America, but in the UK it was actually overshadowed by the 1993 number 1 “Boom Shake The Room”.  It’s based around the Kool & The Gang instrumental “Summer Madness” (number 17 in 1981, as a triple A-side with “Jones vs Jones” and “Funky Stuff”).

The duo split in 1993 when Will Smith decided to go into acting, though they did work together on his “Willennium” album.

27.  Jason Mraz – “I’m Yours”
17.  Psy – “Gentleman”

Psy was the interval act on the BGT final, hence the otherwise surprising reappearance of his Other Single.  Mraz is in the iTunes sale.

9.  Wiley featuring Angel & Tinchy Stryder – “Lights On”

The first of only two new entries.  Wiley’s got a pretty rigorous pop-rap formula these days – there used to be plenty of variation in his singles, but he’s evidently happy to stick with something that largely works.  That said, “Lights On” is still pretty good at what it does.

7.  Taylor Swift featuring Ed Sheeran – “Everything Has Changed”

No surprise that this is being released as a single in Britain, though I imagine the Ed Sheeran completists had bought it as a download already.  Sheeran is evidently looking to break America, as he’s relocating to Nashville.  Swift and Sheeran are the credited writers on this track, though Swift’s style is clearly predominant here.  Then again, it was written for her album.  

They performed this on the BGT final to launch the single promotion, hence its sudden appearance in the top 10, even though it’s been out as an album track since the tail end of last year.  Sheeran’s biggest UK hit remains “The A Team”, which made number 3.

1.  Robin Thicke featuring T.I. and Pharrell Williams – “Blurred Lines” 

Three weeks, and now a total sale of nearly 600,000.  It’s almost certain to manage a fourth, too, which will equal Daft Punk.  If it gets past that and manages five, then it’ll be the longest consecutive run at the top since “I Kissed A Girl” by Katy Perry back in 2008, but with the Icona Pop single out on Monday, I wouldn’t regard that as a guarantee.

On the album chart, there’s rather more activity:

• “13” by Black Sabbath at number 1.  A surprise, since they have’t had a number 1 album since “Paranoid” in 1970.  This sets a new record for the longest gap between number 1 albums.  They haven’t even been in the top 10 since 1983, long before they split.
  
• “BE” by Beady Eye at 2.  The second album from Liam Gallagher’s band.  The previous one got to 3.
• “A” by Agnetha Faltskog is a re-entry at 6, having previously dropped out of the top 40.  Not quite sure what’s gone on there.
• “Tomorrow’s Harvest” by Boards of Canada at 7.  The electronica group haven’t previously made the top 20.
• “The Complete Greatest Hits” by The Eagles at 9.  Self-explanatory, really.
• “Bula Quo OST” by Status Quo at 10.  The soundtrack album to the geriatric rock outfit’s action-comedy film.  Honestly, that’s a real thing that’s genuinely happening.  Here’s the trailer, if you doubt me.
• “Invisible Empire // Crescent Moon” by KT Tunstall at 14.  Of her previous albums, three made the top 5, so this is a bit disappointing.
• “The Essential Bruce Springsteen” at 15.  Probably being discounted by iTunes or something.
• “The Art of Doing Nothing” by Mark Owen at 29, which is actually his highest chart placing for a solo album.
• “The Rebel” by Johnny Cash at 32 – again, I’m guessing it’s being discounted somewhere.
• “Greatest Hits” by Bon Jovi at 37.  Ditto.
• “Damage” by Jimmy Eat World at 38.  One of their lower-placing albums, but they’ve been tailing off for a while now.