NARM's Jim Donio on Grammy sales

GRAMMY, HOW I LOVE YA: In his latest weekly statement, NARM chief Jim Donio waxes rhapsodic on the "huge impact" of the Grammys on retail. He begins by singling out "Mumford & Sons’ Babel shooting back to No. 1 on the strength of their two performances and Album of the Year win. With stronger-than-expected sales ... the album jumped 242% from the previous week." He also hails fellow telecast performers Bruno Mars, Taylor Swift, The Lumineers, fun., and Maroon 5 for "significant sales increases that landed them in the Top 10. It all illustrates the tremendous power of the Grammys to reinvigorate sales for its winners, nominees and performers. Last year’s awards were marked by historic events such as Adele’s return to the stage after vocal surgery and the industry’s tribute to the late Whitney Houston." Donio added that while "overall album sales volume is down year-over-year at this point, with a strong crop of new albums coming soon from superstars including Justin Timberlake and Drake, whose new singles ‘Mirrors’ and ‘Started from the Bottom’ both cracked the Top 10 this week, there is heightened anticipation for their full releases, among others. But remember, home taping is killing music.” (2/19p)