Soundscan Surprises, Week Ending 9/22
Back-catalog sales numbers of note from Nielsen SoundScan.
The definition of “back catalog” is: “at least 18 months old, have fallen below №100 on the Billboard 200 and do not have an active single on our radio.”
Only on the back catalog could Metallica drop four percentage points and still be number one. Metallica held five of the top thirty-two spots last week because they’re on tour in advance of their new double LP Hardwired…to Self-Destruct. Last night they played Webster Hall and just walked onstage and played, no intro, no opener. Very Metallica if you ask me (don’t ask me).
It’s been kind of a slow week otherwise, in the business of old record sales, but there are still some gems. Ed Sheeran is neck and neck with himself; his two records that are the same symbol just rotated forty-five degrees (+, X) each sold thirty-one hundred copies (don’t @ me about the serifs and letters vs. symbols, also did you know the plus sign doesn’t italicize in this font? Now you do).
Sheryl Crow and James Taylor and Korn all have greatest hits records on the chart, which seems very white and very expected. Matchbox Twenty only dropped two spots. But who are The Booth Brothers who have a Best of? A Southern Gospel trio, of course! They are touring the “Mexican Riviera” in November if you’re interested…
- METALLICA METALLICA 4,501 copies
3. MATCHBOX TWENTY YOURSELF OR SOMEONE LIKE YOU 4,129 copies
7. SHEERAN*ED + 3,143 copies
8. SHEERAN*ED X 3,130 copies
29. CROW*SHERYL VERY BEST OF SHERYL CROW 1,945 copies
50. TAYLOR*JAMES GREATEST HITS 1,611 copies
102. KORN VOL. 1 GREATEST HITS 1,154 copies
170. BOOTH BROTHERS BEST OF THE BOOTH BROTHERS 918 copies
(Previously.)