The Billboard 200 Chart Thread.

[Guest mAXi]

Wow. Only No.12 ?

I definetely thought he would be in the Top 5 but god that's just... blah..

[ROC]

Ludacris Scores Third No. 1 With 'Release Therapy'

Ludacris

October 04, 2006, 11:10 AM ET

Katie Hasty, N.Y.

In a week featuring debuts in the first four slots of The Billboard 200, Ludacris' "Release Therapy" bows at No. 1 with 309,000 copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The DTP/Def Jam effort is the rapper's third chart-topper, following 2003's "Chicken 'N Beer" and 2004's "Red Light District."

Janet Jackson's "20 Y.O." enters at No. 2 with 296,000, Jackson's eighth straight top three debut. The effort also debuts at No. 1 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums tally. However, it's her smallest debut sales week since "The Velvet Rope" started at No. 1 with 202,000 in 1997.

Tony Bennett earns his highest charting album ever with the star-studded RPM/Columbia set "Duets: An American Classic," which starts at No. 3 with 202,000. Bennett has only impacted the top 10 twice before, when 1962's "I Left My Heart In San Francisco" and 1963's "I Wanna Be Around" peaked at No. 5.

Alan Jackson celebrates his ninth top 10 album on The Billboard 200 and 11th No. 1 on Top Country Albums with "Like Red on a Rose" (Arista Nashville). The set opened at No. 4 on the big chart with 149,000 units. Jackson's last entry, March's "Precious Memories," also started at No. 4 but with 107,000.

After spending two weeks on top, Justin Timberlake's Jive release "FutureSex/LoveSounds" slips to No. 5 with 147,000, a sales decrease of 36%. John Mayer's "Continuum" (Aware/Columbia) moves 91,000 (-32%), falling 5-6.

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In its 35th week on the chart, Hinder's "Extreme Behavior" (Universal Republic) climbs 10-7 with 77,000 copies, a 10% sales increase. Clay Aiken's RCA set "A Thousand Different Ways" takes a 65% sales hit in its second week, sliding 2-8 with 74,000. Black Eyed Peas member Fergie's solo debut "The Dutchess" follows suit, also moving 74,000 (-53%) and descending 3-9.

At No. 10, pop parodist "Weird Al" Yankovic scores his best chart position ever on The Billboard 200 with "Straight Outta Lynwood" (Volcano/Zomba), which sold 73,000. The album also debuts at No. 1 on the Top Comedy Albums chart.

With 47,000, Christian artist Chris Tomlin's "See The Morning" (EMI CMG) enters at No. 15 and at No. 1 on the Top Christian Albums tally, his first chart-topper there. Other big debuts on The Billboard 200 this week include the Scissor Sisters' sophomore album "Ta-Dah" (Universal Motown) at No. 19 with 42,000, Saosin's self-titled debut (Capitol) at No. 22 with 35,000, Vanessa Hudgens' "V" (Hollywood) at No. 24 with 34,000 and Jerry Lee Lewis' duets set "Last Man Standing: The Duets" (Artists First) at No. 26 with 34,000.

Five albums sold more than 100,000 copies this week and an equal number of albums debuted in the top 10. Overall CD sales are up 2.9% from last week's count and down 3.8% compared to the same week a year ago at 9.90 million units. Sales for 2006 are down 5% compared to 2005 at 393.6 million units.

[Guest mAXi]

Finally. Someone i like at No.1

[ROC]

Evanescence Zooms By Killers To Take No. 1

October 11, 2006, 10:30 AM ET

Katie Hasty, N.Y.

In another major week for new releases, Evanescence's "The Open Door" bows at No. 1 on The Billboard 200. The Wind-Up effort moved 447,000 copies in its first week, according to Nielsen SoundScan, the rock act's first No. 1 on the chart. The band's debut, 2003's "Fallen," spent 104 weeks on the big chart, peaking at No. 3 and selling more than 6.6 million copies in the United States.

"The Open Door" also marks the 700th No. 1 album on The Billboard 200 since the magazine began publishing the weekly chart 50 years ago.

Coming in at No. 2, the Killers' sophomore release "Sam's Town" (Island) sells 315,000 copies. It's the group's best sales frame and its best charting position, as their debut "Hot Fuss" only managed a No. 7 peak.

George Strait scores his 30th chart entry with "It Just Comes Natural," which opens at No. 3 with 232,000. The MCA Nashville set is also No. 1 on Top Country Albums chart, his 20th on that tally. Strait's 2005 effort, "Somewhere Down in Texas," bowed at No. 1 on both charts.

After earning him his highest charting album ever last week, Tony Bennett's "Duets: An American Classic" slips 3-4 with 128,000 copies, a sales decline of 36%. Justin Timberlake's Jive release "FutureSex/LoveSounds" keeps the No. 5 spot warm for a second week with 116,000, a decrease of 21%. Ludacris' "Release Therapy" bowed at No. 1 last week, but falls to No. 6 with a sales hit of 64% at 113,000.

