Posting the biggest sales week since "The Eminem Show" moved 1.3 million units in June 2002, Usher's "Confessions" (LaFace) sold nearly 1.1 million copies in its debut stanza. The album is the year's biggest one-week seller but also the biggest seller for a male R&B artist since Soundscan started tracking sales in 1991.
Usher led an avalanche of new releases with six rookies in the top 11. Volume 15 of "Now That's What I Call Music" (Capitol) sold 343,000 to outpace Guns N' Roses' "Greatest Hits" (Geffen), which moved 169,000 and took third. "Let's Talk About It" (Bad Boy), the sophomore disc from R&B singer Carl Thomas, sold 139,000 units. "Fly or Die," the latest Virgin release from N.E.R.D., featuring superstar producers Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo, sold 119,000 copies and took sixth.
Norah Jones' six-week run at the top ended with her "Feels Like Home" (Blue Note) slipping to No. 5 on sales of 121,000.
Master P's "Good Side/Bad Side" (Koch) debuted at No. 11 on sales of 68,000, while Cypress Hill's "Till Death Do Us Part" sold 45,000 to take No. 21. The Vines moved 43,000 copies of their second Capitol album, "Winning Days," to land at No. 23.
Rush of new product drove sales up 11% compared to the same week last year. Top 200 album sales are up 39% from last week. At the end of the first quarter of the year, sales are up 13.3 million units, or about 9.2%, from 2003.
Atlanta hip-hopper Pastor Troy sold 37,000 copies of "By Any Means Necessary" (Universal) while West Coast rapper Knoc-turn'al sold 30,000 copies of "Way I Am." In between the two, at No. 33, the soundtrack for "The Punisher" (Wind-up) debuted on sales of 33,000.
The lower reaches of the top 200 saw several artists driven by press coverage and indie/college radio airplay make their debuts. Gary Jules' "Trading Snakeoil for Wolftickets" (Universal) sold 8,000 copies; Iron & Wine's "Our Endless Numbered Days" (Sub Pop) and Widespread Panic's "Night of Joy" (Sanctuary) tied for No. 157 on sales of 7,500; and Blonde Redhead's "Misery is a Butterfly" (4AD/Beggars Banquet) sold almost 7,000 at No. 180.
Next week sees first week sales figures for Janet Jackson's "Damita Jo" (Virgin), Aerosmith's covers album, Eric Clapton's tribute to Robert Johnson and rapper J-Kwon's debut.
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