The Beatles Set A Record 60 Years Ago, And It's Been Matched Once More

Forbes

a day ago

Morgan Wallen claims the top three spots on the Hot 100, matching a feat first managed by The ... More Beatles back in 1964. Drake, Taylor Swift, and others have also done so. UNITED KINGDOM - CIRCA 1964: Rock and roll band "The Beatles" pose for a portrait on the roof of the Palace Court Hotel in Bournemouth during their six night residency at the Gaumont Theatre, August 1963. (L-R) George Harrison, John Lennon, Ringo Starr, Paul McCartney. (Photo by Michael)
The Beatles don't maintain the same kind of chart supremacy that welcomed the group when it arrived in America more than half a century ago. While the band does regularly return to Billboard's rankings, it's typically not with the same vigor, and occasionally only with one or two titles at most.
The rock legends still see their name pop up in articles from time to time, as records they set and feats they managed back in the 1960s continue to stand as some of the most impressive of all time. Even though a number of those achievements have since been matched — or even bested — the fact that The Beatles are still mentioned alongside some of today's most powerful figures is a testament to the group's legacy.
A record The Beatles set 60 years ago has now been replicated once more — this time by a musician focused on a genre that has never succeeded in this way before.
Morgan Wallen dominates the Hot 100 this week with several tracks taken from his new album I'm the Problem, as the singer-songwriter claims the highest three spaces on the chart at the moment. He and Tate McRae debut their collaboration 'What I Want' at No. 1. That's followed by 'Just in Case,' the previous single from Wallen's full-length, which soars to a new peak of No. 2. At the same time, the focus track 'I'm the Problem' lifts from No. 6 to No. 3, after once peaking in the runner-up spot.
Wallen is now just the sixth musician to occupy the highest three slots on the Hot 100 at one time. Many of the artists who have done so achieved the feat only in the past half-decade or so — and Wallen is the first country act to join this very exclusive club. One name does stick out, however, from the bunch.
The Beatles accomplished this showing for the first time in 1964. The band filled at least the top three spots on the Hot 100 for five separate chart weeks that year. It would be more than half a century before another musical act would manage such a showing.
Ariana Grande completed the trifecta in 2019 for just a single frame when her album Positions arrived, becoming the first star since The Beatles to do so. Both Taylor Swift and Drake have managed the feat on three occasions, with separate albums. Kendrick Lamar also became a member of this exclusive grouping just last year — and he managed to do so more than once.