OutKast Slays Clay

Wed., Nov. 5, 2003 2:15 PM PST by David Jenison

Talk about a photo finish. OutKast, Rod Stewart and Clay Aiken ended the weekly album chart derby in a virtual dead heat, with fewer than 750 copies separating the three.

When the smoke cleared, it was OutKast by a nose. Fresh off a Saturday Night Live gig last weekend, the Atlanta hip-hopsters took advantage of a last-minute sales surge that inched Speakerboxxx/The Love Below back into the top spot in its sixth week of release. For the week ended Sunday, the double-disc album sold 141,698 copies, according to SoundScan numbers released today.

A mere 538 copies behind, Rod Stewart held at number two, moving 141,160 copies of As Time Goes By...Great American Songbook: Vol. II. Last week's chart champ, American Idol runner-up Aiken, fell to number three as Measure of a Man sold 140,957 copies, just 203 behind Stewart. Only 741 copies kept Aiken from holding the top slot for a third straight week.

The chart's highest debut belonged to the Strokes, whose Room on Fire sold just north of 126,000 copies at number four. Gerald Levert had the next highest bow, at six with Stroke of Genius selling 97,000.

Though the Strokes take high honors among the debut releases, the true best-selling new title belonged to R.E.M. and the group's quarter-century retrospective. In Time: The Best of R.E.M. 1988-2003 sold nearly 76,000 copies at number eight, while the special edition double-disc set sold another 51,000 copies at 16 (the first time two versions of the same album landed in the Top 20). The hits collection sold a combined 127,000 copies, which, if tracked as a single release, would have placed the veteran alternarockers ahead of the Strokes in the four spot.

Nearly a year old on the charts, 3 Doors Down reentered the Top 10 at 10 as Away from the Sun sold another 62,000 copies. The Mississippi rockers got a boost from its current tour and promotion on their new live EP, Another 700 Miles, which hits stores Tuesday. The new disc, recorded at shows in Cleveland, Chicago and Cincinnati, features the bonus studio track "It's Not Me."

The week's remaining Top 10 holdovers were Ludacris' Chicken & Beer at five, The Very Best of the Eagles at seven, and Dido's Life for Rent at nine.

Luther Vandross' Live at Radio City Music Hall 2000 sold 41,000 copies at 22. Recorded on Valentine's Day, this disc captures the singer's final performance before suffering a stroke April 16. Vandross, who is still recovering, had already finished recording Dance with My Father at the time, and the new disc debuted at number one when released in June. It has since sold over 1 million copies.

Hatebreed, which features Headbanger's Ball host Jamey Jasta, debuted at 30 with its second major label release, The Rise of Brutality. Equally brutal, Harry Connick Jr.'s Harry for the Holidays followed at 39.

Further down the list, "Achy Breaky" country crooner Billy Ray Cyrus roped in a number 131 debut with The Other Side.

Next week's chart will feature significant debuts from the likes of P.O.D., Ja Rule, Sarah McLachlan, Default, Wyclef Jean, Ryan Adams and Toby Keith. Coldplay will also hit the charts with a new live CD/DVD, as will Sheryl Crow with her new hits collections.

Here's a rundown of the Top 10 albums for the week ended Sunday:

1. Speakerboxxx/The Love Below, OutKast
2. As Time Goes By...Great American Songbook: Vol. II, Rod Stewart
3. Measure of a Man, Clay Aiken
4. Room on Fire, the Strokes
5. Chicken & Beer, Ludacris
6. Stroke of Genius, Gerald Levert
7. The Very Best of the Eagles, Eagles
8. In Time: The Best of R.E.M. 1988-2003, R.E.M.
9. Life for Rent, Dido
10. Away from the Sun, 3 Doors Down