SoundScan Era - USA's Best Selling Artists and Albums

by **BeHereNow1997** » Sun Apr 08, 2012 11:47 pm

The Top 40 Albums since 1991 according to Soundscan with club sales.

As of week ending April 1, 2012.

1 17,506,000 Come On Over - Shania Twain
2 15,763,460 Metallica - Metallica
3 15,076,639 Jagged Little Pill - Alanis Morissette
4 13,758,000 Millennium - Backstreet boys
5 13,305,897 The Bodyguard (OST) - Whitney Houston
6 13,032,000 Supernatural - Santana
7 12,642,000 No Strings Attached - 'N Sync
8 12,156,897 ...Baby One More Time - Britney Spears
9 12,119,711 The Marshall Mathers LP - Eminem
10 12,040,592 1 - The Beatles
11 11,836,000 Backstreet Boys - Backstreet Boys
12 11,777,000 Falling Into You - Celine Dion
13 11,600,000 Cracked Rear View - Hootie & The Blowfish
14 11,574,000 Human clay - Creed
15 11,120,729 Titanic - Soundtrack
16 11,008,546 Legend - Bob Marley And The Wailers
17 10,811,860 Come Away With Me - Norah Jones
18 10,762,611 Hybrid Theory - Linkin Park
19 10,666,727 Let's Talk About Love - Celine Dion
20 10,412,039 Oops!... I Did It Again - Britney Spears
21 10,382,939 Devil Without A Cause - Kid Rock
22 10,266,000 'N Sync - 'N Sync
23 10,202,000 Nevermind - Nirvana
24 10,054,339 The Eminem show - Eminem
25 9,993,000 Wide Open Spaces - Dixie Chicks
26 9,973,728 Confessions - Usher
27 9,935,375 Ten - Pearl Jam
28 9,863,000 II - Boyz II Men
29 9,571,000 Ropin' The Wind - Garth Brooks
30 9,452,423 Tragic Kingdom - No Doubt
31 9,360,000 Dookie - Green Day
32 9,327,381 Breathless - Kenny G
33 9,305,082 The Dark Side Of The Moon - Pink Floyd
34 9,270,000 Yourself Or Someone like you - Matchbox 20
35 9,166,510 Greatest hits - Bob Seger/Silver Bullet Band
36 9,149,171 Christina Aguilera - Christina Aguilera
37 9,068,000 All The way... A Decade Of Song - Céline Dion
38 9,010,000 No Fences - Garth Brooks
39 8,901,419 The Women In Me - Shania Twain
40 8,724,000 Hell Freezes Over - The Eagles

So 38 albums have sold over 9 million copies according to soundscan and club sales.

I used the wiki source of best selling club sales by adding them to soudscan's total sales of updated. The wiki page has the original source. It's easier to read from the wiki page though.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_BM ... ted_States

by **danbarj** » Mon Apr 09, 2012 12:27 am

This list isn't legitimately if Christina's debut isn't there. 8.2 million sounds and 935k through just one music club.

by **thebigham** » Mon Apr 09, 2012 2:20 am

BeHereNow1997 wrote:I can't believe ABBA's gold is not in the top 100. Yet it has sold 28 million copies worldwide. It must be in the late 5 millions under soundscan. 6X platinum certification by the RIAA.

8/27/11 Catalog chart:

143 ABBA GOLD-GREATEST HITS 1,512 -14% 1,748 5,287,415

Nope. Not close...

by **thebigham** » Mon Apr 09, 2012 2:22 am

BeHereNow1997 wrote:
argentino78 wrote:
NothingFails wrote:I do think Bodyguard and Beatles are both going to overtake Backstreet though
Yes they will. Specially "1s". It has sold 55K in 2012 alone. It's 118K behind. It'll do it sooner than later.
By the end of 2013, those albums will surpass Millennium under soundscan numbers without club sales. I'm about to post the top 30 albums according to soundscan + club sales on the next page. So it should be close to exactly.

We do not discuss club sales in this thread.

This is strictly for SoundScan sales.

by **BeHereNow1997** » Mon Apr 09, 2012 4:59 am

danbarj wrote:This list isn't legitimately if Christina's debut isn't there. 8.2 million sounds and 935k through just one music club.

You're right. No only did I miss her, I missed a few too. I did a top 40. It's edited. Thanks danbarj.

by **jimmypages59** » Mon Apr 09, 2012 1:19 pm

That Top 40 list is completely pointless.

