When Quarry peaked at #2 ("will anyone named Keane please leave the building"), I felt so bad because it deserved to go to #1; everywhere one looked in Manchester there was Quarry. But the comeback was brilliant, Moz toured the world, was on the cover of many magazines, made more radio/tv/media appearances than we would have ever imagined for someone so shy / fey, Quarry went platinum in the UK, and all 4 Quarry singles were top 10 UK hits. Still, a little voice inside some of us felt Moz got jipped. Today, that voice is silenced. That a 46 year old singer who has already been at the top of his game at several points throughout his career, has already had many peaks and pinnacles, could pull this off in the midst of all the teeny bop and bubble pop…well it is mind blowing. I wonder: did David Bowie have any number 1 albums in his 40s? Did Elvis? Congratulations Morrissey.

A well-deserved top spot for ROTT.

Excellent news.

Well done to Morrissey, The Lads and everybody at Sanctuary.

Always a joy.

Where he belongs!

Top stuff for a stunning album and recognition for the great man at last!

great news well deserved. love the album and looking forward to seeing you 3 times this week in concert.

"there is no such thing in life as normal"

bring on killarney

Good job, Mozza !!
Let's hope all the stupid comments like "Heaven knows he's miserable now" will stop now.
(Such an old cliche' used by journalists who lie. ;-) )

I'm so happy about this!!! Moz deserves to be recognized as the legend he is. We were here first!

Moz for everybody.

Congratulations Moz!

Congratulations old Mozzer!

I am yours forever...

Number 1 in the chart the matters. Forget the singles chart. This is the one that counts nowadays

Well done Sir Steven!! I'm very happy for you! It is a cracking album and you should be very proud of it. P.S. my favourite track is "On the streets i ran", pure class.

Well played, Moz lad.

It is amazing Morrissey did it. There has been No Airplay on radio except Ch 4 TV. No wonder You have killed me dropped to 20. I suppose it is because its not a "cover" or by britney spears etc..

This is great! The number one that "YATQ" also deserved. Way to go Moz!

thetexasbloke

this is first great to read such good posts, and i agree, great news, i'am listening to maladjusted now, what a time we've had as mozz fans, please all of you enjoy the tour and sing/shout your very best, morrissey you are the very best songwriter this country has ever produced and i love you

Congrats to The Moz and this from an album that was streamed a month before its' release. I am delighted but does anybody have any numbers for sales and how close or otherwise it was? Well done well deserved and anyone who thinks this means nothing or that the album is too weak to justify the top spot is on the wrong website!

Congratulations Morrissey for the success of the album and single.

I see it already its gonna be his year.

I predict the next album will be even better!

Not that ROTT is a terrible album by any stretch of the imagination, but I have this working theory about how things hit their stride. For example, television series seem to hit it in their 3rd season. You watch early episodes of CSI or Seinfeld and they are crap, but they are working their way up to something.

The Queen is Dead is the 3rd studio album, we can't deny where that one went.

Your Arsenal is the 3rd solo album. I know that Viva Hate wasn't a shabby album by any stretch, but it was a leftover from the Smith's for all intents and purposes, so maybe Kill Uncle is the true first solo album where he is finding his footing with totally new people and Vauxhall is the 3rd one, and that one is even better than YA.

Think of YATQ clearing the slate and reacquanting everyone with the studio and ROTT breaking in some new players.

So, as strange as this might sound, it's going to be that next album that is going to zing.

this is quality news, the charts are dull we all know, but come on how can the british dj's ignore the finest songwriter to grace these isles, my friends we all now that mozz is the very finest songwriter ever, but does he get recognised credit....no, this is a emotional moment for me, because i have been smiths/morrissey since school to 36.... and i love you mozz, its been tough but worth it, thankyou john peel for introducing me to the smiths, janice long for continuing support, hang all radio 1 dj's apart from zane lowe (top dj), and come on the tour

You sertainly deserved the number one spot,
this one time in your carreer!

Awesome, absolutely awesome, he deserves the number 1, hopefully this will shut his doubters up, no-one can have any arguments, tis a very good album and definitely, better than half the stuff that is out, as he stated, Moz actually cares abot music, and it's kind of sad that we need to rely on Moz to keep savin music, only Oasis, U2 and Morrissey are keepin rock'nroll great! I'm chuffed to bits for him

You are THE MAN and always will be...

This is a sign that you should never retire! (EVER. Please!)

x

While downloads made up 75.4% of the singles market last week, they accounted for a much more modest 1.8% of the album market of 2,597,793. Of 46,897 album downloads, the top tallies were 1,914 for This New World by Embrace, 1,397 for Inside In/Inside Out by The Kooks and 1,301 for Collected: The Best Of Massive Attack.

Morrissey's Ringleader album (1,283) was the only other disc to be dwonloaded more than 1,000 times, and is the first number one album of the combined physical/download era. There are also Top 10 debuts for new albums by Pink and The Flaming Lips - but The Stereophonics miss out on the upper echelon for the first time.

Twelve years after his first number one album Vauxhall And I debuted in pole position with a sale of just 25,446, Morrissey returns to the summit with Ringleader Of The Tormentors, which sold 62,709 copies last week. That's fewer than the first week sales of his last album, Morrissey, You Are The Quarry, which opened with 74,995 copies, but had to settle for second place behind Keane's Hopes And Fears. Ringleader is the first number one ever on Attack, which started life as a reggae label in 1972, and is now a Sanctuary imprint.

