Tracy Chapman's Historic Debut Album Hits The Top 10 For The First Time

Forbes

16-04-2025

Tracy Chapman returns to four U.K. charts, climbing into the top 10 on three, including its vinyl ... More debut, thanks to a thirty-fifth anniversary reissue. SAN FRANCISCO, CA - NOVEMBER 14: Tracy Chapman attends Cirque du Soleil "Kurios" - Opening Night - San Francisco, CA at AT&T Park on November 14, 2014 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Trisha Leeper/WireImage)
Tracy Chapman's self-titled debut album is still regarded as one of the most beautiful and heartbreaking to come from a female singer-songwriter since women began telling their own stories to music. In the decades since it was released in the late '80s, the set has proved to be not just a commercial success, but the inspiration for so many other artists to begin putting pen to paper to share their own art.
The singer-songwriter's self-titled first full-length is back, as it reenters several rankings in the United Kingdom. The project surges to new heights on multiple lists, marking yet another special moment for an already historic effort.
The Tracy Chapman album finds space on four tallies in the U.K. this frame. It returns to most of them, and even manages to arrive on one for the very first time.
The self-titled affair lands at No. 48 on the Official Albums chart, which ranks the most-consumed full-lengths across all formats in the country. The LP has previously hit No. 1 in the U.K. and has now spent nearly 300 frames on the consumption-based roster.
This week's return is largely powered by a rush of purchases, and that boost helps Tracy Chapman climb to new heights on two other U.K. rosters. The full-length enters the top 10 for the first time on both the Official Albums Sales and Official Physical Albums charts — a feat it didn't even manage during its initial heyday.
On the Physical Albums list, which ranks only purchases of CDs, vinyl, and other tangible formats, the collection reappears at No. 4. Just one rung below, it returns to the Official Albums Sales chart on the all-genre list focused entirely on purchases of any kind.
In addition to its three reentries, Tracy Chapman also hits a chart this week for the very first time. The collection debuts at No. 4 on the Official Vinyl Albums ranking, which tracks the bestselling titles available on wax in the U.K. This isn't just the title's first trip into the top 10 on that list, it's Chapman's first appearance on that tally in any position.
The sudden resurgence of Tracy Chapman can be traced back to a fan favorite reissue. In early April, the full-length was made available once again on wax to celebrate its thirty-fifth anniversary. According to the record label behind the project, the album has largely been out of print on vinyl in recent years, so once it became available again, many longtime supporters of both Chapman and the title itself rushed to buy one.
Originally released in April 1988, Tracy Chapman was a commercial and critical juggernaut. The set produced several classic singles, including the unforgettable 'Fast Car,' which recently returned to public consciousness thanks to a high-profile country remake by Luke Combs. The album won critical acclaim, commercial success, and was nominated for multiple Grammy Awards at the time it was new, even winning a pair.