Alright, this is my third Thursday of taking a look at the Billboard 200 album charts. I don’t list every single album on the chart, I just pick out a few that I want to ramble on about.

#1 - Susan Boyle - I Dreamed A Dream (debut)

The biggest single week sales of the year so far (over 700,000 copies sold.) Apparently it also set an all time record for the biggest first week for any female artist’s debut album. It reached similar heights over in the UK (Boyle got her shot of fame earlier this year on the Britain’s Got Talent show.) I don’t necessarily agree with TheRoboticMushroom’s essay on the Susan Boyle phenomenon but I think he makes some good points. There’s no way this album would have sold 700K based on the music itself.

#3 - Adam Lambert - For Your Entertainment (debut)

Britain’s Got Talent at #1 and American Idol at #3. American Idol’s continuing popularity and how it continues to be able to create stars of this magnitude is insane to me. I just can’t believe that people haven’t gotten tired of it yet. There seems to be a much longer shelf life for cheese these days. I wonder if it’ll be 2050 and the American Idol star of the week will still be selling loads of albums?

#68 - Michael Jackson - Bad (1987)

This 1987 MJ album jumped up from #181 last week up to #68 this week. Interesting. I’m assuming maybe there were some Christmas sales involving the album? Or that a lot of people are buying MJ albums for Christmas?

#89 - Michael Jackson - Thriller (1982)

This actually dropped 4 places from #85 last week which means I was probably right about some sort of special low price on Bad.

#108 - The Beatles - Abbey Road (1969)

Climbed 10 spots from last week (#118) I think these remastered Beatles albums should do pretty well throughout Christmas. Of course The Beatles Stereo Box Set will beat eating into the sales of the individual albums as it has been doing. They should really count each stereo box set sale as a sale for every Beatles album since it includes them all (and the price isn’t really a discount either.)

#115 - Michael Jackson - Off The Wall (1979)

Off The Wall wasn’t even on the chart last week and now it shot up to #115. I expect pretty strong MJ sales through Christmas, then I imagine MJ hysteria will start to slow a bit. Although, This Is It will be coming out on DVD/Blu-Ray in January so we’ll see another push for that.

#130 - Guns N Roses - Greatest Hits (2004)

This is a re-entry as well. As I mentioned last week, last week was the first week for the new rules which allow for older albums to be listed in their rightful places among the top 200. That’s why we get to see these older albums in the charts. If the old rules (which were put in place in 1991) were still in effect we wouldn’t be seeing any album that came out before 2008.

#147 - Michael Jackson - Dangerous (1991)

Another re-entry. I bet all of these Michael Jackson albums will stay in the top 200 through Christmas. And I haven’t listed all of them. I’ve been skipping the greatest hits type compilations (This Is It is at #11 and Number Ones is at #30) and the Jackson 5 related albums (I think I’ve seen just one of those, actually.)

#164 - The Beatles - The Beatles (1968)

Better known as The White Album.

#170 - Hollywood Undead - Desperate Measures (3 weeks)

According to Leslie Loveface, Hollywood Undead is the “worst music ever.”

#189 - Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon (1973)

The amazing thing about this listing is that it says it’s been on the chart for 742 weeks. And as of course it was ineligible to appear on the chart from 1991 through the week before last. I bet it’d be over 1000 weeks if it weren’t for that.

#196 - The Beatles - Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)

Actually dropped from #189 last week. But it is the oldest album on the chart for two weeks running. We’ll see if it can stay in the top 200 through the Christmas season (it seems like it would, but maybe it’ll be pushed out by the 50 or so Christmas albums clogging the top 200 right now. There may be even more than 50, I’m not going to count them all.)

#197 - The Beatles in Stereo Box Set (9 weeks)

This box set dropped from #151 last week (it peaked at #15 in it’s debut week.) I’m a bit surprised by this drop because I would think it’s going to be a big Christmas gift item. Click Here to buy it on Amazon.

2009, The Beatles, Billboard, Susan Boyle, Adam Lambert

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