James Taylor has his first No. 1 album today (June 24) with Before This World debuting at the top of the overall chart with consumption of 97K. The veteran songwriter has previously had No. 1 songs, but not chart-topping albums. Taylor’s first new studio album in thirteen years was released via Concord Records. Previously, Taylor had eleven top 10 albums, including seven top five efforts. His highest chart debut thus far was 1971’s Mud Slide Slim and the Blue Horizon, which spent four weeks at No. 2.
On the country albums chart, Zac Brown Band’s latest sold 19K to move back to No. 1. Jekyll + Hyde has passed the 400K mark after eight weeks on shelves.
There weren’t many country debuts this week, but Big Smo’s EP Bringin It Home (Warner Bros.) entered at No. 12 with 5.3K.
On the Billboard Bluegrass Chart, The SteelDrivers‘ album The Muscle Shoals Recordings (Rounder Records) debuted at No. 1 and achieved the highest first-week sales in the band’s history.
On the Billboard Christian Albums Chart, Unbroken Praise, the newest release from Matt Redman garnered the top spot, marking the Grammy winner’s second, consecutive debut at No. 1.
Top 5 Country Albums
Zac Brown Band 19K
Now Country 8 18K
Sam Hunt 16K
Willie Nelson /Merle Haggard 12K
Little Big Town 10K
Top 5 Country Tracks
Little Big Town “Girl Crush” 73K
Luke Bryan “Kick the Dust Up” 65K
Sam Hunt “Take Your Time” 55K
Blake Shelton “Sangria” 42K
Eric Church “Like a Wrecking Ball” 39K
*according to Nielsen Soundscan
Category: Artist, Featured, Sales/Marketing
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Sarah Skates has worked in the music business for more than a decade and is a longtime contributor to MusicRow.View Author Profile
