CSPC: The Rolling Stones Popularity Analysis
How many things will change in your life within’ a 52 years span? An awful lot for sure. Even if you keep the same job all along, you will be retired before doing it for so long. Some things last that much though. The Eiffel Tower is still in Paris. Soccer is still the most popular sport. European unions are still alive. The Rolling Stones are still releasing new albums.
Well, new, not completely. Blue & Lonesome is the first full album of covers from the cult band. It comes out more than a decade after their last record, A Bigger Bang in 2005.
In 1964, their first album was a massive smash with 12 weeks at #1 and 36 weeks Top 3 in the UK. Starting so strongly makes it harder to last but the success never really left Mick Jagger band. As successful as the road has been that doesn’t mean it was all pretty. Over their curse, the group knew more than 25 members, had various legal issues and even faced the death of their original founder in 1969, Brian Jones. The cult pair Mick Jagger–Keith Richards proved to be incredibly consistent though, keeping the boat up and running.
Often presented as the main competitors of the Beatles, it is clear that ultimately the Liverpool band ended up as the winner as they are the most popular music act of all-time. With no mega-selling album in their discography, some may question the legitimacy of the Rolling Stones among the elite group of biggest acts ever. We do know how much Medias love to use hyperboles, often inflating real achievements of music stars. It is now time to sort out what’s true and what isn’t over the extensive CSPC study that you are reading right now.
As a reminder for users who are not yet familiar with the CSPC idea you do not need to worry, it is quite simple as it only consists in merging every format sales an artist has been getting and attributing them to respective studio albums. We will start by focusing on raw data, setting how much each Rolling Stones album sold. Then, we will check sales of each track from those albums on each format – physical, digital and streaming – and weight them to value those figures on a par with album sales. To complete the study, we will study sales of all compilations, live albums and music videos they dropped. Once all the raw data is set, we will only need to apply appropriate weighting to get the overall picture of those rock legends career results.
Let’s go!
RIP Charlie Watts
Now that their reissued album reached number 1 in the UK, timing is perfect for an update of the Rolling Stones article, isn’t it?
The last surving giants of the rock Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan is still in business for a long time. An update on the boys result would be in place, right?
I’m pretty sure they’ll be closer to 250mill after the update.
They will pass the Queen, if any of them die. Mick? Keith? Ron?
They won’t pass Queen, but will pass Madonna.
I wouldn’t be so sure on that
Madonna needs to updated too, she relaased a new album too. She’ll be at around 250 million for sure after her update.
I don’t see the reason for the downvotes.
It can only get closer now! First see if they can catch up with Madonna.
From the two links I didn’t understand why in December 2006 the physical copies sold in the world are 169.100.000, while in December 2016 they become 201.100.000, it seems to me a huge difference.
https://www.ukmix.org/showthread.php?21240-Rolling-Stones-Charts-amp-Sales-History%2Fpage3&fbclid=IwAR3nTduY6QCN-6isM7kNYbxdYIMj0X6vBRhfISvqn4Hga_0tCAdctetplZU (at the bottom of the page at #73)
https://chartmasters.org/2017/10/best-selling-artists-albums-and-singles-of-all-time/17/
As you say, 169.100.000(December 2006) is the number of all cumulative PHYSICAL copies sold. Including: Original Album Sales, Physical Singles Sales, Original Compilation Sales and Box Sets.
The rest of 32. 000.000 (201.100.000 – 169.100.000) – (December 2016) is the cumulative number of all DIGITAL copies sold. Including: Digital Singles Sales, Streaming Sales. Downloading).
From the 169.100.000 are excluded ep, single and video as physical copies, in the same way in the 201.100.000.
The cumulative number of all physical and digital copies sold is instead at this link
https://chartmasters.org/2017/10/best-selling-artists-albums-and-singles-of-all-time/18/
Ok.
You said, you didn’t understand why in December 2006 the physical copies sold in the world are 169.100.000, while in December 2016 they become 201.100.000. It seems a huge difference to you.
But, it’s a ten years timeframe. I read somewhere recently that it still sels 7.000 physical copies of Pink Floyd’s ‘The Dark Side Of The Moon’ every week in the world.
Classic rock ‘n roll bands still sell albums. So, The Rolling Stones. maybe they really sold that much physical copies from December 2006 – December 2016.
Since 2016 (last update) the Rolling Stones released one new album “Blue & Lonesome” and two compilation albums “On Air” (2017) and “Honk” (2019). As well as, they released Studio albums Vinyl Collection 1971-2016 (20LP), year (2018). It’s time for a new update, isn’t it? The Stones have higher CSPC then Queen now. For sure.
As if Queen were standing still this whole time.
The soundtrack for BoRhap alone probably sold more than the 2 albums you mentioned.
It’s probably getting on for double the amount, of those two albums put together.
Stop asking for all these updates Matrix, they will come, when they come. I have to laugh at your last two sentences! Have you been living on Neptune or somewhere else without access to the news, the internet etc, for the past 9 or 10 months and perhaps missed the Bohemian Rhapsody film, soundtrack, DVD and Queens absolutely out of this world and insane streaming increases on all platforms? There is quite simply no way on earth The Rolling Stones now have a higher CSPC than Queen. I honestly would not be surprised if Queen were not around 10m ahead… Read more »
You guys didn’t get it. I’m only compared one eventual new Rolling Stones update number, with the CURRENT Queens CSPC number – 238,637,000 (as of Oct 2017) ! It means, without including the soundtrack for the Bohemian Rhapsody film!
Btw, I watched the Bohemian Rhapsody film. The movie was great.
Btw nr. 2, I don’t live on Neptune, but on a planet called Earth. 😉
I certainly didn’t get it, I still don’t! I can’t get why anyone would care about that or even think about it from that perspective, knowing what we know. It’s futile.
I actually felt a few months after they’d released Lonesome and Blue, they briefly edged ahead of Queen. I’ll not go through it again, so read what I wrote back then https://chartmasters.org/2017/10/best-selling-artists-albums-and-singles-of-all-time/#comment-21565
Needless to say, I don’t think they stayed ahead for long, given Queens prowess on streaming platforms, not that the Stones are slouches and then the Bohemian Rhapsody film, which just blew them away from The Stones.
Matrix,
You would die if u live there
What about Hot Rocks and other Decca releases…
Hi, same question as in Zeppelin, can you make a biggest tracks list for Stones also?
Hi Joe! Here is their top 20: 1. 1966 – The Rolling Stones – Paint It Black [Aftermath] – 15,590,000 2. 1965 – The Rolling Stones – (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction [Out Of Our Heads] – 14,770,000 3. 1981 – The Rolling Stones – Start Me Up [Tattoo You] – 13,690,000 4. 1968 – The Rolling Stones – Sympathy For The Devil [Beggars Banquet] – 12,420,000 5. 1978 – The Rolling Stones – Beast Of Burden [Some Girls] – 11,870,000 6. 1973 – The Rolling Stones – Angie [Goats Head Soup] – 10,760,000 7. 1971 – The Rolling Stones… Read more »
Many thx! 🙂
Real surprises on page 42 w/the late 70’s material: “Beast of Burden” with much higher numbers that ‘Miss You’. And the high showing of ‘Heaven’ on “Tattoo You” really is a surprise. Why is ‘Gunface’ by far the highest charter on ‘B2B”?