UK cassette sales are at their highest in 15 years according to a blog posting by the Official Charts Company which has also published The Official Top 20 best-selling cassettes in the UK since 2010 and The Official Top 20 best-selling cassettes in the UK of 2019 so far. Cassette sales continue to grow in 2019 with sales at their highest since 2004.
In common with the vinyl revival, music buyers are steadily returning to the cassette for its retro appeal, collectability and its novelty value. The format’s return coincides with the 40th anniversary of the Sony Walkman this month, celebrated in a new exhibition at the Sony museum in Tokyo, which runs until 1st September.
Sales remain small in the context of the overall music market (BPI figures) representing a miniscule 0.2% of albums sold in the UK this year, but sales are on a small-but-steady increase, so far up 112% year-on-year. The final quarter of 2018 was also the biggest for cassette sales in the UK since 2004 and so far in 2019 36,000 have been sold.
From the Top 20 chart it is clear that cassette sales are from artists who have harnessed a fanbase of avid collectors, regardless of genre. The current biggest is Billie Eilish’s When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? The cassette, which has sold 4,000 copies, was released in a variety of limited-edition colours: black, orange and UV green. Ironically, cassettes were considered all-but-defunct when 17-year-old Billie was born in 2001.
Other ‘big’ sellers this year are Catfish & The Bottlemen’s third album The Balance, Madonna’s Madame X, Kylie’s Step Back In Time and Lewis Capaldi’s chart-topping debut Divinely Uninspired To A Hellish Extent.
Looking at the best-sellers of the decade (since 2010), The 1975 are on top with their 2018 Number 1 record A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships, with 8,000 sales. Just over 7,000 of those sales were in its first week, making it the fastest-seller on the format since July 2002.
Another popular release is the Guardians Of The Galaxy soundtracks, which appear at 2 and 4 on the decade chart. Inspired by the films, the first collection of ‘80s classics was released in 2014, playing a significant role in spearheading the format’s return. They’ve sold 6,800 and 6,100 on cassette respectively.
Kylie Minogue is also a big seller on the vintage platform, shifting 6,300 tapes of her Number 1 album Golden. Following its initial release, Kylie also released a Collector’s Edition and a Winter Collector’s Edition on cassette. The singer’s recent chart-topping best of, Step Back In Time, places tenth.
The Official Top 20 best-selling cassettes in the UK of 2019 so far
| POSITION | TITLE | ARTIST |
| 1 | WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP WHERE DO WE GO | BILLIE EILISH |
| 2 | THE BALANCE | CATFISH & THE BOTTLEMEN |
| 3 | MADAME X | MADONNA |
| 4 | STEP BACK IN TIME – THE DEFINITIVE | KYLIE MINOGUE |
| 5 | DIVINELY UNINSPIRED TO A HELLISH EXTENT | LEWIS CAPALDI |
| 6 | WASTELAND BABY | HOZIER |
| 7 | HAPPINESS BEGINS | JONAS BROTHERS |
| 8 | RIPPLES | IAN BROWN |
| 9 | SUCKER PUNCH | SIGRID |
| 10 | SHINE A LIGHT | BRYAN ADAMS |
| 11 | GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY – AWESOME MIX 1 | ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK |
| 12 | THE VERSACE EXPERIENCE PRELUDE 2 GOLD | PRINCE |
| 13 | MY HAPPY PLACE | EMMA BUNTON |
| 14 | THANK U NEXT | ARIANA GRANDE |
| 15 | GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY – AWESOME MIX 2 | ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK |
| 16 | FATHER OF THE BRIDE | VAMPIRE WEEKEND |
| 17 | FALSE ALARM | TWO DOOR CINEMA CLUB |
| 18 | A BRIEF INQUIRY INTO ONLINE | 1975 |
| 19 | AMO | BRING ME THE HORIZON |
| 20 | BIG BAD | GIGGS |
The Official Top 20 best-selling cassettes in the UK since 2010 can be found here.
Recent articles of interest
UK Official Charts available on major streamers
UK’s biggest streaming hits in 2018