Morrissey first topped the chart with The Smiths' Meat Is Murder in February 1985, and extends his span to more than 21 years with his fourth number one in all, and his second solo number one, Ringleader Of The Tormentors. The only artists with longer spans of number ones are Elvis Presley, Tom Jones, Cliff Richard, The Rolling Stones, the Beatles, Diana Ross, Pink Floyd, Abba and Barbra Streisand.

GREAT! After 12 years, n.1 again!!!

I'm happy for Moz and I think he deserves every bit of success he can have.

On the other hand, however, I feel like someone's stolen a sweet secret from me to splash it all over the walls in my neighbourhood. It feels weird to like something that everyone else likes too. I feel the constant need to explain that I became a fan during a time when noone else would (in '98).

Ah well. That's life I guess. Congrats Moz, well done...."there's still life in the old lady yet".

Mozzarella

Great. This means that he is mine/ours. He does not belong to the masses.

And other cliches.......

After five days I haven't decided yet whether ROTT is utterly fab or merely pretty fucking good, but whatever, congratulations are in order.

Go geddem Moz, here's to seeyin you at the Apollo

-Ben G

PS: News of covering "Song From Under The Floorboards" in concert really tops it all off!!

hooray!

I really wished Quarry also got this award,but now Rott comes and gets it, I'm very happy...

long life the undisputable king of the indie rock

For just one brief moment, the world makes sense again...

excelent album, excelent news, excelent artist

Oooh, I'm going to have a bit of cake today because of this!! Great news. Roll-on UK dates.

Well done Moz! No 1, where he should be :-)

I'm really pleased that Moz is No1 ..it's great....I only hope that the new fans who has "discovered"him are not going to leave when he isn't retro cool to the massess any more....To me Moz will always be cool..i was there during the lean years & i am enjoying the success now...

chart positions.

Ringleader sold over 10,000 less than Quarry in week one just like You Have Killed Me sold nearly 10,000 less than Irish Blood. ROTT got to number one because there weren't any other big sellers out last week.

If anything Moz has lost fans this time round as there is no longer the huge hype that spurred the patchy comeback album to platinum status.

Moz desperately needs a radio hit if ROTT is to be anything more than the usual hollow fans-only purchase before it slips into obscurity. It was the airplay (and sheer musical and poetic brilliance) of First of the Gang which gave Quarry its chart longevity (it was flying out of the charts until radio picked up on FOTG) but is there anything on ROTT which can do the same? Youngest is a little better than You Have Killed Me but it's nowhere near as good as First of the Gang, in my humble.

DGMW, it's still a fine achievement to get to number 1. I'm happy for Moz but it doesan't mean his fanbase has suddenly grown beyond all recognition/expectation.

J

Sorry, but ROTT is only a notch above Kill Uncle. The only reason he hit #1 is because there's no competition. In 2004, Keane wiped him off the map and rightfully so, Hopes and Fears was a much stronger album. Moz must be resting easy knowing that Keane's next LP is coming out in June.

It just goes to show that the Album Chart is still really the only chart to demonstrate what is really musically credible. (Excusing the unfortunately named Journey South and a few other notable exceptions). Considering there was almost no airplay for this record it is a great achievement and a testament to Morrissey the man and Morrissey the musician. It is more than pleasing that Morrissey has a nice slice of history in being the first number one of the integrated album chart. A move that I fear will see the album chart go the way of the singles chart eventually. Until then, viva Morrissey

This thread was actualy a joy to read until very near the bottom. Must be a record.
Well done, Moz, can't believe how much the album has grown on me, I love it.

That's the UK conquered....time to top the Billboard chart now!

Just think about it, Morrissey "disappears" for nearly 7 years after Maladjusted. Comes back with Quarry and THEN comes back with ROTT wich goes straight to No 1 in the UK. Who else can do that? Who else has done it without being a corporate whore? OK, this time there has been quite a lot of coverage in the press but fuck all in the TV or radio.
Well done Morrissey! Roll on UK dates!

The UK dates will be mental. Moz must be well proud and I know a fair few people who are waiting with anticipation to get going! Can't wait!

i am very glad for him but i dont really give a damn about chart positions. If he was the 128th it would not make any difference to me. Sales mean nothing, its songs that do.

Is this Morrissey's third album to reach #1 in the UK lists?

I know that Vauxhall & I reached the #1 position, and now ROTT reached #1 as well, but which other album went to #1 in the UK?

Was it Viva Hate?

To the ones that are better informed, pls tell me!

Tks!

here is the key point: morrissey is thrilled he is at #1. he doesn't care about ranking in the u.s. as long as he keeps making cds i'm happy. what is good for morrissey is good is me.

Cock !

yes and i suppose you work in andy's records, who sell 10 albums a week, the industry backbone

"Vile back patting posts"?

What part of "fan site" do you not understand?

Bollocks. No record store would give you any of your money back because you didn't like your purchase.

Oh give it more than one listen, you flouncing dullard

The funny thing here is that you don't name any reasons for your disapproval.