Not a creature was stirring in terms of big new music titles last week, but several albums managed to rack up sizeable sales in the run-up to Christmas this year, including the holiday set from the “Duck Dynasty” clan.
According to Nielsen SoundScan, for the week ending Dec. 22, Beyonce’s self-titled album maintained its position at No. 1 on the U.S. album chart for a second week. The pop/R&B singer’s collection tracked another 374,000 copies (off 39%) in its first full week in release. The album, launched without fanfare as a music/video bundle at the iTunes store on Dec. 13, sold 991,000 copies in its first 10 days in release.
The flap stirred by “Duck Dynasty” patriarch Phil Robertson’s remarks about homosexuality and his subsequent suspension from the A&E show failed to put any damper on sales of “Duck the Halls: A Robertson Family Christmas.”
The set moved up two slots on the chart to No. 4 with sales of 132,000, up 22% during the week that the controversy erupted. The Capitol Nashville title has moved 700,000 copies since its Oct. 29 debut. It peaked at No. 3 in its second week of release.
Resurgent country star Garth Brooks’ CD-DVD exclusive “Blame It All On My Roots” rolled up another 199,000 copies during the week, good for another frame at No. 2. The package, which gained 16% in the Yule rush, is being sold exclusively at Walmart stores. One Direction’s “MidnightMemories” (Columbia) climbed two rungs to No. 3 with 166,000 sold (up 35%).
Another holiday title, Kelly Clarkson’s “Wrapped in Red” (RCA), sagged 9% and dipped two slots to No. 5, moving 124,000.
The remainder of the top 10 witnessed double-digit sales increases: Eminem’s “The Marshall Mathers LP 2” (No. 6, 115,000 sold, up 39%), Katy Perry’s “Prism” (No. 7, 99,000, up 67%), the “Frozen” soundtrack (No. 8, 81,000, up 45%), Michael Buble’s “Christmas” (no. 9, 68,000, up 43%) and Luke Bryan’s “Crash My Party” (no. 10, 68,000, up 44%). Buble’s holiday perennial, which has reached the top 10 three years in a row, has sold 3.35 million copies to date.
SoundScan plans to release figures for the last week of the year and its comprehensive 2013 overview on Jan. 2.
