Vinyl sales pass 1m mark for the first time in almost two decades!

PLUS Pink Floyd’s The Endless River claims the highest first week vinyl sales since 1997.

Vinyl has passed the one million yearly sales mark for the first time in 18 years.

2014’s vinyl sales have already surpassed last year’s total of 780,674, the Official Charts Company can confirm. And with the busy ol’ Christmas shopping period still to come, sales look to rise to a projected 1.2m by the end of the year.

Having increased fivefold in the last five years, sales last peaked over the million mark back in 1996.

The BPI’s Gennaro Castaldo comments: “We have entered an exciting best-of-all-worlds era where there is space and scope for all kinds of music to be discovered and enjoyed in every type of way, including on vinyl once again. Many of us assumed it had become an obsolete format, but while the flame may have flickered, it never quite went out, and we are now seeing a burgeoning resurgence in demand led by exciting new acts such as Royal Blood that is likely to keep vinyl on our high streets for many more years to come.”

Official Charts Chief Executive, Martin Talbot, adds: “In scoring the biggest opening week for a vinyl album this millennium, Pink Floyd’s The Endless River illustrates the British public’s renewed love for this format, which is on course to become a £20million business this year – an incredible turnaround from barely £3m just five years ago. This resurgence also underlines music fans’ continuing fascination with the album.”

Compared to the 10% share of the music market accounted for by audio streaming, vinyl’s increased sales still show the sector as a relatively niche, with a share of just 2%.

Take a look at the yearly vinyl sales and market share percentages for the last 20 years, below:

YEAR	LP SALES	MARKET SHARE
1994	1,453,718	2.20%
1995	1,410,905	1.60%
1996	1,083,206	1.00%
1997	817,018	0.70%
1998	642,102	0.50%
1999	672,866	0.60%
2000	751,857	0.60%
2001	761,558	0.50%
2002	657,127	0.40%
2003	579,248	0.40%
2004	453,254	0.30%
2005	351,224	0.20%
2006	250,926	0.20%
2007	205,292	0.10%
2008	208,526	0.20%
2009	219,449	0.20%
2010	234,471	0.20%
2011	337,041	0.30%
2012	388,768	0.40%
2013	780,674	0.80%
2014	1,200,000 *	2.0% *

Topping the 2014 year-to-date chart are Arctic Monkeys with their fifth Number 1 studio album, AM, followed by Jack White with Lazaretto, at 2.

Pink Floyd’s recent Official Albums Chart Number 1, The Endless River, sold over 6,000 vinyl copies in its first week on sale, making in the fastest-selling vinyl album of the century so far and the third best-selling vinyl of the year to date.

Royal Blood’s self-titled debut, which in August became the fastest-selling rock debut in three years, is at 4, followed by Oasis, the only act to appear in the 1996, 2014 and current Top 10 best-sellers, with Definitely Maybe at 5.

Check out the Top 10 best-selling vinyls of both 2014 and 1996 below.

Official Vinyl Albums Chart – year-to-date Top 10 artist albums (w/e 22 November 2014):

1	AM	ARCTIC MONKEYS
2	LAZARETTO	JACK WHITE
3	THE ENDLESS RIVER	PINK FLOYD
4	ROYAL BLOOD	ROYAL BLOOD
5	DEFINITELY MAYBE	OASIS
6	THE STONE ROSES	STONE ROSES
7	THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON	PINK FLOYD
8	LED ZEPPELIN	LED ZEPPELIN
9	LED ZEPPELIN 3	LED ZEPPELIN
10	LED ZEPPELIN 2	LED ZEPPELIN

Official Vinyl Albums Chart – 1996 Top 10 artist albums:

1	THE SCORE	FUGEES
2	1977	ASH
3	(WHAT'S THE STORY) MORNING GLORY?	OASIS
4	SECOND TOUGHEST IN THE INFANTS	UNDERWORLD
5	EXPECTING TO FLY	BLUETONES
6	ANTHOLOGY 2	BEATLES
7	ENDTRODUCING.....	DJ SHADOW
8	ARKHAM ASYLUM	SASHA
9	ANTHOLOGY 3	BEATLES
10	K	KULA SHAKER

Vinyl sales pass 1m mark for the first time in almost two decades!

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