1. It only includes BMG club sales.
2. It only includes the 100 Best Selling BMG club sales, not all BMG Club sales
2. The BMG club sales only go up to 2002
3. It does not include albums that were sold through other Music Clubs, such as Columbia House, which actually merged with BMG in 2005.

I actually thought when I read your post yesterday, that you had access to "all" club sales and were going to present a definitive list.

by **BeHereNow1997** » Mon Apr 09, 2012 8:15 pm

jimmypages59 wrote:That Top 40 list is completely pointless.

1. It only includes BMG club sales.
2. It only includes the 100 Best Selling BMG club sales, not all BMG Club sales
2. The BMG club sales only go up to 2002
3. It does not include albums that were sold through other Music Clubs, such as Columbia House, which actually merged with BMG in 2005.

I actually thought when I read your post yesterday, that you had access to "all" club sales and were going to present a definitive list.

Oh shit. There's more than one club? Damn. I didn't know. And I thought it ended in 2002. Like I thought it shutdown. Damn. Well I tried... D:

by **GUS** » Tue Apr 10, 2012 12:42 am

BeHereNow1997 wrote:
jimmypages59 wrote:That Top 40 list is completely pointless.

1. It only includes BMG club sales.
2. It only includes the 100 Best Selling BMG club sales, not all BMG Club sales
2. The BMG club sales only go up to 2002
3. It does not include albums that were sold through other Music Clubs, such as Columbia House, which actually merged with BMG in 2005.

I actually thought when I read your post yesterday, that you had access to "all" club sales and were going to present a definitive list.
Oh shit. There's more than one club? Damn. I didn't know. And I thought it ended in 2002. Like I thought it shutdown. Damn. Well I tried... D:

It's a better approach to reality than just SS numbers... hopefully one day Columbia will release its numers...

by **FliplovesMC** » Tue Apr 10, 2012 4:19 am

aez wrote:
blackandblue wrote: 5 ( = ) 12,040,592 1 - The Beatles (01/04/2012)
2,059 (-6%) 2,194

6 ( = ) 11,995,897 The bodyguard (OST) - Whitney Houston (01/04/2012)
7,163 (-21%) 9,087

Will 'The Bodyguard' be able to outsell '1'? Sales are going down as Whitney's dead effect is fading, so now I'm starting to doubt it.

I do love the movement in the Top 10 this year, I say by Christmas both albums are past BSB.

by **Basil** » Tue Apr 10, 2012 11:02 am

Basil wrote:
2001 - Creed - Weathered - 6.0m
2002 - Norah Jones - Come Away With Me - 10.0m
2003 - Evanessence - Fallen - 7.0m
2004 - Usher - Confessions - 10.0m
2005 - Nickelback - All the Right Reasons - 8.0m
2006 - Taylor Swift - Taylor Swift - 5.0m
2007 - Josh Groban - Noel - 5.0m
2008 - Taylor Swift - Fearless - 6.0m
2009 - Susan Boyle - I Dreamed A Dream - 4.0m
2010 - Taylor Swift - Speak Now - 4.0m
2011 - Adele - 21 - 8.0m

The most successful artists:-

The Beatles - 7 titles
Taylor Swift - 3 titles

Have updated the whole top shipping albums annually from Page One.
This just shows the recent ones since 2000.
Looks likely that Adele will be in double figures by this time next year.
Can anything coming out in 2012 compete?

by **stevyy** » Tue Apr 10, 2012 11:52 am

i always found these annual shipping charts confusing because in and during 2005 for example Nickelback didn't have the top shipping album of the year. 8-)

by **VoReason** » Tue Apr 10, 2012 12:03 pm

stevyy wrote:i always found these annual shipping charts confusing because in and during 2005 for example Nickelback didn't have the top shipping album of the year.

I THINK that they're the shipments for albums released in those years? So, the millions shipped are from the albums release to the present day, and the one from that year with the most shipped tops the list?

I dunno, but that's the only logic I can see in it.

by **Basil** » Tue Apr 10, 2012 12:29 pm

That's correct, they are the top shipping album of all the albums released that year.

It shows the albums that have "legs" selling steadily over the years.

A good example is Miles Davis Kind of Blue released in 1959. It's soundscan sales since 1991 are approaching 3 million. Most of the other albums released in 1959 have been long long forgotten - even though many of them probably outsold Kind Of Blue just in 1959.

