Twain, Dixie Chicks Lead Way on Pop Charts
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – The leading ladies of country music, Shania Twain and the Dixie Chicks, claimed the top two spots on the U.S. pop music charts on Wednesday, while a posthumous package from R&B singer Aaliyah debuted at No. 3.
Meanwhile, Whitney Houston’s first studio album in four years, “Just Whitney,” opened at No. 9. But fellow diva Mariah Carey’s closely watched comeback, “Charmbracelet,” slid 11 places to No. 14 in its second week, one of only three holdovers in the top 50 to post lower sales during the busy holiday season.
Canadian native Twain’s fourth album “Up!” logged its fourth week at No. 1 with sales of more than 373,000 copies in the week ended Dec. 15, her Mercury Nashville Records label said. Sales to date stand at 2.2 million units.
The Dixie Chicks’ former chart-topper, “Home,” jumped seven places to No. 2 on the heels of a high-rated TV special broadcast last Tuesday. Sales of the Texas trio’s third major-label release more than doubled to nearly 295,000 copies, taking its haul to 3 million after 16 weeks, said the group’s Columbia Records label.
Aaliyah’s “I Care 4 U,” a collection of hits and previously unreleased tracks, opened at No. 3 with 279,500 units sold. Her last album, released just before she was killed in a plane crash in August 2001, peaked at weekly sales of 306,000 copies the week after her death. She was signed to privately held Blackground Records, which released the album through Universal Records.
Perhaps helped by publicity surrounding Houston’s recent revelations of past drug abuse in a TV interview, “Just Whitney” sold 205,000 copies, the best first-week tally ever for the singer, Arista Records said. Her last studio album, “My Love Is Your Love,” opened at No. 13 in November 1998 with 123,000 units sold its first week out.
“Whitney’s core following of loyal fans have rallied behind her in a way that underscores a profound love affair with their favorite singer,” Arista president Antonio “L.A.” Reid said in a statement.
The top 10 contained one other new release. Urban boy band B2K’s “Pandemonium!” opened at No. 10 with nearly 195,000 copies sold, its Epic Records label said.
Carey’s “Charmbracelet,” her first release for Island Records a year after her Virgin Records debut, “Glitter,” flopped and she suffered a breakdown, sold 173,000 copies, bringing its two-week total to 415,000.
Mercury Records Nashville, Universal Records and Island Records are units of Vivendi Universal SA. Columbia Records and Epic Records are units of Sony Corp. Arista Records is a unit of Bertelsmann AG. Virgin Records is a unit of EMI Group Plc.
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