Paul McCartney's 'Egypt Station' Tops Billboard Chart

Amagansett rock legend Paul McCartney’s new album Egypt Station has risen to the top of the charts since its September 7 release. The Billboard 200 ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. and McCartney’s reached the No. 1 slot for the first time since his 1982 record Tug of War.

Billboard reports Egypt Station launched with a “larger-than-expected 153,000 equivalent album units earned in the week ending September 13,” 147,000 of them in traditional album sales.

McCartney’s new album is the former Beatles star’s eighth No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and his first debut at No. 1 ever. It also delivered his biggest sales week in more than a decade. As if that wasn’t impressive enough, Egypt Station’s first single “Come On to Me,” became McCartney’s first top 10 on the Adult Alternative Songs airplay chart in more than 20 years. The track rose to No. 6 on September 1.

The rocker landed his first No. 1 album with his solo debut set McCartney, which topped the list back on May 23, 1970. Now, with Egypt Station on the list, McCartney has been creating No. 1 hits over a span of 48 years.

Egypt Station was brilliantly marketed and advertised. According to Rolling Stone, the album’s success received the aid of a package deal that paired ticket sales to the new Freshen Up Tour with redeemable copies of the record. Around the release date, McCartney made stops at The Howard Stern Show, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and a global live streamed private concert at Grand Central Station.

On September 13 Wired posted a video of McCartney answering the most Googled questions about himself, and the legendary rocker has appeared in various viral videos and news stories. His live performance in New York City is posted on McCartney’s official YouTube channel.