Top selling albums in each year is a different concept. I find little meaning in those lists. What if one album is released in January and so has 12 months of sales and another just before Christmas with a couple of weeks of sales.

by **jimmypages59** » Tue Apr 10, 2012 1:17 pm

Argentino wrote:

"It's a better approach to reality than just SS numbers... hopefully one day Columbia will release its numers."

In theory it is a better approach, but it only offers a part picture, that will actually confuse in reality. You cannot present a definitive Soundscan + Music Club Sales List that does not include:

1. BMG albums outside the Top 100
2. BMG albums released after 2002
3. Columbia House and other Clubs

It will just result in an incorrect list, where some albums/acts are skewed due to not being on BMG, in the Top 100 or released after 2002.

There will also be One Stops/Walmart etc that are/were not included in SS.

Technically the thread title is not correct. It is not the Best Selling Artists and Albums of the Soundscan Era, but the best Selling Soundscan Artists and Albums. Including, Music Clubs and outlets not captured by SS, would give us a true list of the best selling artists and albums within the Soundscan Era.

A good instance would be Garth Brooks, who is clearly miles and miles ahead of anybody, actually within the SS Era, but only his SS sales are counted, so it looks as if he is just a few million ahead.

by **Basil** » Tue Apr 10, 2012 2:19 pm

Basil wrote:Top Selling Albums Annually - Soundscan

1955 - Frank Sinatra - In the Wee Small Hours - 183,000
1956 - Miles Davis - Birth Of Cool - 359,000
1957 - Elvis Presley - Christmas Album - 1,020,000 nov 2005
1958 - Elvis Presley - Golden Records - 1,356,000 dec 2005
1959 - Miles Davis - Kind Of Blue - 3,208,000 aug 2011
1960 - Dave Brubeck - Time Out - 1,117,000 may 2008
1961 - Elvis Presley - Blue Hawaii - 336,000
1962 - Chipmunks - Christmas With - 508,000
1963 - Nat King Cole - Christmas Song - 2,336,000 nov 2008
1964 - The Beatles - Hard Day's Night - 1,408,000 sep 2010
1965 - Vince Guaraldi - Charlie Brown Christmas - 3,174,000 feb 2012
1966 - The Beatles - Revolver - 2,224,000 sep 2010
1967 - The Beatles - Sgt Pepper - 4,419,000 jan 2012
1968 - The Beatles - White Album - 3,779,000 jan 2012
1969 - The Beatles - Abbey Road - 4,814,000 mar 2012
1970 - Van Morrison - Moondance - 2,265,000 jul 2005
1971 - Carole King - Tapestry - 3,872,000 feb 2012
1972 - Simon & Garfunkel - Greatest Hits - 3,191,000 mar 2012
1973 - Pink Floyd - Dark Side Of the Moon - 9,416,000 mar 2012
1974 - Elton John - Greatest Hits - 4,623,000 may 2006
1975 - Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here - 3,331,000 mar 2012
1976 - James Taylor - Greatest Hits - 7,015,000 mar 2012
1977 - Meatloaf - Bat Out Of Hell - 4,734,000 mar 2012
1978 - Soundtrack - Grease - 5,974,000 mar 2012
1979 - Pink Floyd - The Wall 5,801,000 mar 2012
1980 - AC/DC - Back in Black - 6,842,000 feb 2012
1981 - Blondie - Best Of - 2,116,000 dec 2005
1982 - Eric Clapton - Timepieces - 4,521,000 sep 2011
1983 - Metallica - Kill 'Em All - 2,575,000 may 2009
1984 - Bob Marley - Legend - 10,998,000 mar 2012
1985 - Jimmy Buffett - Songs You Know - 6,581,000 feb 2012
1986 - Beastie Boys - Licensed to Ill - 5,515,000 mar 2012
1987 - Guns n Roses - Appetite - 5,141,000 mar 2012
1988 - Journey - Greatest Hits - 8,045,000 mar 2012
1989 - Garth Brooks - Garth Brooks - 4,100,000
1990 - Garth Brooks - No Fences - 9,010,000 nov 2008

First update on this (from Page One) in a few years.

Some changes

Sgt Pepper took the top spot in 1967 displacing Patsy Cline.

However, The Beatles Rubber Soul lost the 1965 top spot to A Charlie Brown Christmas.

Metallica's Kill 'Em All took over 1983 from Marvin Gaye.

Nat King Cole took over 1963 from Patsy Cline.

1982 should now be Thriller, but what is the latest on the correct soundscan figure for this title?

by **Basil** » Tue Apr 10, 2012 2:23 pm

Basil wrote:Top Selling Albums Annually - Soundscan

From below the soundscan era starts, so these are the total shop sales for each title. The figures are still interesting though.

