50 Years of the Album Charts

790 number one albums, 10,000 tracks, 300,000 plays - Pop Goes the Library: 50 Years of the Album Charts documented the changing musical tastes of the nation.

The exhibition opened in July 2006 in our new interactive area for digital media. It marked 50 years since Songs for Swingin' Lovers by Frank Sinatra topped the UK's first LP chart, through to download pioneers Arctic Monkeys.

A poll of MPs conducted by the Library revealed that Led Zeppelin II was the number one of number ones - 'Whole Lotta Love is the greatest rock song ever' said Lembit Opik MP.