That is not a very great achivement these days, given it only lasts for a couple of weeks. I remember Simon & Garfunkel`s "Bridge Over Trouble Water" and Pink Floyd`s "Dark Side Of The Moon". They lasted and lasted and lasted and -aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahh, for oh so long....

Tapestry hung around for a long time, too.

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Elmo Lewis
Tapestry hung around for a long time, too.

Still wondering why.

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noughties
That is not a very great achivement these days, given it only lasts for a couple of weeks. I remember Simon & Garfunkel`s "Bridge Over Trouble Water" and Pink Floyd`s "Dark Side Of The Moon". They lasted and lasted and lasted and -aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahh, for oh so long....

Actually DSOTM was only number 1 for one week, replacing Billion Dollar Babies. Looking at the number one albums of 1973, incredible the amount of albums considered classics these days including: Elton Don't Shoot Me, Yellow Brick Road, Goats Head Soup, Allmans Brothers and Sisters, Carly Simon No Secrets, Houses of the Holy, 1967-1970 Beatles, Red Rose Speedway. DSOTM was on the Billboard 100 charts for years.

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BowieStone

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Elmo Lewis
Tapestry hung around for a long time, too.

Still wondering why.

That is one of many "The Nice Price" Category of Albums-Cass-CD's. Perpetually cheap and titles in the series have been some huge sellers as a result of it.

Not OT, a topic a few months back had Goat's Head Soup listed in a top selling list of records. Nice Price had a hand in that.

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BowieStone

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Elmo Lewis
Tapestry hung around for a long time, too.

Still wondering why.

1971 was such a many sided year. On the one hand it was a great year for blues rock with swagger(Zep, Tull, D. Purple and The Stones). The whole blues rock boom peaked that year. On the other hand it was a great year for baby boom mourners. The peace & love dream didn`t go that well. People needed comfort. What could give better comfort than Carole King and James Taylor? (plus John Lennon thrown in for good measure) Not my words, but allegedly so. All of a sudden those two were stand in hippies. Tapestry was such a grown up choice, thinking woman`s music.

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BowieStone

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Elmo Lewis
Tapestry hung around for a long time, too.

Still wondering why.

It was a great statement of its time. The singer/songwriter Cat Stevens, James Taylor, Carole King and others. It was like a return to folk. Plus I was 16 and broke up with a girl and 'It's Too Late Baby' resonated. Had also moved in the middle of high school to another state. 'Far Away' really touched me. They don't all have to be hard rockin' tunes. 'Angie' certainly took the world by storm.

Regarding how to make a No. 1 I read a university (yeah, I don't even remember from which continent...) had analyzed the No.1s of something like the last 20 years. The result is that long players tend to contain more and more slow songs than before whereas the most successful singles were happy up-tempo ones.