1991 - Metallica - Metallica - 15,764,000 apr 2012
1992 - Whitney Houston - The Bodyguard - 11,996,000 apr 2012
1993 - Tom Petty - Greatest Hits - 7,960,000 apr 2012
1994 - Hootie & Blowfish - Cracked Rear View - 10,301,000 jan 2012
1995 - Alanis Morissette - Jagged Little - 14,727,000 mar 2012
1996 - Celine Dion - Falling Into You - 10,791,000 jan 2012
1997 - Shania Twain - Come On Over - 15,517,000 mar 2012
1998 - N'Sync - N'Sync - 8,767,000 oct 2008
1999 - Back Street Boys - Millenium - 12,169,000 jan 2012
2000 - The Beatles - One - 12,041,000 apr 2012
2001 - Creed - Weathered - 6,390,000 nov 2010
2002 - Norah Jones - Come Away With Me - 10,812,000 apr 2012
2003 - 50 Cent - Get Rich - 8,094,000 apr 2012
2004 - Usher - Confessions - 9,974,000 apr 2012
2005 - Nickelback - All the Right Reasons - 7,588,000 apr 2012
2006 - Taylor Swift - Taylor Swift - 5,186,000 apr 2012
2007 - Josh Groban - Noel - 3,699,000 dec 2007
2008 - Taylor Swift - Fearless - 6,526,000 apr 2012
2009 - Susan Boyle - I Dreamed a Dream
2010 - Taylor Swift - Speak Now
2011 - Adele - 21 - 8,491,000 apr 2012

Thanks to Hanboo for the vast majority of these figures. Also AutomaticBR, thebigham and Dane.

Some changes here as well.

1993 - Tom Petty takes over from Mariah Carey

2000 - The Beatles take over from N'Sync

2006 - Taylor Swift takes over from High School Musical

by **thebigham** » Tue Apr 10, 2012 2:27 pm

^Thanks, Basil!!!

by **herb** » Tue Apr 10, 2012 3:01 pm

Basil wrote:
Basil wrote:Top Selling Albums Annually - Soundscan

From below the soundscan era starts, so these are the total shop sales for each title. The figures are still interesting though.

1991 - Metallica - Metallica - 15,764,000 apr 2012
1992 - Whitney Houston - The Bodyguard - 11,996,000 apr 2012
1993 - Tom Petty - Greatest Hits - 7,960,000 apr 2012
1994 - Hootie & Blowfish - Cracked Rear View - 10,301,000 jan 2012
1995 - Alanis Morissette - Jagged Little - 14,727,000 mar 2012
1996 - Celine Dion - Falling Into You - 10,791,000 jan 2012
1997 - Shania Twain - Come On Over - 15,517,000 mar 2012
1998 - N'Sync - N'Sync - 8,767,000 oct 2008
1999 - Back Street Boys - Millenium - 12,169,000 jan 2012
2000 - The Beatles - One - 12,041,000 apr 2012
2001 - Creed - Weathered - 6,390,000 nov 2010
2002 - Norah Jones - Come Away With Me - 10,812,000 apr 2012
2003 - 50 Cent - Get Rich - 8,094,000 apr 2012
2004 - Usher - Confessions - 9,974,000 apr 2012
2005 - Nickelback - All the Right Reasons - 7,588,000 apr 2012
2006 - Taylor Swift - Taylor Swift - 5,186,000 apr 2012
2007 - Josh Groban - Noel - 3,699,000 dec 2007
2008 - Taylor Swift - Fearless - 6,526,000 apr 2012
2009 - Susan Boyle - I Dreamed a Dream
2010 - Taylor Swift - Speak Now
2011 - Adele - 21 - 8,491,000 apr 2012

Thanks to Hanboo for the vast majority of these figures. Also AutomaticBR, thebigham and Dane.
Some changes here as well.

1993 - Tom Petty takes over from Mariah Carey

2000 - The Beatles take over from N'Sync

2006 - Taylor Swift takes over from High School Musical

Basil, thank you so much.

Tom Petty's greatest hit only reached No.5 in Billboard Top 200, right? Now it becomes the best 1993 selling album in Soundscan. Wow.

by **CountryMan** » Tue Apr 10, 2012 3:44 pm

Basil wrote:
Basil wrote:Top Selling Albums Annually - Soundscan

From below the soundscan era starts, so these are the total shop sales for each title. The figures are still interesting though.

