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There’s no long tail like a “Choosin’ Texas” long tail. Ella Langley’s smash has just set the all-time record for the most weeks spent by a single at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart: 23. That pushes it out of the tie
it held last week with Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas,” which had been the previous record-holder with 22 weeks.
Of course, “all time” may not last for long, since Carey’s 1994 recording seems destined to return to the No. 1 spot in December, as it always does, so regaining the all-time top position could well be in sight for Carey by January. Then again, no one has any realistic idea how much gas “Choosin’ Texas” still has in the tank, with nothing immediately poised to overtake it on the chart. Langley could Carey-proof her record-holding position by adding another few weeks to her tally before the Christmas season hits.
While conventional wisdom would say that even the most ardent fans of Langley and “Choosin’ Texas” might be starting to tire of the song after such a long time — it has been charting for 48 weeks altogether now, with just under half of those weeks in the No. 1 position — the remarkable thing is that it continues to pick up new listeners. In this fragmented musical era, many people who aren’t country fans are still hearing it for the first time, as more pop stations have put their guard against Nashville down to program a smash.
Langley’s “Dandelion” album also continues to be a big hit, if not one that will break records like the single. “Dandelion” returned to No. 1 on the Billboard 200 album chart last week, although this week it gets knocked down to No. 2 by virtue of Jhene Aiko’s “Westside Whimsy” album debuting in the top spot.
Langley has a big fall ahead of her, awards news-wise as well as chart-wise. On Nov. 16, the Grammy nominations will be announced, in which Langley is expected to have a big look, perhaps finally making up for many years in which country has gone unrepresented in the top four categories. Two days after that come the CMA Awards, where she is the leading nominee. Langley recently picked up nine nominations for the CMAs, which will be broadcast out of Nashville Nov. 18.
