HITS 9/30: #1 Tony & Gaga 131k #2 Kenny 130k #3 Barbra 128k

[Duca]

CHEEK BY JOWL: The race for #1 on the HITS Album Sales Chart takes a new turn this morning, as last week’s long shot pulls ahead. Our early numbers put Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga's standards set Cheek to Cheek in the lead with 125k+. Can they hold off Kenny Chesney and last week's champ, Barbra Streisand? Will Irving Berlin emerge as one of Q4's hottest songwriters? Will people under 30 finally start doing the foxtrot again? Stay tuned. (9/29a)

TIGHT AS A GNAT'S TUCHUS: In what’s shaping up to be tightest Top 3 in a while, today there is no clear winner for #1 on next week’s album chart—apart from Columbia, that is. New releases from Kenny Chesney (Blue Chair/Columbia Nashville), Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga (Streamline/Columbia/Interscope) and, in its second week, the latest from Barbra Streisand (Columbia) now all appear headed to the 120-125k range. That last time the Top 3 albums brought in sales greater than 120k each was the week ending 12/29/13. (9/26a)

YOUR TOP 15: Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga's standards set, as we noted earlier, looks set to give Kenny Chesney a run for #1 on next week's HITS Album Sales Chart. Meanwhile, Barbra Streisand is poised for a very strong sophomore week after topping this week's chart. L'shana tova, people!

1. Kenny Chesney (Blue Chair/Columbia Nashville) 120-130k
2. Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga (Streamline/Columbia/Interscope) 115-125k
3. Barbra Streisand (Columbia) 105-115k
4. Alt-J (Atlantic) 60-65k
5. Pentatonix (RCA) 45-50k
6. Chris Brown (RCA) 33-37k
7. 5 Seconds of Summer “Amnesia” EP (Capitol) 31-34k
8. Joe Bonamassa (J&R) 25-28k
9. Maroon 5 (222/Interscope) 24-27k
10. George Strait (MCA Nashville) 24-27k
11. Tim McGraw (Big Machine) 23-26k
12. Guardians of the Galaxy: Awesome Mix, Vol. 1 (Hollywood) 22-25k
13. Jackie Evancho (Sony Masterworks) 21-24k
14. Frozen (Walt Disney) 19-22k
15. Leonard Cohen (Columbia) 19-22k
16. Jennifer Hudson (RCA) 19-22k
17. Sam Smith (Capitol) 19-22k

Now if you'll excuse us, we have to go gorge ourselves on apples and honey and hear about the health problems of every known relative. (9/25p)

YOUR MIDWEEK PEEK: Kenny Chesney still gets a very slight edge for the #1 spot on next week’s HITS Album Sales Chart, but the margin has tightened. As of this morning, the low end of Chesney’s projection overlaps with the high end of the Tony Bennett-Lady Gaga collaboration. Both have upcoming TV appearances (Chesney on Ellen, Bennett/Gaga on GMA) so it may come down to which one has the bigger impact. Looking solid for #3 is Barbra Streisand’s duets album, Partners, which is on track for a drop of less than 50% in its second week.

Kenny Chesney (Blue Chair/Columbia Nashville) 120-130k
Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga (Streamline/Columbia/Interscope) 115-125k
Barbra Streisand (Columbia) 100-110k

While it’s not even Halloween yet, could the above suggest that Partners will be a heavy holiday hitter? Next week will also be only the second time this year when the Top 3 albums have all sold more than 100k. Q4, we love you. (9/24p)

YOUR NEW RELEASES: Kenny Chesney holds a slight edge for next week’s #1, but the Tony Bennett/Lady Gaga collaboration is within striking distance. Here are this week’s key debuts:

Kenny Chesney (Blue Chair/Columbia Nashville) 125-135k
Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga (Interscope) 115-125k
Alt-J (Atlantic) 55-65k
Pentatonix (RCA) 40-50k
5 Seconds of Summer “Amnesia” EP (Capitol) 35-45k
Joe Bonamassa (J&R) 24-27k
Jackie Evancho (Sony Masterworks) 21-24k
Leonard Cohen (Columbia) 19-22k
Jennifer Hudson (RCA) 19-22k
Lenny Kravitz (Roxie) 17-20k
John Mellencamp (Republic) 12-15k

In a related story, if Tony Bennett takes #1 right after Barbra Streisand, my mom will be seriously kvelling. (9/24a)

[Push The Button]

That's definitely higher than I expected for Cheek to Cheek. Still, like last week, anything with Gaga is going to have a rush factor, so Kenny should easily be able to snatch that #1 debut.

