The Rolling Stones Bring A Classic Album Back — Just Days After It Arrived

Forbes

28-05-2025

The Rolling Stones' Exile on Main St. reenters three U.K. charts, just days after one version of the ... More set debuted. The Rolling Stones taken in the 1960s, from left to right, Brian Jones, Keith Richards, Mick Jagger, Bill Wyman and Charlie Watts.; (Photo by King Collection/Avalon/Getty Images)
The Rolling Stones' Exile on Main St. is back on the charts in the United Kingdom this week, just days after one version of the set debuted on several lists. Now, it appears that the band has traded one take of the rock classic for another.
This frame, Exile on Main St. returns to No. 86 on the Official Albums Sales chart. It also reappears at No. 77 on the Official Physical Albums list, and at a much more impressive No. 37 on the Official Vinyl Albums tally – the only roster where the title manages to find its way into the top 40.
None of these reentries marks a brand new high for the bestseller, but they do add to an already notable chart history for a decades-old effort. Exile on Main St. – this version – has now spent two weeks on the Albums Sales tally, where its peak remains No. 52. The Rolling Stones LP has been a more consistent performer on the Physical Albums chart, where it's now logged 13 total appearances, including a short time at No. 1. Over on the Vinyl Albums list, the title has now appeared just four times.
What makes this week's placements a little more complicated — and more interesting — is that it's not even the same edition of Exile on Main St. that lived on these lists just a few days ago, reports the Official Charts Company. Just last week, one version of the classic LP debuted across all three tallies. This time around, it's a different pressing that's earned enough sales to rank, as these are reentries, and not simply shifts in position. That suggests that fans may be picking up multiple editions, either for collecting purposes or simply to own several takes of one of the band's best-known projects – or perhaps that one became unavailable and another was named the focus.
The Rolling Stones recently issued a new red vinyl reissue of the album. Only 2,000 copies were made available globally, and the band initially sold them exclusively through its London-based retail store before opening up orders online – which may be responsible for this return to several tallies.
Exile on Main St. first appeared on the Physical Albums list 15 years ago, and it opened at No. 1. In 2016, a different edition made its way onto the Vinyl Albums tally and stuck around for three weeks, peaking at No. 4. A separate take on the music landed on the Albums Sales tally in 2018, though that run was brief, as it lasted just one frame – and the title didn't rise above No. 52.