The top 20 best-selling artist album for 2014 in the U.K. was an entirely British affair, with the likes of Ed Sheeran, Sam Smith and George Ezra ensuring that no U.S. musicians made it onto the annual list. Taylor Swift‘s 1989 landed in at number 11.
According to figure’s released by the Official Charts Company, Sheeran’s x was the most popular album of 2014, with 1.7 million copies sold, the biggest haul in a year since Adele’s 21 in 2011. The album sold over a million more than 2013’s biggest record, One Direction’s Midnight Memories, and was the 10th year in succession that the biggest-selling artist album had come from a Brit.
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Smith, who earlier this month became the only artist of the year to sell one million albums in the U.S. and U.K., saw his debut In The Lonely Hour reach local sales of almost 1.3 million.
Figures from the British Phonographic Industry also showed that demand for music streaming in the U.K. doubled in 2014, with revenue from subscription services rising to $23 million. This figure is expected to rise in 2015 with new premium streaming offerings due to arrive from Apple and YouTube.
TOP 10 BEST-SELLING ARTIST ALBUMS OF 2014
1. Ed Sheeran – x
2. Sam Smith – In The Lonely Hour
3. George Ezra – Wanted On Voyage
4. Paolo Nutini – Caustic Love
5. Coldplay – Ghost Stories
6. Paloma Faith – A Perfect Contradiction
7. One Direction – Four
8. Olly Murs – Never Been Better
9. Pink Floyd – The Endless River
10. Take That – III
