Streisand Surprises With Ninth No. 1 Album October 07, 2009
BARBRA STREISAND
Editor: Keith Caulfield; Contributors: Gary Trust, Alex Vitoulis; Editorial Director: Silvio Pietroluongo
While many were focused on what started as a battle for the No. 1 slot on the Billboard 200 between Paramore's "Brand New Eyes" and Mariah Carey's "Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel," diva supreme Barbra Streisand trumps them both and debuts atop the tally with "Love Is the Answer" . . . Those titles are just three of the record-breaking eight entries in the top 10 this week, which also includes new efforts from Breaking Benjamin, Alice in Chains, Madonna, Miranda Lambert and Selena Gomez and the Scene . . . In Progress Reports, we've got bits and bites about Britney Spears, Carrie Underwood, Dave Matthews, Kenny Chesney and Foo Fighters.
FLASH POINTS
• Barbra Streisand triumphs with her ninth No. 1 on the Billboard 200 as "Love Is the Answer" opens atop the list with 180,000 copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The achievement extends her lead as the female artist with the most No. 1s in the history of the Billboard 200.
• The opening sum is also her best sales week and highest-charting album since 1997, when "Higher Ground" started at No. 1 with 207,000. All told, the debut sum for "Love Is the Answer" is the diva's second-biggest opening frame since SoundScan began tracking data in 1991.
• "Answer" beats the arrivals of Paramore's "Brand New Eyes" at No. 2 with 175,000 and Mariah Carey's "Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel" at No. 3 with 168,000. Those titles are just three of the record-breaking eight entries in the top 10 this week.
• Streisand is also the only artist to collect No. 1 albums in each of the past five decades. Her first came in 1964 with "People," and then she returned to No. 1 three times in the '70s with 1974's "The Way We Were," 1976's soundtrack to "A Star Is Born" and 1978's "Greatest Hits, Volume 2." In the '80s, she notched No. 1s with 1980's "Guilty" and 1985's "The Broadway Album." Finally, in the '90s, she claimed a pair of toppers with 1993's "Back to Broadway" and 1997's aforementioned "Higher Ground."
• "Answer" was produced with Diana Krall and features Streisand accompanied by Krall's jazz quartet on such classics as "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" and "In the Wee Small Hours." The album's handsome opening-week sales figure was powered by a half-hour sit-down on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" Sept. 24 and interviews on CBS' "Sunday Morning" Sept. 27 and NBC's "Today" on the album's street date, Sept. 29. The set was also stocked in Starbucks stores and sold through QVC and Streisand's official Web site.
• During the past week, many industry prognosticators were focused on what was thought to be a battle for No. 1 between Paramore's "Brand New Eyes" and Carey's "Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel." Those who look into their crystal balls to project first-week sales had estimated that Paramore would finish ahead of the two divas. As it turns out, Streisand surprised many with how well her album sold in nontraditional ways—such as through Starbucks, QVC and via her Web site—and that likely threw a wrench into forecasting sales.
• As for Paramore, "Eyes" gives the act its best sales week and highest-charting album. The band's sophomore album, "Riot!," peaked at No. 15 in 2007. "Eyes" also starts at No. 1 on the Top Digital Albums tally with a whopping 73,000 downloads—41.5% of its overall first week.
• Carey's "Memoirs" begins its Billboard 200 life with 168,000—off quite a bit from the 463,000 opening of her last set, 2008's "E=MC2." The latter effort bowed at No. 1 with her biggest first week ever, which was powered by the diva's release-week stop on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" and two nights on "American Idol." Additionally, the album's lead single, "Touch My Body," was an across-the-board radio smash. It peaked at No. 2 on the all-format Hot 100 Airplay chart the week before the album hit stores, reaching a one-week high of 125 million in audience impressions.
• "Memoirs" didn't have release-week visits to "Oprah" and "Idol" to help it, though Carey did perform on the Sept. 18 edition of "Oprah." And, the new album's first single, "Obsessed," hasn't been a runaway radio hit like "Touch My Body." "Obsessed" has so far peaked at No. 6 on the Hot 100 Airplay tally, with a one-week high of 84.7 million in audience.
