Top 15

NEXT WEEK'S TOP 15: A big part of our job, these days, is coming up with new ways to think about how many records Taylor Swift is selling. So grok this: This week, Big Machine's big Red monster will likely sell more than the rest of the Top 50 albums combined. It may, in fact, have the biggest opening since 2005, when 50 Cent's The Massacre lived up to its name with a 1.14m bow. It's also due for the second-largest first week ever for a female artist, trailing only Britney Spears' massive "Oops ... I Did It Again," which opened with 1.319m way back in 2000. Here's how the field looks with the weekend looming:

* Taylor Swift (Big Machine) 1.15-1.25m
* Kendrick Lamar (Aftermath/Interscope) 235-245k
Jason Aldean (Broken Bow) 135-145k
Mumford & Sons (Glassnote) 55-60k
* Tony Bennett (Columbia) 30-35k
P!nk (RCA) 25-30k
Brandy (RCA) 21-24k
* Stone Sour (Roadrunner) 21-24k
* Lady Antebellum (Capitol Nashville/EMI) 19-22k
Little Big Town (Capitol Nashville/EMI) 19-22k
Scotty McCreery (Mercury Nashville/19/Interscope) 19-22k
Adele (XL/Columbia) 19-22k
* Gary Clark, Jr. (Warner Bros.) 18k-21k
Miguel (RCA) 18-21k
* Swedish House Mafia (Astralwerks) 17-20k

* Debuts

We'll be back with more ways to understand how huge Red is as soon as possible. (10/25p)