
Led Zeppelin's Biggest Hit On The Charts Was Never Actually A Single
Led Zeppelin's Four Symbols album returns to the Official Rock & Metal Albums chart, hitting 600 ... More weeks on the tally in the process. (NO SUB AGENCIES IN UK, FRANCE, GERMANY, HOLLAND, SWEDEN, FINLAND, JAPAN.) Led Zeppelin (Jimmy Page, John Bonham, John Paul Jones, Robert Plant) 1969 during Led Zeppelin File Photos at the Led Zeppelin File Photos in Various, United Kingdom. (Photo by
The U.K. music charts are a little less crazy this week than they were last time around, when Record Store Day and a slew of brand new releases shook up the rankings. As some of those formerly-bestselling titles begin to vanish, a number of classic albums and singles — the kinds that have spent dozens, if not hundreds, of weeks on various tallies — are bouncing back. One of the top favorites that rock back onto multiple rankings is Led Zeppelin, as the band blasts back in with both a beloved album and a huge single.
Led Zeppelin currently appears highest on the Official Rock & Metal Albums chart. The band's self-titled, untitled full-length — often called Led Zeppelin IV or simply Four Symbols, due to the quartet of characters featured on the cover — returns to the U.K. list of the bestselling rock and metal titles. The collection reenters the 40-spot tally at No. 27 this week.
Four Symbols isn't just back on the Official Rock & Metal Albums chart — it returns and reaches a very impressive milestone. As of this period, the project has now spent an incredible 600 weeks somewhere on the ranking. Despite all that time lingering on the tally, the set has only hit No. 1 once. It has earned a number of stays close to the summit, as it's thus far racked up a total of 40 weeks inside the top 10.
As Four Symbols bounces back onto the albums chart, one of its most famous cuts also enjoys some renewed success. "Stairway to Heaven" manages to become a top 40 hit, as it finds space on the Official Rock & Metal Singles chart yet again.
Unlike Four Symbols, the album, "Stairway to Heaven" has never risen to No. 1 on the Official Rock & Metal Singles chart. Its highest peak remains at No. 3 — though, remarkably, the smash has now spent a staggering 628 frames somewhere on the singles roster.
"Stairway to Heaven," which is widely recognized as perhaps Led Zeppelin's most famous and beloved composition, was never actually released as an official single when Four Symbols debuted. The group chose not to promote the track in that way — perhaps wary of its nearly eight-minute runtime, which made it an awkward fit for radio formats at the time. That decision didn't stop "Stairway to Heaven" from becoming a staple, and one of the band's most famous tracks.
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