Beck arrives at No. 7 with his new "The Information," which sold 99,000. The Interscope effort is the follow-up to last year's "Guero," which debuted at No. 2. Monica's fourth album, "The Makings of Me" (J), enters at No. 8 with 93,000. Its predecessor, "After the Storm," reached No. 1 in 2003 with 186,000.

Janet Jackson's "20 Y.O." (Virgin) descends 2-9 with 77,000, a whopping 74% sales hit in its second week. Hinder's "Extreme Behavior" (Universal Republic) remains at No. 10 with 76,000 copies (-1%).

Other big chart debuts this week include Jet's sophomore Atlantic album "Shine On" (No. 16, 51,000), Chris Young's self-titled RCA debut (No. 22, 36,000), the late Ray Charles and Count Basie's "Ray Sings Basie Swings (No. 23, 36,000) and gospel mainstay Fred Hammond's "Free To Worship" (No. 29, 31,000).

Beloved indie rock act the Decemberists' Capitol debut, "The Crane Wife," lands at No. 35 with 26,000, by far the band's best showings in both categories. Its 2005 Kill Rock Stars swansong, "Picaresque," topped out at No. 128 on The Billboard 200.

Overall CD sales are up 5.6% from last week's count and down 4.5% compared to the same week a year ago at 9.90 million units. Sales for 2006 are down 5% compared to 2005 at 403.6 million units.

[PH4E]

I actually liked Jet's new cd. It's not quite as good as their first but it's still a great "rock & roll" cd which is something that can't be said for a lot of albums these days.

[ROC]

'Hannah Montana' Trumps My Chem, Legend At No. 1

November 01, 2006, 11:10 AM ET

Katie Hasty, N.Y.

The soundtrack to Disney's "Hannah Montana" storms onto The Billboard 200 at No. 1 this week, marking the fourth top 10 debut from the movie/television giant. The set sold 281,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan, notching the biggest start for a soundtrack since November 2005, when "Get Rich or Die Tryin'" bowed with 317,000.

Other top-selling Disney titles from this year include the "Cars," "The Cheetah Girls 2" and the immensely popular "High School Musical," which is the only album to sell more than 3 million copies so far in 2006.

My Chemical Romance checks in at No. 2 with "The Black Parade," the follow-up to its 2004 breakthrough album "Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge." Fueled by the lead single "Welcome To The Black Parade," the Reprise set sold 240,000 copies, dwarfing the group's previous best sales week of 38,000 for "Three Cheers."

John Legend's sophomore album, "Once Again" (G.O.O.D. Music/Columbia) starts at No. 3 with 231,000. Legend, who won the Grammy for best new artist earlier this year, surpasses the No. 4 peak of his debut set, "Get Lifted." That album debuted at No. 7 in the week after Christmas 2005 and then rose to No. 4 the following week. It has sold 1.8 million copies to date.

Justin Timberlake's "FutureSex/LoveSounds" (Jive), which topped the chart for two weeks in October, keeps the No. 4 spot warm for a second week with 89,000, a 10% sales decrease. Evanescence's Wind-Up effort "The Open Door" falls 2-5 with 78,000 copies, a 30% sales decline.

Despite a sales hit of 9%, Hinder's Universal Republic effort "Extreme Behavior" continues to prosper in its 39th week on the chart, ascending 7-6 with 69,000. After earning his first No. 1 album since 1997 last week, Diddy's "Press Play" (Bad Boy/Atlantic) is knocked to No. 7 with 60,000 (65%). Tony Bennett's "Duets: An American Classic" (RPM/Columbia) sells 53,000 and moves 8-9 with a 21% sales decrease.

After 56 weeks on the chart, Nickelback's Roadrunner set "All the Right Reasons" re-enters the top tier, climbing 14-9 with 49,000, despite a sales slip of 6%. The Killers cling to the No. 10 spot for a second week with "Sam's Town" (Island), which sold 47,000 (-24%).

With his catchy hit "Chain Hang Low" having already hit the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100, Geffen artist Jibbs enjoys a handsome debut for his first album, "Jibbs Feat. Jibbs" at No. 11 with 47,000. Other big debuts this week include Alabama's RCA release "Songs of Inspiration" (No. 15, 44,000), Lil' Boosie's "Bad Azz" from Trill (No. 18, 41,000), country youngster Taylor Swift's self-titled debut for Big Machine (No. 19, 40,000), Montgomery Gentry's Columbia Nashville set "Some People Change" (No. 23, 37,000) and Shareefa's Disturbing tha Peace/Def Jam release "Point of No Return" (No. 25, 37,000).

Overall CD sales are up 1.7% from last week's count and up 5.1% compared to the same week a year ago at 10.03 million units. Sales for 2006 are down 5% compared to 2005 at 433.5 million units.

