“The Twilight Saga: New Moon” soundtrack climbs to No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with 153,000 copies sold (up 33%) in its first full week of release while Tim McGraw’s “Southern Voice” settles for a debut at No. 2 with 137,000 . . . The lone other debut in the top 10 is Joss Stone’s “Colour Me Free,” which arrives at No. 10 . . . We’ve also got updates on the continuing rise of Owl City, Michael Jackson’s likely No. 1 album next week and the latest chart feats from Miley Cyrus, Rihanna, Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey.
FLASH POINTS
• “The Twilight Saga: New Moon” soundtrack rises to No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with 153,000 copies sold (up 33%) in its first full week of release. The Summit/Chop Shop/Atlantic album arrived on the tally last week with 115,000 after an early release on Friday, Oct. 16, pushed it onto the list with just three days of sales. Meanwhile, Tim McGraw’s 10th studio album, “Southern Voice,” arrives in the runner-up slot with 137,000 copies.
• “New Moon” is the second soundtrack this year to top the Billboard 200, following the “Hannah Montana: The Movie” album on the May 2 chart. “New Moon” is of course the sequel to “Twilight,” whose soundtrack debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 less than a year ago, on the Nov. 22, 2008, tally with 165,000.
• McGraw’s opening frame of 137,000 with “Southern Voice” is off quite a chunk from the 325,000 copies that greeted his last studio set, 2007’s “Let It Go.” The arrival of “Southern” marks the lowest debut sales week for a studio set from the country king since his 1995 album “All I Want” began with 110,000 at No. 4. However, the new album’s sales are enough to give him the No. 1 slot on Top Country Albums, his 12th topper on that list.
• Next week the Billboard 200’s Hot Shot Debut will likely come in the form of Michael Jackson’s “This Is It,” the companion set to the documentary film of the same name. Industry prognosticators suggest that the Epic Records album—which was released Monday, Oct. 26—could shift 300,000 copies by week’s end on Sunday night (Nov. 1).
• Depending on how much the movie’s opening impacts the set’s sales through the course of the week, the album could post a higher figure, perhaps 350,000 copies. With numbers like that, it would seem like Jackson will be a sure thing for the No. 1 slot next week on the Billboard 200. If the King of Pop hits No. 1, it will mark his sixth chart-topper, following “Thriller,” “Bad,” “Dangerous,” “HIStory” and “Invincible.”
• Meanwhile, back on this week’s Billboard 200, Joss Stone’s Target- and iTunes-exclusive “Colour Me Free” is the chart’s second-highest debut, arriving at No. 10 with 27,000 copies. The Virgin set returns the singer to the tally for the first time since 2007, when “Introducing Joss Stone” debuted and peaked at No. 2 with 118,000.
• German rock band Rammstein notches its highest-charting album as “Liebe Ist Fur Alle Da” bows at No. 13 with 22,000 copies. Previously, the group’s best rank came with its 1998 chart debut, “Sehnsucht,” which peaked at No. 45 off the strength of its only U.S. radio chart hit, “Du Hast.” The new album’s lead single, “Pussy,” has generated buzz courtesy of its very explicit music video.
• And now here’s a look at the rest of the top 10: Michael Buble’s “Crazy Love” slips two slots to No. 3 with 102,000 (down 50%) while Jay-Z’s “The Blueprint 3” falls one spot to No. 4 with 43,000 (down 22%). With “New Moon” at No. 1 and McGraw’s “Southern Voice” at No. 2, WEA Distribution holds down the top four slots on the Billboard 200 for the first time since the Sept. 7, 1991, chart. It’s also the first time any one distributor has monopolized the top four since the June 30, 2007, chart, when Universal Music Group Distribution ruled.
• Miley Cyrus’ “The Time of Our Lives” holds at No. 5 with 39,000 (down 3%), the Black Eyed Peas’ “The E.N.D.” stays steady at No. 6 with 35,000 (down 11%), and Taylor Swift’s “Fearless” also doesn’t budge, holding at No. 7 with 34,000 (up 2%). Bounding up the chart is Owl City’s “Ocean Eyes,” which jumps from No. 20 to No. 8 with 28,000 and a 31% increase. The set is powered by its hit single “Fireflies,” which climbs to No. 1 on the Hot Digital Songs chart this week with 196,000 (up 26%). Rounding out the holdovers in the top 10 is Barbra Streisand’s former No. 1, “Love Is the Answer,” which drops five rungs to No. 9 with nearly 28,000 (down 44%).
• Overall album sales in this past chart week (ending Oct. 25) totaled 5.7 million units, down 2% compared with the sum last week (5.8 million) and down 19% compared with the same sales week of 2008 (7 million). Year-to-date album sales stand at 281.2 million, down 14% compared with the same total at this point last year (325.4 million).
MARKET WATCH
• Album units, current chart week: 5.7 million units
• DOWN 2% from last week’s charts: 5.8 million units
• DOWN 19% from same week, 2008: 7 million units
• This week: The top three albums on both the Billboard 200 and Top Comprehensive Albums sell more than 100,000 copies.
• This week last year on the Billboard 200: AC/DC’s “Black Ice” stormed in at No. 1 with 784,000 copies while the “High School Musical 3: Senior Year” soundtrack arrived at No. 2 with 297,000.
PROGRESS REPORTS
• Miley Cyrus’ “Party in the U.S.A.” keeps rocking the charts as the single moves to No. 1 on the Mainstream Top 40 airplay chart—the singer/actress’ first topper on that list. She’s reached the top 10 twice before, with the No. 4 hit “See You Again” and the No. 5-peaking “The Climb,” but has never reached No. 1 until now. “Party” also marks the second No. 1 on the Mainstream Top 40 chart for Hollywood Records. Its first? Jesse McCartney’s “Leavin’ ” in 2008.
• Speaking of the Mainstream Top 40 tally, Rihanna returns with “Russian Roulette,” debuting at No. 36. It’s her first solo release of the year and is the lead single from her fourth studio set, “Rated R,” due Nov. 23. All told, it is Rihanna’s 17th chart hit, and of her previous 16, all but four have peaked in the top 10.
• On the Hot Dance Club Songs chart, Whitney Houston earns her 13th No. 1 with “Million Dollar Bill,” her first topper on that list since 2003’s “Love That Man” . . . On the Adult Contemporary chart, Mariah Carey’s cover of Foreigner’s “I Want to Know What Love Is” ascends 11-10, giving the diva her 20th top 10. That ties her with Elton John for the second-most top 10s since 1990. Ahead of them is Celine Dion, with 21 top 10s in that span of time . . . Meanwhile, farther down the Adult Contemporary chart this week at No. 21, the aforementioned Foreigner re-enters with its recent single “When It Comes to Love.”
A LOOK AHEAD
• Among the albums released this week, due on next week’s charts: Michael Jackson’s “This Is It,” The Swell Season’s “Strict Joy,” Rod Stewart’s “Soulbook,” Sting’s “If on a Winter’s Night,” Trans-Siberian Orchestra’s “Night Castle,” Creed’s “Overcome,” the “platinum edition” of Taylor Swift’s “Fearless,” Wolfmother’s “Cosmic Egg,” Joe Nichols’ “Old Things New,” Jack Johnson’s “En Concerto” and Tech N9ne’s “K.O.D.”
• Next week’s Billboard 200 competes with the same week in 2008 when: AC/DC’s “Black Ice” held at No. 1 for a second week, shifting 271,000 (down 65%) while Pink’s “Funhouse” bowed in the runner-up slot with 180,000. Five more albums started in the top 10, including John Legend’s “Evolver” at No. 4 with 133,000.
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