Teen country star Taylor Swift began a seventh week at No. 1 on the U.S. pop album chart Wednesday, a feat that hasn't been accomplished since Usher spent nine weeks at the top in 2004 with "Confessions".
Swift's "Fearless" sold a modest 63,000 copies during the week ended January 18, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Sales to date stand at 2.3 million.
"Fearless" also becomes the longest-running No. 1 album by a solo female vocalist since Alanis Morissette wore the crown for 12 weeks in 1995 with "Jagged Little Pill."
Beyonce's "I Am ... Sasha Fierce" rebounded two places to No. 2 with 49,000 copies. Canadian rock band Nickelback's "Dark Horse" slipped one place to No. 3 with 46,000.
The top debut was the soundtrack to the new Notorious B.I.G. biopic "Notorious," which bowed at No. 4 with 43,000. The film also opened at No. 4 at the weekend box office in North America with four-day sales of $23 million.
Kanye West's "808s and Heartbreak" fell two places to No. 5 with 40,000 copies. The soundtrack to "Twilight" slipped one to No. 6 with 36,000.
Britney Spears' "Circus" was also down one, to No. 7, with 34,000, and Jamie Foxx's "Intuition" held at No. 8 with only a few dozen fewer copies sold. Keyshia Cole's "A Different Me" dropped two to No. 9 with 31,000.
Reigning "American Idol" champ David Cook's self-titled major-label debut jumped eight places to No. 10. His tune "A Daily Anthem" was featured in "Idol" debut-week programing last week.
As "Slumdog Millionaire" generates awards heat ahead of Thursday's unveiling of the Academy Award nomination, the film's soundtrack vaulted 39 places to No. 16 with 20,000 copies. The Mumbai-set drama won four Golden Globes on January 11, including best original score for composer A.R. Rahman.
Other debuts included "NOW That's What I Call Motown" starts at No. 13, the Derek Trucks Band's "Already Free" at a best-yet No. 19, and R&B/gospel singer Heather Headley's "Audience of One" at No. 27.
At 5.89 million units, sales were down 5.7% from the previous week, and off by 15.4% compared to the same week in 2008.
(China Daily/Agencies January 22, 2009)
