Eric Clapton’s Decades-Old Album Finally Debuts On The Charts

Eric Clapton’s decades-old album Journeyman debuts on multiple charts in the U.K. for the first time after being reissued as a deluxe edition with new songs. British guitarist Eric Clapton performing on stage during his US tour, July 1975. (Photo by Michael Putland/Getty Images)

Getty Images

It has only been a little more than a year since Eric Clapton released his most recent album Meanwhile, which was shared with the world in October 2024. The famed guitarist scores a new win in his home country of the United Kingdom this week with a decades-old set that was recently re-released as a special deluxe edition.

Fans of the blues and rock superstar have revisited Journeyman, turning it into a bestseller and a smash on multiple charts for the first time, more than 30 years after Clapton originally unleashed the project.

Eric Clapton’s Journeyman Debuts on Multiple Charts at the Same Time

Journeyman debuts on three tallies in the U.K. this week. The set performs best on the Official Album Downloads chart, where it begins its time at No. 70. Journeyman launches on the Official Album Sales roster, the main ranking of the bestselling titles across the Atlantic Ocean, only a few spaces further south, at No. 78. The same title also hits the Official Physical Albums list, where it kicks off its time at No. 80.

How Many Hit Albums Has Eric Clapton Charted?

Clapton has now collected a total of 18 appearances under his own name on both the Official Album Sales and Official Album Downloads charts throughout the decades. He has managed to be far more successful on the ranking of the bestselling albums and EPs on any physical format — be it CD, cassette, or vinyl — as Journeyman earns him a thirty-fourth win.

Eric Clapton Scores His Second New Bestseller of 2025

Journeyman marks Clapton’s second debut on all three charts of 2025, though the rocker has managed his pair of wins with different titles. On the Official Album Downloads list, The Cream Of launched at No. 47 in mid-April and then quickly disappeared.

Back in February, Clapton’s Meanwhile finally made it to the Official Physical Albums and Official Album Sales charts, months after becoming available via other formats. The set managed just one stay on the two related rosters before slipping away.

Meanwhile performed best on the physical ranking, cracking the top 10, as it opened in tenth place and earned the star his first new appearance inside that tier in years. Meanwhile just missed out on that competitive region on the Official Album Sales ranking, which is more competitive, and where it only made it to No. 12.

Journeyman Returns to Prominence Thanks to a Deluxe Reissue

Clapton released a deluxe edition of Journeyman on November 21. The updated edition includes three previously unreleased tracks that were recorded during the original sessions for the album, and fans were also encouraged to purchase the set, as it includes an additional bonus cut. New tunes “Higher Power,” “Border Song,” “Forever,” and “That Kind of Woman” helped turn the decades-old effort into a bestseller this week.

All About Eric Clapton’s Album Journeyman

Clapton delivered Journeyman, his eleventh solo album, in the fall of 1989. The project received fairly positive reviews and was a commercial success in both America and the United Kingdom.

While Journeyman does not currently appear on the Official Albums chart, the main ranking of the most consumed full-lengths in the U.K., it has previously climbed all the way to No. 2. Journeyman launched in third place on the roster and did not make it to its all-time peak until February 1990. Clapton’s album spent a pair of frames stuck in second place before descending, and it has not been seen on that roster since August of that year.

Multiple singles were pushed from Journeyman, including “Pretending,” “Bad Love,” and “No Alibis.” “Bad Love” earned Clapton his second Grammy, as it claimed Best Male Rock Performance just two years after his own “After Midnight” lost the same prize.