[josh]

Anything over 100k is great for the type of album that it is. Hopefully it doesn't absolutely crash after this week.

Still hoping it can sneak into #1, though.

[areyoureadytojump]

Hold sh*t. Kenny Chesney #1.

Ouch at Jennifer Hudson!

[Wave.]

LORD. Jennifer.

[Caviar]

Why is anybody surprised at Jennifer's numbers?

[YourFaveIsAFlop]

Babs is still at 8 on iTunes at normal price. I think her second week is going to surprise a lot of people

[areyoureadytojump]

Sept 24, 2014 12:15:48 GMT -5 Caviar said:

Why is anybody surprised at Jennifer's numbers?

Maybe because her last album opened with 165,000?

She couldn't even sell 50k?

[Wave.]

Sept 24, 2014 12:15:48 GMT -5 Caviar said:

Why is anybody surprised at Jennifer's numbers?

I'm more upset if anything. This is her best album. It didn't make no sense that none of the singles took off. RCA dropped the ball heavily.

[Verisimilitude]

Mess at Jennifer Hudson.

And hopefully Tony & Gaga can beat Kenny soon.

[when the pawn...]

What did Tony's 2011 album open with?

[Caviar]

Sept 24, 2014 12:17:19 GMT -5 areyoureadytojump said:

Sept 24, 2014 12:15:48 GMT -5 Caviar said:

Why is anybody surprised at Jennifer's numbers?

Maybe because her last album opened with 165,000?

She couldn't even sell 50k?

True but she has no hit currently and the constant push backs didn't help. Also her Oscar buzz is long gone. It's depressing when an excellent album doesn't sell well.

[Duca]

Sept 24, 2014 12:24:05 GMT -5 when the pawn... said:

What did Tony's 2011 album open with?

183k and went platinum.

[Wave.]

Sept 24, 2014 12:26:37 GMT -5 Duca said:

Sept 24, 2014 12:24:05 GMT -5 when the pawn... said:

What did Tony's 2011 album open with?

183k and went platinum.

And opened up at #1, his first.

[areyoureadytojump]

I found 178k:

pulsemusic.proboards.com/thread/61044/weekly-soundscan-top-1997-links?page=8

178,870 DUETS II Tony Bennett

[HolidayGuy]

Not a bad opening for the B&G.

[kanimal]

Not a good number for Bennett-Gaga, but this is one that will come down to shelf life.

Bennett should have been able to do much more than half of that on his own (or with a more typical collab album). So Gaga either failed to bring many of her own fans to the table *OR* turned away typical Bennett buyers.

[HolidayGuy]

^Perhaps a combination of both? because of the type of album it is, I think it will perform decent enough through year's end.

[Duca]

Sept 24, 2014 12:28:59 GMT -5 areyoureadytojump said:

I found 178k:

pulsemusic.proboards.com/thread/61044/weekly-soundscan-top-1997-links?page=8

178,870 DUETS II Tony Bennett

The HDD figure was 182,790: www.hitsdailydouble.com/sales/archcht.cgi?cht466

[areyoureadytojump]

^I know this is the HITS thread, but I always go by the SoundScan number.

[Kishi KCM]

I'm glad that C2C is going to do over 100k, I honestly wasn't sure how it would perform, but I do hope it goes to #1. 115k is a decent number. :)

Delays and lack of hit single hurt J Hud. The lead single released a year ago, wish it were a bigger hit.

[Rican@]

Poor Jenny!

