The charts are officially Jacked!
For the second straight week, Jack Johnson and Michael Jackson have the country's bestselling albums and held down the top spots on their respective charts. For the week ended Sunday, Johnson's Sleep Through the Static topped the Billboard 200, selling 105,000 copies, according to the latest SoundScan numbers, while Jackson's Thriller: 25th Anniversary Edition ruled the Top Pop Catalog chart, selling 63,000 copies.
As a reissue, the silver-anniversary Thriller was ineligible for the Billboard 200 despite selling more copies than that chart's current number two artist, Alicia Keys, who sold another 53,000 copies of As I Am.
While a pair of Jacks took the house, Kidz Bop 13 scored the week's biggest bow. The latest Kidz Bop Kids' collection—featuring kiddie remakes of Sean Kingston's "Beautiful Girls," Fergie's "Big Girls Don't Cry" and Boys Like Girls' "The Great Escape"—sold 49,000 copies at number four.
The latest installment tops the number seven debut for Kidz Bop 12, but Kidz Bop 9 remains the highest charter with its number two bow in early '06.
Country crooner Chris Cagle landed the week's second-best bow at eight, selling 37,000 copies of My Life's Been a Country Song, featuring the top 20 country hit "What Kinda Gone." The Louisiana-born, Texas-raised singer is best known for his 2001 country chart-topper "I Breathe In, I Breathe Out" and his 2000 breakthrough hit "My Love Goes On and On."
Though not a new album, Sara Bareilles jumped 14 spots to number seven in Little Voice's first top 10 appearance. The singer-songwriter and pianist, often compared to Norah Jones, originally opened at 15 last July with her major-label debut, which currently benefits from its hit "Love Song."
The rest of the top 10, all repeat offenders, included big Grammy winner Amy Winehouse at three with Back to Black, the Step Up 2: The Streets soundtrack at five, the Juno soundtrack at six, Mary J. Blige's Growing Pains at nine and Taylor Swift's self-titled album in the 10 spot.
Jim Jones' Harlem's American Gangster mix tape rolled into the 19 spot selling 25,000 copies. The NYC rapper, whose mix tape title likely reflects his feud history with Jay-Z, releases his next official studio album this summer.
Duranguense group K-Paz De La Sierra debuted at 80 with their double-disc live set En Vivo Desde El Auditorio Nacional. This is the group's first release since singer Sergio Gomez was kidnapped, tortured and murdered—possibly by drug lords—in early December following a show in Mexico. Their last album, Conquistando Corazones, was nominated for Best Banda Album at the recent Grammy Awards.
Other notable debuts include Secondhand Serenade's Twist in My Story at 44, former Soul Coughing singer Mike Doughty at 87 with Golden Delicious, the Raveonettes' stateside release of Lust, Lust, Lust at 108, Pastor Troy's Attitude Adjuster at 116 and Kingdom of Sorrow's self-titled debut at 131.
Overall, sales were down nearly 19 percent from last week and 13 percent compared to the same week last year.
To recap, the week's top 10 albums featured:
- Sleep Through the Static, Jack Johnson
- As I Am, Alicia Keys
- Back to Black, Amy Winehouse
- Kidz Bop 13, Kidz Bop Kids
- Step Up 2: The Streets soundtrack, various
- Juno soundtrack, various
- Little Voice, Sara Bareilles
- My Life's Been a Country Song, Chris Cagle
- Growing Pains, Mary J. Blige
- Taylor Swift, Taylor Swift