Global InformationList of instrumental number ones on the UK singles chart information
The UK Singles Chart is a record chart compiled on behalf of the British record industry. Since 1997, the chart has been compiled by the Official Charts Company (formerly The Official UK Charts Company and the Chart Information Network) and until 2005 (when digital downloads were included in the chart compilation), the chart was based entirely on sales of physical singles from retail outlets.[1][2] The UK Singles Chart originated in 1952, when New Musical Express (NME) published the first chart of singles sales.[3] The positions of all songs are based on week-end sale totals, from Sunday to Saturday,[4] but pre-1987 the charts were released on a Tuesday because of the need for manual calculation.[5]
Since inception there have been more than 1,400 number ones; of these, instrumental tracks have topped the chart on 30 occasions for a total of 96 weeks.[a] The Shadows have had the most instrumental number ones, with five between 1960 and 1963. Three other artists have had more than one instrumental number one: Eddie Calvert (in 1954 and 1955), Winifred Atwell (in 1954 and 1956) and Russ Conway (both in 1959). Calvert's track "O Mein Papa" stayed at the top of the charts for nine weeks, longer than any other instrumental single. The single "Cherry Pink (and Apple Blossom White)" has been an instrumental number one for two different artists (Calvert and Perez Prado) in 1955. To date, Martin Garrix is the most recent artist to have an instrumental number one, with "Animals" in November 2013.
- ^ Roberts, David (2005). Roberts, David (ed.). British Hit Singles & Albums (18th ed.). Guinness World Records. p. 14. ISBN 978-1-904994-00-8. OCLC 58454449.
- ^ "New singles formats to save the charts". BBC News. 16 October 2003. Retrieved 22 December 2008.
- ^ "The story of the single". BBC. 23 March 2001. Retrieved 21 April 2008.
- ^ "FAQ". The Official UK Charts Company. Archived from the original on 13 December 2007. Retrieved 21 April 2008.
- ^ "UK Singles Charts: History of the Charts". When We Were Kids. Archived from the original on 29 May 2011. Retrieved 10 December 2009.
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