Daughtry tops music charts

'Idol' finalist bests 'Dreamgirls' for top slot

By PHIL GALLO

Chris Daughtry edges out 'Dreamgirls' for the top spot.

The day after "Dreamgirls" received a mixed blessing from the Oscars, its soundtrack missed the No. 1 slot by a mere 134 album sales, dropping to No. 2 on sales of 65,000 -- the same tally registered by RCA's "Daughtry."

Margin is the smallest separating one from two in the 16-year history of SoundScan.

But Sony's soundtrack to the Paramount/DreamWorks musical has been fighting an uphill battle since its release on Dec. 5. Sony released the soundtrack two ways -- as a single disc, which has been near the top of the charts for seven weeks, and as a double-disc deluxe edition, a format that usually sells fewer than 20,000 copies.

Because there are more than five different titles on the discs, Nielsen SoundScan counts them as separate entities, just as it did with Sony's "The Phantom of the Opera." Multiple editions of "High School Musical" and expanded editions of albums by 50 Cent, Mary J. Blige and others have had all their sales counted as one.

Were the two "Dreamgirls" sets counted as one, the soundtrack would be celebrating its fourth consecutive week at No. 1 -- a feat no album achieved in 2006.

Chris Daughtry, a finalist on last season's "American Idol," faces a bit of a double-edged sword, too. While his disc is the fastest-selling rock debut in SoundScan history, it also bears a dubious distinction as the lowest-selling No. 1 by a single artist. ("Dreamgirls" established the record two weeks ago for any album.)

By hitting No. 1, "Daughtry" (RCA/19 Recordings) becomes the first rock band release in 19 years to hit the top spot after debuting below No. 1. The last disc to do that was Bon Jovi's "New Jersey" in 1988. Album's cume is 1.3 million.

Television played a healthy role in the performance of all top four sellers.

Disney's "Jump In!" soundtrack posted a 17% rise after multiple airings on the Disney Channel, selling 57,000 copies and re-maining at No. 3.

Corinne Bailey Rae, whose self-titled Capitol debut was released more than seven months ago, sold 55,000 and rose 28 slots to No. 4 on the heels of an "Oprah" performance. This singer is up for three Grammys, all of them in the top general categories.

EMI was the big leader in debuts, scoring with three big names.

Diana Ross' "I Love You" (EMI/Manhattan), her first album of new recordings in almost eight years, sold 21,000 copies to debut at No. 32. Ross made several special TV appearances, including interviews and perfs on ABC's "Good Morning, America," "Live With Regis & Kelly" and CBS' "The Late Show With David Letterman."

Capitol/EMI's Frank Sinatra compilation "Romance: Songs From the Heart" posted his highest debut since 1993's "Duets," with first-week sales totaling 19,000 (No.36).

Al Green's Capitol/Hi hits collection, "The Definitive Greatest Hits," sold 16,000 in its first week to debut at No. 46, his highest chart debut in the SoundScan era and his strongest catalog sales week to date.