The Rolling Stones debut the decades-old album Black and Blue inside the top 10 on multiple charts in the band’s home country after a special reissue. (MANDATORY CREDIT Watal Asanuma/Shinko Music/Getty Images) Mick Jagger of The Rolling Stones performs on stage at Earls Court, London, UK on 25th May 1976. (Photo by Watal Asanuma/Shinko Music/Getty Images)
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It’s only been about two years since the Rolling Stones released Hackney Diamonds, the band’s most recent full-length and first of original material in 20 years. The rock legends enjoyed great commercial success with the project, which won the Grammy for Best Rock Album, and the musicians are reportedly already hard at work on a follow-up.
In between full-lengths, the Rolling Stones, like so many other groups who hit it big decades ago, continue to re-release past projects, adding previously unfamiliar tracks and mixes, turning classics into bestsellers all over again. The Rolling Stones recently delivered a super deluxe reissue of Black and Blue, which originally arrived in the mid-seventies. Fans of the band turned out, as they always do, to support the effort, turning it into a top 10 bestseller in the United Kingdom, where Black and Blue debuts on multiple tallies.
The Rolling Stones Debut Black and Blue Inside the Top 10
Black and Blue arrives on four charts across the Atlantic this frame, and it manages to sneak into the uppermost tier on all but one of them. The updated version of the set, which is credited simply as Black and Blue, launches highest on both the Official Physical Albums and Official Vinyl Albums rosters, where it begins its time at No. 8. The same title also blasts onto the Official Albums Sales tally, which ranks the bestselling releases of any length, genre, or language and on any format throughout the U.K., at No. 9.
How Many Top 10 Albums do The Rolling Stones Have?
As Black and Blue opens at No. 9 on the Official Albums Sales tally, the Rolling Stones coincidentally collect a ninth top 10 on that list. The band has accrued twice as many placements between Nos. 1 and 10 on the ranking of the bestselling vinyl releases in the U.K., and a total of 17 top 10s on the Official Physical Albums roster.
Throughout the decades, the Rolling Stones have placed at least 40 projects on all three charts, and not long ago passed 50 on the list that looks only at sales on physical formats like CD, cassette, and vinyl throughout the country.
The Rolling Stones Miss the Top 10 on One Chart
Black and Blue manages to debut on one other roster, the Official Album Downloads tally, but it just misses out on entering inside the loftiest tier. The Rolling Stones favorite kicks off its time on the download-specific ranking at No. 15.
Black and Blue Finds Its Way to the Top 40 Again
Black and Blue also finds its way to one other list in the U.K., the Official Albums chart. That ranking is compiled using a methodology that looks at total consumption, so streaming activity is just as important as pure purchases. Black and Blue is not new to that busy list, though it does manage to reenter the top 40, but only barely, as it lands at No. 40.
The Rolling Stones’ Black and Blue Makes Returns for the First Time in Decades
This frame marks the first in almost 50 years when Black and Blue has managed to find a home on the Official Albums chart. The Rolling Stones debuted the full-length at No. 4 in May of 1976. The following period, it climbed to the runner-up space, which would turn out to be its all-time peak, and where the set would lay for two consecutive frames. After a run of several months, Black and Blue fell off the Official Albums ranking and hasn’t been seen since August 1976.
Black and Blue Marked a Transitional Album for the Rolling Stones
Black and Blue served as something of a transitional album for the Rolling Stones, as it was the band’s thirteenth full-length. By that point, the rockers had already become global superstars and hit it big on various tallies, but as is the case with all acts, a lot was changing.
One guitarist, Mick Taylor, quit before the full-length was created, and a number of others performed during recordings, with Ronnie Wood eventually joining the band.
The recently-shared super deluxe version of Black and Blue includes the original songs as well as a complete remix of the album and unreleased tracks, as well as a live performance from the same year the full-length was initially released. The Rolling Stones recorded a cover of the tune “Shame, Shame, Shame” by Shirley and Company, which is a highlight of this new reissue.