Sales
As it was their first studio album in almost eighteen months (and coming after the blockbuster success of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band) expectations were high at time of release of The Beatles. The album debuted at number 1 in the UK on 1 December 1968 (becoming their third album to do so, after Help! and Revolver). It spent seven weeks at the top of the UK charts (including the entire competitive Christmas season), until it was replaced by The Seekers' Best of the Seekers on 25 January 1969, dropping to number 2. However, the album returned to the top spot the next week, spending an eighth and final week at number 1. It then spent another four weeks in the Top 10, and then dropped in the charts more quickly than Sgt. Pepper. The White Album was notable for blocking The Beatles' follow-up album, Yellow Submarine, which debuted (and peaked at) number 3 on 8 February 1969, the same week The White Album was dominating the second position on the charts. In all, The Beatles spent 24 weeks on the UK charts, far less than the more than 200 weeks for Sgt. Pepper.
In the United States, the album achieved huge commercial success. It debuted at number 11, jumped to number 2, and reached number 1 in its third week, spending a total of nine weeks at the top. In all, The Beatles spent 155 weeks on the Billboard 200. According to the Recording Industry Association of America, The Beatles is The Beatles' best-selling album at 19-times platinum and the tenth-best-selling album of all time in the United States. (Each sale is counted as two sales, because The Beatles is a double record set.)
Read more about this topic: The Beatles (album)
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