[Tarheels.]

Hannah Montana?

How, how is that even possible.

[ROC]

Hannah Montana?

How, how is that even possible.

[Tarheels.]

If Hannah Montana was leaked early it would so be at #2

[ROC]

If Hannah Montana was leaked early it would so be at #2

[Lowerdeck]

Wow. I so hate the music industry.

[ROC]

Jay-Z Reclaims His 'Kingdom' With No. 1 Debut

Jay-Z

November 29, 2006, 11:30 AM ET

Katie Hasty, N.Y.

With scores of major new releases hitting shelves last week in time for post-Thanksgiving shopping, Jay-Z's "Kingdom Come" came out on top of The Billboard 200. The Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam set moved a whopping 680,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan, the ex-retiree's biggest sales week ever, as well as his ninth No. 1 on the chart. He thusly ties the Rolling Stones for the third-most No. 1s, behind the Beatles with 19 and Elvis Presley with 10.

"American Idol" season five finalist Chris Daughtry, whose band goes by his surname, lands at No. 2 with his self-titled 19 Recordings/RCA debut, which sold 304,000. The Sony BMG Strategic Marketing Group/EMI/Universal/Zomba hits compilation "NOW 23" keeps the No. 3 spot warm for a second week, selling 289,000, a sales boost of 49%.

The Beatles' "Love" (Apple Corps Ltd./Capitol) bows with 272,000 at No. 4. Since 1994, the quartet has placed 10 entries on The Billboard 200, including four No. 1s: the three "Anthology" sets plus "1." "Love" serves as the soundtrack to Cirque du Soleil's Las Vegas show of the same name and features new variations on classic Beatles material.

Snoop Dogg earns his ninth top 10 album with "Tha Blue Carpet Treatment" (Doggystyle/Geffen) at No. 5 with 264,000. Sales were fueled in part by the single "I Wanna Love You," performed by Akon and featuring Snoop. The track also appears on Akon's "Konvicted," which debuted last week at No. 1 but falls to No. 8 with 164,000. It was the only record in the top 10 to post a sales decrease (-42%).

Beyonce's "B'Day" experiences a major bounce back into the upper echelons of the chart, moving 9-6 with a 154% sales swell to 173,000 units. The soundtrack to Disney's "Hannah Montana" enjoys a 47% lift to 167,000 but still drops 5-7. Late rapper Tupac Shakur's "Pac's Life" (Amaru/Interscope) enters at No. 9 with 159,000, his 14th entry on The Billboard 200 since his 1996 murder.

Rounding out the top 10, Keith Urban's Capitol Nashville release "Love, Pain & the Whole Crazy Thing" drops 6-10 despite a 51% sales increase to 157,000.

U2's singles collection "U218: Singles" (Interscope) debuts at No. 12 with 134,000, while Latin group RBD earns its biggest chart week yet, moving 117,000 copies of the EMI Televisa set "Celestial" at No. 15. It's also the best sales week for a Spanish-language album since Shakira's "Fijacion Oral Vol. 1" moved 157,000 when it started at No. 4 last year. Neo-classical quartet Il Divo's "Siempre" (Columbia) debuts at No. 17 with 108,000, its fourth top 20 album in just over a-year-and-a-half.

Two rock albums, Brand New's "The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me" (Interscope) and Killswitch Engage's "As Daylight Dies" (Roadrunner) open at No. 31 and No. 32, respectively, with 60,000 each.

Other big debuts include Tom Waits' triple-disc "Orphans: Brawler, Bawlers & Bastards" (No. 74, 21,000), "The Bad Boy" by Hector "El Father" (No. 81, 20,000), New Age artist Loreena McKennitt's "An Ancient Muse" (No. 83, 19,000), the second volume of the "NOW Latino" compilation (No. 84, 19,000), Patti LaBelle's "The Gospel According to Patti LaBelle" (No. 86, 18,000) and Oasis' hits collection "Stop the Clocks (Best Of)" (No. 89, 18,000).

Overall, the heavy shopping week pushed 162 titles on the chart to sales gains over the previous week. CD sales are up 36% from last week's count and are flat compared to the same week a year ago at 17.02 million units. Sales for 2006 are down 5% compared to 2005 at 485.7 million units.

[Lowerdeck]

Kingdom Come was ok. Not the greatest, not even close to his best. It was ok.

[Ananas]

I wonder if the 21,000 units sold for Tom Waits is 7,000 3CD sets, or 63,000 CD's.

[B-Rad]

Daughtry's CD is surprisingly good, esp. tracks 1, 7, and 10 (IMO). I still find it funny that Catherine McPhee's album was slated to come out the same day as Daughtry's, but she pushed it back. Perhaps afraid to be outshown?? Guess we'll see when it drops next month, ehh?