Christy Dignam scored a strong new entry on the Official Irish Album Chart this week, with his debut solo album, The Man Who Stayed Alive, landing at No.7.

In 2013, Aslan's frontman was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer called amyloidosis. Tragically, this is a terminal illness. In mid-2020, while undergoing chemotherapy, Christy devastatingly lost his father to Covid-19, as well as his beloved dog Jack, who had been his constant companion for 12 years.

To lift his spirits, Christy reached out to his friend, award-winning writer and producer Don Mescall, who had previously written the No.1 single ‘Too Late for Hallelujah’ for Christy and Aslan in 2012. He proposed creating a solo album to leave as a legacy piece – and, despite his health issues, the creative process began.

Elsewhere on the chart, Coldplay have debuted at No.1 with Music Of The Spheres – their first album to reach the top of the chart in Ireland in seven years. A reissue of The Beatles' Let It Be is at No.3, while the buzz surrounding Adele's upcoming album 30 has sent her previous albums 25 and 21, to No.2 and No.4, respectively.

Christy Dignam isn't the only Irish artist to enjoy a big week on the chart this week. Country singer Derek Ryan has debuted at No.10 with Soft Ground, and David Keenan enters at No.33 with his second album, What Then?

On the Official Irish Singles Chart, meanwhile, Adele's new single 'Easy On Me' has landed at No.1 – her fourth chart-topping track in Ireland. Last week's No.1, Ed Sheeran's 'Shivers', drops to No.3, after five weeks at the top of the chart.

Read our recent interview with Christy Dignam here.