GOING, GOING, BON
Give a tip of the old cowboy hat to sheriff L.A. Reid, Steve Bartels and company for pulling off the biggest-ever first week for the venerable Joisey boys. Thanks to performances on American Idol, The Today Show and MTV Unplugged, as well as an innovative Ticketmaster promotion offering a free digital download of the album, Lost Highway found its way to the top of the charts.
That turns out to be more than enough to beat back WB rockers White Stripes’ Icky Thump at #2, with 212k, followed by SBMG Nashville’s Brad Paisley, whose 5th Gear, sporting 197k in sales, puts two country albums in the Top 5, as last week’s chart-topper, Show Dog Nashville/UMG’s Toby Keith, lands at #4.
WB’s Linkin Park is next at #5, with Hear Music’s Paul McCartney (#6), Universal Republic’s Amy Winehouse (#7), A&M/Octone’s Maroon 5 (#8), Def Jam/IDJ’s Fabolous (#9) and Jive/ZLG’s T-Pain (#10) rounding out the Top 10.
Other chart newcomers include Geffen’s Lifehouse (#11), Universal Republic’s Shop Boyz (#13), Jive/ZLG’s Huey (#23), Def Jam/IDJ’s Chrisette Michele (#25) and The Firm Music’s Mandy Moore (#32).
Hollywood’s Plain White T’s, riding the success of the multi-format hit single, “Hey There Delilah,” make the week’s biggest double-digit gain, moving #44-37, +22%, followed by Disney’s Hannah Montana soundtrack, up #40-34, with the second installment of the cable smash hitting stores today. A&M/Interscope’s Fergie also shows upward mobility, with a #21-15, a +4% move.
Next week, it’ll be a battle between a couple of pop queens as RCA/RMG’s Kelly Clarkson goes head-to-head with Disney’s Miley Cyrus, whose second Hannah Montana effort hits stores at press time.
