Official Charts continues its definitive series of UK chart books, designed to chronicle the history of the Official Singles and Albums Charts, with the release of two Sixties books.

The Official Charts: The Sixties offers a comprehensive chronological listing of all the Singles, Albums and EP charts by week, from 1st January 1960 to 27th December 1969. The Official Sixties Hits Book is a companion encyclopaedia of all of the releases which reached the charts in that decade, listed by artist and full of chart facts.

The full charts are detailed here as they were published firstly by NME and Melody Maker and subsequently Record Retailer. For the first time, the Official Charts book also presents chart fanatics with possible alternative charts for two weeks in 1969; one which shows a possible breach of chart rules that led to budget albums being included in the chart for 8th March 1969, and on 4th October 1969 there is the inclusion of a chart from Record Mirror alongside that of Record Retailer which suggests a different album chart rundown.

The new series of books – published by the Official Charts Company as print on demand volumes, produced through the Kindle Direct Publishing platform - will provide music fans of all depths of interest the opportunity to delve into music history decade-by-decade and will represent an indispensable overview of the history of the Official Charts in the UK. Over the coming months, further volumes will be published covering other chart decades, ultimately producing a library spanning the history of the Official UK charts, from the Fifties, right through to the present decade.

Overseeing the mammoth task of putting together this series is chart expert / archivist Graham Betts, who acts as writer and editor for the series. For the Sixties books, Betts has collated biographies, as well as data on awards, certifications and much more, all of which is presented around the UK chart information managed by the Official Charts Company.

Official Charts CEO, Martin Talbot, adds, “This series of books really is a labour of love, a massive project undertaken by us with Graham Betts. In providing the most comprehensive and accurate collection of charts since they were first published, these books will be essential for any student of the charts, whether they be a professional radio programmer, journalist, researcher, or simply an enthusiastic music fan and lover of chart history.”

Graham Betts comments, “The Official Charts are an institution, chronicling music fandom across more than half a century in the UK. You really shouldn’t underestimate the importance of the charts in the life of the British nation.”

Order your copy of The Official Charts Sixties books at Amazon.co.uk:

The Official Charts: The Sixties
https://amzn.to/33ol8G2

The Official Hits: The Sixties
https://amzn.to/2Z27Z25