Some selected entries from this week’s billboard charts:

#01 Vampire Weekend – Contra

Is that a younger Britney Spears on the cover of this album? I haven’t heard this yet, so I can’t make any comments on the quality of the music. These days it’s quite unusual for someone other than a solo female act to reach #1 so that’s something, anyway.

#02 Susan Boyle – I Dreamed A Dream

She’s been at #1 or #2 every week since the release of her debut album (that’s 8 weeks now.) What’s the deal with that? Are there people who actually listen to this CD?

#03 Ke$ha – Animal

I’ve had the misfortune to hear a couple of songs off this album. They are truly horrible. Just pure garbage. It’s not even good for what it is (like one can argue Lady Gaga is.)

#4 Lady Gaga – The Fame

Speaking of Lady Gaga, this album is still at #4 after 64 weeks on the charts (it never reached #1, it’s peak thus far is #2.) And her The Fame Monster EP is at #6. She’s in the running with Taylor Swift (her Fearless album is at #8 and has been on the charts for 62 weeks) as the biggest pop star of the moment and I think Lady Gaga has the edge when it comes down to it as Taylor Swift is a sort of extremely boring and forgettable pop tart of the year deal.

#15 Owl City – Ocean Eyes

Clearly ripping off The Postal Service is a lucrative business. I think it’s sort of like this: Owl City is to The Postal Service as Coldplay is to Radiohead. A dumbed down more poppy version of something that is truly great. Owl City & Coldplay may sell more albums in the short run, but it’s the original inspiration that really matters (and who will continue to be relevant into the future.)

#40 OK Go – Of The Blue Colour Of The Sky

They made some awesome music videos for the songs on this new album (this is it’s debut week) and I thought the songs were pretty good too (but I haven’t heard the rest of the album yet.)

#43 Elvis Presley – Elvis 75

Elvis would have been 75 this year. This is a greatest hits CD. Big Elvis fans will want to check out the four CD box set by the same name (which includes 100 tracks spanning his entire career.)

#112 – xx – XX

In the indie world xx is huge, in “normal people” world this album has peaked at #98 (that was last week, actually.) It’s been on the top 200 charts for 6 weeks total.

#129 Pink Floyd – Dark Side of the Moon

It’s been on the top 200 charts for a total of 746 weeks since it’s original release on March 24, 1973. You read that correctly. And that’s despite being ineligible to appear on the charts from 1991 through 2009 (due to a lame change in the Billboard rules during that time that made catalog albums ineligible for the top 200 – the rule was recently changed back due to the huge sales numbers for Michael Jackson & The Beatles.)

#132 The Beatles – Abbey Road

The biggest selling Beatles album in the US all time and it’s the highest charting Beatles album this week (and I think it’s been The Beatles biggest seller every week since the remasters came out.) It’s sales are hurt by the fact that most big Beatles fans by The Beatles in Stereo Box Set instead of buying the remastered albums individually.

Become A MusicByDay.com Music Blogger.