Eddie Vedder’s new studio album, Earthling, lands at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart (dated Feb. 26), marking the Pearl Jam frontman’s first solo leader on the tally. The effort leads a busy top 10, where five more albums debut in the region, from Spoon, Mary J. Blige, Big Thief, Slash featuring Myles Kennedy and The Conspirators and The Weeknd.
Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart ranks the top-selling albums of the week based only on traditional album sales. The chart’s history dates back to May 25, 1991, the first week Billboard began tabulating charts with electronically monitored piece count information from SoundScan, now MRC Data. Pure album sales were the sole measurement utilized by the Billboard 200 albums chart through the list dated Dec. 6, 2014, after which that chart switched to a methodology that blends album sales with track equivalent album units and streaming equivalent album units. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.
Of Earthling’s 16,000 copies sold in the week end Feb. 17, physical sales comprise 11,000 (3,000 on vinyl and 8,000 on CD) and digital sales comprise 5,000. The album’s vinyl LP sales came from a limited-edition $40 pressing (dubbed “fresh-pressed”) sold only to members of Pearl Jam’s fan club (Ten Club). The album’s standard wide release on vinyl is not scheduled until July 29.
Earthling also debuts at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Rock Albums and Top Current Album Sales charts – Vedder’s first solo No. 1 on both charts. Top Rock Albums ranks the week’s most popular rock releases by equivalent album units. Top Current Album Sales ranks the week’s biggest-selling current albums (not including catalog – older – releases).
Spoon’s Lucifer on the Sofa starts at No. 2 on Top Album Sales – the act’s highest-charting album yet. The set bows with just over 14,000 copies sold, with nearly 8,000 of that in vinyl LP sales. Mary J. Blige’s Good Morning Gorgeous debuts at No. 3 with 14,000 sold – her 15th top 10. Big Thief visits the top 10 for the first time, as Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You bows at No. 4 with nearly 14,000 sold (10,000 of that sum on vinyl – enabling its No. 1 debut on the Vinyl Albums chart).
Two former No. 1s are next up on Top Album Sales, as the soundtrack to Encanto falls 3-5 with just over 12,000 (down 25%) and Adele’s 30 dips 5-6 with 12,000 (up 4%).
Slash featuring Myles Kennedy and The Conspirators’ new album 4 debuts at No. 7 with 10,000 sold.
Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours falls 6-8 with 8,000 sold (down 31%) and Mitski’s Laurel Hell drops 1-9 in its second week with 7,000 sold (down 72%).
Rounding out the new top 10 on Top Album Sales is the debut of The Weeknd’s House of Balloons at No. 10 with nearly 7,000 sold – almost all from vinyl LP sales. The mixtape was originally released in 2011 and arrives on Top Album Sales thanks to vinyl LP sales.
In the week ending Feb. 17, there were 1.785 million albums sold in the U.S. (up 1.6% compared to the previous week). Of that sum, physical albums (CDs, vinyl LPs, cassettes, etc.) comprised 1.373 million (up 3.3%) and digital albums comprised 412,000 (down 3.6%).
There were 635,000 CD albums sold in the week ending Feb. 17 (up 4.2% week-over-week) and 729,000 vinyl albums sold (up 2.6%). Year-to-date CD album sales stand at 4.284 million (down 8.6% compared to the same time frame a year ago) and year-to-date vinyl album sales total 4.949 million (down 5%).
Overall year-to-date album sales total 12.16 million (down 8.8% compared to the same year-to-date time frame a year ago). Year-to-date physical album sales stand at 9.29 million (down 6.6%) and digital album sales total 2.869 million (down 15.5%).