• "Memoirs" is the singer's 15th top 10 album—the third-most among all female artists. Only Streisand, with 30, and Madonna, with 18, have more. Speaking of Madonna, her latest greatest-hits set, "Celebration," starts the party at No. 7 this week with 72,000. Her 17 previous top 10 entries include her first two hits packages: 1990's "The Immaculate Collection" (No. 2) and 2001's "GHV2: Greatest Hits Volume 2" (No. 7).
• Rock band Breaking Benjamin crashes into the top 10 as well, as its new "Dear Agony" arrives at No. 4 with the act's best sales week: 134,000. The effort is the Hollywood Records band's first release since 2006's "Phobia" debuted and peaked at No. 2 with 125,000.
• Also on the rock front, Alice in Chains visits the top 10 for the first time since 1996 as its new album, "Black Gives Way to Blue," bows at No. 5 with 126,000. It's the band's first effort with new vocalist William DuVall, who picked up the mic in 2006, replacing the band's late frontman, Layne Staley.
• Rounding out the top 10 entries this week are Miranda Lambert's third album, "Revolution" (No. 8 with nearly 66,000), and Selena Gomez and the Scene's "Kiss and Tell" (who is close behind Lambert's sum at No. 9). Only two albums in this week's top 10 also appeared on last week's chart: Pearl Jam's "Backspacer" falls from No. 1 to No. 10 with 58,000 (down 69%) while Jay-Z's "The Blueprint 3" drops from No. 2 to No. 6 with 89,000 (down 34%).
• Overall album sales in this past chart week (ending Oct. 4) totaled 6.9 million units, up 16% compared with the sum last week (5.9 million) and down 8% compared with the same sales week of 2008 (7.5 million). Year-to-date album sales stand at 263.4 million, down 14% compared with the same total at this point last year (305.3 million).
MARKET WATCH
• Album units, current chart week: 6.9 million units • UP 16% from last week's charts: 5.9 million units • DOWN 8% from same week, 2008: 7.5 million units • This week: The top five albums on the Billboard 200 and Top Comprehensive Albums sell more than 100,000 copies. • This week last year on the Billboard 200: T.I. bowed atop the list with "Paper Trail," shifting 568,000 copies. The rapper was followed by debuts at Nos. 2-4 by Jennifer Hudson's self-titled debut (217,000), Robin Thicke's "Something Else" (137,000) and James Taylor's "Covers" (95,000), respectively. The previous week's No. 1, Metallica's "Death Magnetic," slipped to No. 5 with 86,000 (down 34%).
PROGRESS REPORTS
• A year to the week after Britney Spears hit the Mainstream Top 40 radio airplay chart with "Womanizer," the first single from her "Circus" set, she returns this week, bowing with "3," the premiere offering from her upcoming greatest-hits package. The new tune enters at No. 38, giving Spears her 24th chart hit. Spears' second hits set, "The Singles Collection," is due Nov. 24.
• Speaking of hits packages, over on the Alternative radio chart, Foo Fighters' "Wheels" is driving up the list. It's one of two newly recorded songs from the band's first "Greatest Hits," due Nov. 3. As "Wheels" motors 18-5, it gives the rock act its 17th top 10 Alternative single, placing it in a tie with Pearl Jam and Smashing Pumpkins for the fourth-most top 10 singles. Only U2 (23), Red Hot Chili Peppers (21) and Green Day (19) have more.
• On Hot Country Songs, Carrie Underwood nets her 10th top 10 hit while Dave Matthews garners his first. The former kicks up 11-8 with "Cowboy Casanova" while the latter's pairing with Kenny Chesney on "I'm Alive" scoots 13-9. For Chesney, it's his 36th top 10 single.
A LOOK AHEAD
• Among the albums released this week, due on next week's charts: Michael Buble's "Crazy Love," Toby Keith's "American Ride," Tokio Hotel's "Humanoid," Kiss' Wal-Mart-exclusive "Sonic Boom," Irish Tenors' "Christmas," Relient K's "Forget and Not Slow Down," Backstreet Boys' "This Is Us," Air's "Love 2" and the "Now That's What I Call a Country Christmas" collection.
• Next week's Billboard 200 competes with the same week in 2008 when: T.I. held on to the top slot with "Paper Trail" for a second week, selling 177,000 (down 69%), while the top debut came from Rise Against's "Appeal to Reason" at No. 3 with 65,000.
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