In a moment, we return to our regularly scheduled turnover of number one singles.  Which is good, because the rest of the chart is pretty quiet.

33.  Imagine Dragons – “Demons”

Originally a number 13 hit a year ago – it’s back because it was covered on The Voice UK.

18.  Kanye West featuring Allan Kingdom, Theophilus London & Paul McCartney – “All Day”

This is the song that Kanye West officially debuted at the Brit Awards, getting a studio release a little bit later.  The video has yet to be released (his performance is even missing from the Brit Awards YouTube channel, who posted everything else), but hey, it’s on Spotify.

If you’re wondering where Paul McCartney is on this one – and it’s fair to say that his influence is not immediately apparent – then apparently that’s him whistling and playing the guitar for a few seconds near the end.  Their other collaboration, “FourFiveSeconds”, climbs to 3 his week.

Theophilus London is a rapper from Trinidad, now based in New York.  This is his first UK hit, and the first time anyone called Theophilus has charted in this country.  Allan Kingdom doesn’t even merit a Wikipedia page yet, but he’s a Canadian rapper now living in St Paul.  He’s associated with a guy called Plain Pat, who used to be West’s manager.  Here’s his own single “Blast”.

There are quite a few other recognisable names listed on this song, with five credited producers including West himself, Puff Daddy, and French Montana, and nineteen (!) songwriters, one of whom is  Kendrick Lamar.  The catalogue of writing credits is partly because the track apparently samples elements (not very prominent ones) of “Dance With Me” by Noel Ellis, a 1983 reggae track, and “Going Down” by Flatliners, which is a Turkish drum and bass record.

13.  Alex Adair – “Make Me Feel Better”

Another entry in the genre of cut-up vocal samples over deep house, this time with xylophones.  Actually, it’s a good entry in the genre, and a decent video too, as “girls dancing in various places” goes – it’s shot with some style, and the video panel is a really nice touch.  Alex Adair is a British producer but, in the way of these things, the director has opted for LA.  The track has been on Soundcloud for a year.  The vocals are lifted from “Ain’t Nothing But The Real Thing” by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell (number 34 in 1968, which is incredibly low).  It’s at 1:24 if you want to check.

7.  Marlon Roudette – “When The Beat Drops Out”

Marlon Roudette is an English singer who’s been around for a few years without making any particular impact at home.  He was a member of a duo called Mattafix ten years ago, who had a number 1 hit in several European countries with “Big City Life”.  It got to 15 in the UK.  In 2011, his single “New Age” was a number 1 in Germany, Austria and Switzerland in 2011, but in the UK, it stalled at number 90.  Neither track sounds anything like this record, which repositions him as something closer to Alex Adair.  It’s his first release since improbably signing with Simon Cowell, who seems to have decided that it’s time to diversify the portfolio beyond just reality TV and Labrinth.

1.  Years & Years – “King”

Trad synth pop!  This is the third hit for Years & Years.  The first was a charity credit for the whole band when their lead singer appeared on “Sunlight” by Magician, a track which debuted at 7 and dropped out of the top 40 after three weeks.  The second was their own single “Desire”, which debuted at 22 and vanished even quicker.  So there’s not exactly a track record of rabid Years & Years fans to account for this being here – but, on the other hand, the BBC pushed them heavily in its “Sound of 2015” list, so they’ve got a lot of radio airplay behind them on this single.  It’s got a strong hook but I don’t see it managing a second week at the top.

On the albums chart:

• “Chasing Yesterday” by Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds at 1.  You can’t fault the honesty of the title.  Noel’s second album under this name, and a second number 1.  The single, “Ballad of the Mighty I”, got to 54.
• “Piece By Piece” by Kelly Clarkson at 6.  Mid top 10 is fairly standard for a Kelly Clarkson studio album.  The single “Heartbeat Song” drops to 10.
• “Sweet Soul Music” by The Overtones at 10.  Easy listening harmony act.  Their previous three albums made the top 10.  Title track.
• “Brave” by The Shires at 10.  Debut album from an English duo with the unusual distinction of being signed to a Nashville label in the US.  Title track.  (Honestly, though, songs like this one sound like they wouldn’t take much repurposing for One Direction.)
• “Hand Cannot Erase” by Steven Wilson at 13.  Far and away his highest solo chart placing – he’s never got above 28 before.  He was also the founder of Porcupine Tree, who never got above 23.  Single: “Perfect Life”.
• “A Beautiful Collection” by Carole King at 32.  King only had two hit singles in this country – and the bigger one, “It Might As Well Rain Until September” (number 3 in 1962) isn’t on this collection.  So it’s a bit of a tough sell.  Indisputably classic hit that is on it: “It’s Too Late” (number 6 in 1971).