It’s getting on in the week, better get this one finished while it’s still vaguely topical…

40.  Zedd (featuring Foxes) – “Clarity”

This is a re-entry, having originally got to 29  at the start of last year, but I’m honestly not sure why it’s back.  Foxes’ current single “Holding Onto Heaven” drops to 39 this week.

38.  Nicki Minaj – “Pills and Potions” 

This was an unpromoted midweek release, and it’ll be climbing once it’s had a full week on sale.  It’s the lead single from her upcoming album “The Pink Print”, and it’s a curious choice – largely a mid-pace piano ballad.

35.  Little Mix – “Salute”

This is officially released as a single at the start of June, but it’s selling on downloads of the album version.  Slightly concerningly, it actually drops back to 40 in the midweeks.  It’s very, very Beyonce, though that’s no bad thing.  (Though the bridge is seriously heavy handed…)

20.  Afrojack featuring Wrabel – “Ten Feet Tall”

Officially, this is billed as a lyric video.  That’s true for the first 23 seconds, but the rest…?

It’s the sixth hit for Afrojack, who technically has a number 1 to his credit thanks to a featured artist credit on Pitbull’s “Give Me Everything”.  In his own right, his peak is number 17 with last year’s “The Spark”.  Stephen Wrabel is a songwriter from Los Angeles, getting the now familiar launch as a featured artist on someone else’s record; he’s signed to Island.  It’s a collaboration, which is to say that it’s a piano ballad that’s skipped straight to the euphoric dance remix.

15.  Coldplay – “A Sky Full of Stars” 

The second single from the album “Ghost Stories”.  This has actually been out since the start of May, but I’m assuming it was offered as a second pre-order incentive track for the album, which would have disqualified it from the chart until the album was released.  It enters at number 1 this week.

5.  Clean Bandit featuring Sharma Bass – “Extraordinary”

The follow up to their number 1 “Rather Be”, which is still hanging in there at 21, and the final single before the release of their album “New Eyes”.  Bass is a 16 year old from London.  This is one of those Clean Bandit songs where you get a nagging feeling that they were hunting for ways to get the strings in, but it’s certainly a good pop song once it hits its stride.

3.  Fuse ODG featuring Sean Paul – “Dangerous Love”

No video for this; considering how cheap the video was for his previous single “Million Pound Girl”, I’m guessing this time they decided not to bother.  It’s the third and biggest top ten hit for the Afrobeat crossover singer.  It’s going to drop next week, but it’s still an impressive result.  Probably the best pop song Sean Paul’s had his name on in a good few years, actually.

1.  Sam Smith – “Stay With Me”

The seemingly endless weekly turnover of number ones marches boldly on into record setting territory, and the midweeks suggest there is no end in sight.  Is anything ever going to manage two consecutive weeks again?

This is Smith’s third number 1, following his vocal on Naughty Boy’s “La La La”, and his own “Money on my Mind”.  He always reminds me of a younger Shane McMahon, but that’s just me.  There’s a lot of soul/gospel touches in this one, and I can see it hanging around in the top 10 for a while, even if it isn’t going to last at the top.

On the album chart:

• “Ghost Stories” by Coldplay is predictably number 1.
• “What Have We Become” by Paul Heaton & Jacqui Abbott is at 3.  A reunion of two members of the Beautiful South.  Abbott was their second singer, the one who replaced Brianna Corrigan.  Single: “DIY”.
• “Definitely Maybe” by Oasis at 5.  This is the remastered 20th anniversary version, the one Liam Gallagher advised people not to buy.
• “Unplugged 1991-2001: The Complete Sessions” by R.E.M. at 22, which is self-explanatory.
• “California Breed” by California Breed at 26.  Rock band, including a guy who was in certain line-ups of Deep Purple and Black Sabbath, and the drummer from Led Zeppelin’s son.  Which gives you the idea.  Single: “Midnight Oil”.
• “Grace” by Jeff Buckley at 31.  Buckley’s only studio album is presumably also getting the 20th anniversary re-promotion treatment.
• “Performance” by Bob Blakeley at 34.  Bloke who auditioned for The Voice and didn’t get picked.  He was offered a short term contract by Mike Batt, which has resulted in this album of orchestral covers.  Single: “It Was A Very Good Year”.
• “Herd Runners” by Cherry Ghost at 36.  Probably best known as the people who did the original version of “People Help The People” before Birdy covered it, Cherry Ghost’s first album made the top 10.  That was a while back, though.  Single: “Clear Skies Ever Closer”.