[Devil Marlena Nylund]

Bugger! I was hoping Tony & Gaga could get that #1 album. Either way, 100k is pretty decent for an album of this type, though much lower than Tony's last two non-Latin Duets albums, but both of those were all duets with all superstars so this much for Gaga isn't bad. I'm thinking most of its numbers probably come from Gaga fans with some true Jazz-heads making up the rest. I don't see others venturing into a Lady Gaga jazz album unfortunately, but depending on initial reaction and coverage, this could have some legs into the holidays. It's all in the word-of-mouth/coverage of it at this point.

[pnobelysk]

Totally bummed with Jennifer's numbers . Her last album moved over 450k total. This one will be lucky to pass 100k :(

[Keep’n It Real]

Jennifer Hudson (RCA) 19-22k

Going from 217k, to 165k, to this is just tragic!  :'(

[grandelf]

www.billboard.com/articles/columns/chart-beat/6259353/kenny-chesney-eighth-no-1-album

Kenny Chesney Heading for Eighth No. 1 Album
By Keith Caulfield | September 24, 2014 5:00 PM EDT



Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga’s new duets album may debut at No. 2.

Country superstar Kenny Chesney is heading for his eighth No. 1 album next week on the Billboard 200 chart. Industry forecasters suggest his new set, The Big Revival, may sell around 125,000 to 135,000 copies in the week ending Sept. 28. The Blue Chair/Columbia Nashville album is Chesney’s 15th studio effort, and was released on Sept. 23.

Not too far behind Chesney is Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga's new duets album Cheek to Cheek. It might sell 110,000 to 120,000 copies. That sum might not be enough to capture the No. 1 slot on the Billboard 200, but it should easily top the Traditional Jazz Albums chart.

The new Billboard 200's top 10 will be revealed on Oct. 1.

If Cheek to Cheek debuts in the top 10, it will give Bennett his sixth top 10 set, and Gaga her sixth as well.

Also aiming for the top 10: Alt-J and Pentatonix. The former's new This Is All Yours could sell around 55,000, while Pentatonix's PTX, Vol. III might move 45,000. Both of those figures would represent the largest debut weeks for either act.

[KeepDeanWeird]

I have no vested interest in "C2C" - especially since TB is a tired cliche, but he has a fan base. I do believe there is some holdback due to Ga being involved. HOWEVER, once they start performing together, I'm sure it will pull in reluctant fans when they hear that she really does have the right voice for this genre. Plus, from what I've read, TB and Ga have a 'real' musical relationship and fondness for each other that will probably come across. This is a good move for her after ARTPOP. Oftentimes an artist like her gets drowned out because of all the hype, non-music related stuff, costumes, etc. (much of which is her own making), that her talent is dismissed (forgotten). I anticipate this will sell through the holidays.

[Green Baron]

go, alt-J

[Enigma.]

Nice numbers for Kenny and B&G, also Alt-J!

[Verisimilitude]

YOUR MIDWEEK PEEK: Kenny Chesney still gets a very slight edge for the #1 spot on next week’s HITS Album Sales Chart, but the margin has tightened. As of this morning, the low end of Chesney’s projection overlaps with the high end of the Tony Bennett-Lady Gaga collaboration. Both have upcoming TV appearances (Chesney on Ellen, Bennett/Gaga on GMA) so it may come down to which one has the bigger impact. Looking solid for #3 is Barbra Streisand’s duets album, Partners, which is on track for a drop of less than 50% in its second week—a startling development given the aggressive first-week digital pricing of $7.99.

*Kenny Chesney (Blue Chair/Columbia Nashville) 120-130k
*Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga (Streamline/Columbia/Interscope) 115-125k
Barbra Streisand (Columbia) 100-110k

*Debuts

While it’s not even Halloween yet, could the above suggest that Partners will be a heavy holiday hitter? Next week will also be only the second time this year when the Top 3 albums have all sold more than 100k. Q4, we love you. (9/24p)

Barbra's sales are frickin' INCREDIBLE!