1991 - Metallica - Metallica - 15,764,000 apr 2012
1992 - Whitney Houston - The Bodyguard - 11,996,000 apr 2012
1993 - Tom Petty - Greatest Hits - 7,960,000 apr 2012
1994 - Hootie & Blowfish - Cracked Rear View - 10,301,000 jan 2012
1995 - Alanis Morissette - Jagged Little - 14,727,000 mar 2012
1996 - Celine Dion - Falling Into You - 10,791,000 jan 2012
1997 - Shania Twain - Come On Over - 15,517,000 mar 2012
1998 - N'Sync - N'Sync - 8,767,000 oct 2008
1999 - Back Street Boys - Millenium - 12,169,000 jan 2012
2000 - The Beatles - One - 12,041,000 apr 2012
2001 - Creed - Weathered - 6,390,000 nov 2010
2002 - Norah Jones - Come Away With Me - 10,812,000 apr 2012
2003 - 50 Cent - Get Rich - 8,094,000 apr 2012
2004 - Usher - Confessions - 9,974,000 apr 2012
2005 - Nickelback - All the Right Reasons - 7,588,000 apr 2012
2006 - Taylor Swift - Taylor Swift - 5,186,000 apr 2012
2007 - Josh Groban - Noel - 3,699,000 dec 2007
2008 - Taylor Swift - Fearless - 6,526,000 apr 2012
2009 - Susan Boyle - I Dreamed a Dream
2010 - Taylor Swift - Speak Now
2011 - Adele - 21 - 8,491,000 apr 2012

Thanks to Hanboo for the vast majority of these figures. Also AutomaticBR, thebigham and Dane.
Some changes here as well.

1993 - Tom Petty takes over from Mariah Carey

2000 - The Beatles take over from N'Sync

2006 - Taylor Swift takes over from High School Musical

Why isn't 2010's best seller Eminem's Recovery? Were Recovery's Club sales high enough to knock him out of 1st place?

by **thebigham** » Tue Apr 10, 2012 4:07 pm

We don't count club sales in this thread.

*SoundScan* only.

by **jimmypages59** » Tue Apr 10, 2012 4:37 pm

Bigham.

The thread is not "USA's Best Selling Soundscan Artists and Albums" it is "USA's Best Selling Artists and Albums" in the "Soundscan Era".

The "Soundscan Era" defines a period of time, 1991 onwards and within that period various other avenues were also sold through.

To determine or find "The Best Selling" from a particular Era, you have to include all sales, from all avenues.

The very good case in point is;

Metallica: Best Selling Soundscan Album
Shania Twain: Best Selling Album of The Soundscan Era

by **thebigham** » Tue Apr 10, 2012 5:39 pm

Adele will pass Boys II Men this week and end up at #33.

by **thebigham** » Tue Apr 10, 2012 5:44 pm

jimmypages59 wrote:Bigham.

The thread is not "USA's Best Selling Soundscan Artists and Albums" it is "USA's Best Selling Artists and Albums" in the "Soundscan Era".

The "Soundscan Era" defines a period of time, 1991 onwards and within that period various other avenues were also sold through.

To determine or find "The Best Selling" from a particular Era, you have to include all sales, from all avenues.

The very good case in point is;

Metallica: Best Selling Soundscan Album
Shania Twain: Best Selling Album of The Soundscan Era

Uh...

No, this thread is titled "SoundScan Era." We talk about "SoundScan" sales since 1991.

If you want to talk about club sales, we have the thread titled:

"USA's All Time Best Selling Artists and Albums"

Club sales are discussed in that thread.

Club sales are negligible today.

by **jimmypages59** » Tue Apr 10, 2012 6:08 pm

Eh!

Yes, I agree it's called "Soundscan Era", but that means albums sold within the "Era" of Soundscan, not necessarily through Soundscan. Era infers a measurement of time, not a measurement of method.

To say Metallica is the best Selling Album of the Soundscan Era is incorrect, it is Come On Over. Metallica is only the best selling album through Soundscan.

Yes Music Clubs sales are almost irrelevant today, but they were probably at their height, throughout the first 10 years of the Soundscan Era and do have significant impact on certain albums and determining, which has sold the most in the Soundscan Era.

by **thebigham** » Tue Apr 10, 2012 6:31 pm

^I'm just telling you the way things work around here. You are not going to change my mind nor the people who do hundreds of hours of work to keep us updated with the latest SoundScan sales.

Please feel free to discuss club sales in the other thread. That is where the discussion belongs.