Four of five previous Sam Smith singles to reach No.1 spent a single week at the summit but his sixth, Too Good At Goodbyes, secures its second week at the summit, albeit on sales that are off 24.80% week-on-week at 46,415, including 27,792 from sales-equivalent streams.
Rappers Post Malone and 21 Savage have had three and two Top 75 entries respectively in the last year but pooling their resources for Rockstar - which credits Post Malone Feat. 21 Savage - they sail into the Top 10, securing by far the week's top debut, landing at No.5 (28,333 sales). It made a great start on streaming, where it ranked No.3 for the week but lags a little on paid-for sales, where it ranks 22nd. It is the first single from Malone's upcoming second album, Beerbongs And Bentleys.
Another duo who have formed a successful alliance is Avicii & Rita Ora. They are somewhat more seasoned chart campaigners than the above, and their single Lonely Together brings Avicii his ninth Top 10 hit and Ora her 10th as it climbs for the fifth week in a row, 21-10 (22,990 sales).
Camila Cabello's Havana (feat. Young Thug) berthed in the Top 10 last week and continues to grow, jumping 10-7 (27,271 sales).
Its sales on the rise again, Dua Lipa's New Rules - which previously spent a fortnight at No.1 - secures its fourth straight week at No.2 (41,486 sales), while Pink's What About Us climbs 4-3 (31,893 sales), returning to its peak.
The rest of the Top 10: Look What You Made Me Do (3-4, 30,119 sales) by Taylor Swift, Reggaeton Lento (7-6, 27,835 sales) by CNCO & Little Mix, Friends (6-8, 24,696 sales) by Justin Bieber & BloodPop and Dusk Till Dawn (5-9, 24,117 sales) by Zayn Feat. Sia.
There are Top 10 exits for More Than Friends (8-11, 22,937 sales) by James Hype Feat. Kelli-Leigh and ...Ready For It? (9-21, 15,761 sales) by Taylor Swift.
Zayn (Malik) became the first One Directioner to secure three Top 10 singles away from the group only last week - and the band's solitary Irish member Niall Horan is in pursuit of his third with Too Much To Ask, which debuts at No.24 (14,604 sales). Horan reached No.9 with first solo single This Town, and No.7 with follow-up Slow Hands. All three tracks are on his first solo album, Flicker, which drops next month.
Craig David sealed his return to prominence with 2016 album Following My Intuition reaching No.1 while spawning five chart singles. His next album, The Time Is Now, isn't out until next year but the first single, Heartline, debuts at No.35 (10,216 sales) this week becoming his 27th hit since his 1999 debut.
As Foo Fighters' ninth album, Concrete And Gold, debuts atop the album chart it surrenders its second Top 75 entry in the form of The Sky Is A Neighborhood (No.63, 6,025 sales), three months after Run also reached No.63. It brings their overall tally of chart singles to 27. Run itself is also back in contention, re-entering at No.76 (4,804 sales).
Chris Brown draws ever closer to his 16th Top 10 single with Questions on the rise for the fourth straight week, advancing 13-12 (21,046 sales). The track is the first hit from his upcoming new double album, Heartbreak On A Full Moon.
Also advancing to new peaks this week are: Bestie (17-13, 20,114 sales) by Yungen feat. Yxng Bane, Hurtin' Me (28-20, 16,200 sales) by Stefflon Don & French Montana, Silence (34-29, 11,837 sales) by Marshmello feat. Khalid, Jocelyn Flores (42-39, 9.021 sales) by XXXTentacion. Also: Bodak Yellow (52-48, 7,534 sales) by Cardi B, Rihanna (50-49, 7,387 sales) by Yxng Bane, Finders Keepers (64-52, 7,120 sales) by Mabel feat. Kojo Funds, Cola (58-53, 6,823 sales) by CamelPhat & Elderbrook, On My Mind (73-54, 6,691 sales) by Jorja Smith & Preditah and Young Dumb & Broke (61-60, 6,323 sales) by Khalid.
Overall singles sales are up 6.12% week-on-week at 13,563,875, 31.98% above same week 2016 sales of 10,276,880. Streams accounted for 12,445,951 sales, a record 91.76% of the total. Paid-for sales are down 4.04% week -on-week at 1,117,924 - their lowest level since week 32, 2006 (chart dated 19 August 2006), when 1,012,965 singles were sold - and are 29.24% below same week 2016 sales of 1,579,992. They are below same-week, previous-year sales for the 216th week in a row.
