The Beatles Lead Midweek Chart Battle With Rubber Soul

The Beatles are aiming to return to the top of the Official Albums Chart with Rubber Soul, sixty years after the album first reached Number 1 in the UK. Thanks to a new deluxe edition, the band is currently leading in the midweek chart update.

The Beatles © Robert Freeman/Apple Corps Ltd

Unreleased demos and session recordings boost the deluxe reissue

The new anniversary edition includes 24 studio session recordings, with 20 of them never released before, plus three rare home demos. Highlights include early versions of "Day Tripper" and "We Can Work It Out," along with a previously unheard John Lennon demo called "Little Girl."

When Rubber Soul was first released in 1965, it spent eight weeks in a row at Number 1, becoming the band's sixth UK chart-topping album. The Official Charts Company also recently named it the sixth most-streamed album from the 1960s.

If the band keeps their lead until Friday, this will be their first album to reach Number 1 in the UK since October 2019, when Abbey Road also returned to the top spot.

Blossoms and Johnny Marr Round Out Top Three Challenge

The Beatles are up against strong competition from Stockport indie band Blossoms, whose sixth album, Songs From The Wedding Cake, is close behind at Number 2. If Blossoms take the lead, it will be their fifth UK Number 1 album, joining their debut, Foolish Loving Spaces, Ribbon Around The Bomb, and Gary.

Meanwhile, former Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr is tracking toward a solo career high-water mark, with his fifth solo album, The Age Of Everything, currently at Number 3.