Rascal Flatts' "Still Feels Good" is on course for the largest sales week by a country act in 2007, according to the Building Charts posted by Nielsen SoundScan. Unweighted sales from eight leading accounts posted Friday (Sept. 28) afternoon show the Lyric Street group at 321,000 copies through the close of business on Thursday.
Opening day sales for the Sept. 25 release, posted on Wednesday's Building chart, stood at 175,000 copies.
This sets up a handoff of The Billboard 200's throne from one country act to another, following Reba McEntire's "Reba Duets," her first No. 1 on the big chart. Her album posted a career-best Nielsen SoundScan week of 301,000 units after logging 154,000 on the Sept. 21 Building Chart.
"Still Feels Good" is also tracking well ahead of the through-Thursday pace for Kenny Chesney's recent "Just Who I Am: Poets & Pirates." That album posted 231,000 on the Friday Building Chart on its way to a final-week total of 387,000, the largest 2007 week by any country artist. Last year, Rascal Flatts' "Me and My Gang" posted the largest sales week by any 2006 album when it opened at 722,000 copies.
Some guests at Thursday's City of Hope fundraiser in Los Angeles, where Rascal Flatts performed as Disney Music Group chairman Bob Cavallo received the Spirit of Life Award, ballparked first-week sales for "Still Feels Good" at 550,000.
Billboard estimates the eight accounts that report to Nielsen SoundScan's Building Charts account of 79% of U.S. album sales. The panel includes the two racks that service Wal-Mart, Anderson Merchandisers and Handleman Co., plus Trans World Entertainment, Best Buy, Circuit City, Borders, iTunes and Target.
Opening day sales for the Sept. 25 release, posted on Wednesday's Building chart, stood at 175,000 copies.
This sets up a handoff of The Billboard 200's throne from one country act to another, following Reba McEntire's "Reba Duets," her first No. 1 on the big chart. Her album posted a career-best Nielsen SoundScan week of 301,000 units after logging 154,000 on the Sept. 21 Building Chart.
"Still Feels Good" is also tracking well ahead of the through-Thursday pace for Kenny Chesney's recent "Just Who I Am: Poets & Pirates." That album posted 231,000 on the Friday Building Chart on its way to a final-week total of 387,000, the largest 2007 week by any country artist. Last year, Rascal Flatts' "Me and My Gang" posted the largest sales week by any 2006 album when it opened at 722,000 copies.
Some guests at Thursday's City of Hope fundraiser in Los Angeles, where Rascal Flatts performed as Disney Music Group chairman Bob Cavallo received the Spirit of Life Award, ballparked first-week sales for "Still Feels Good" at 550,000.
Billboard estimates the eight accounts that report to Nielsen SoundScan's Building Charts account of 79% of U.S. album sales. The panel includes the two racks that service Wal-Mart, Anderson Merchandisers and Handleman Co., plus Trans World Entertainment, Best Buy, Circuit City, Borders, iTunes and Target.
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