Michael Buble Has Early ‘Christmas’ On Album Chart, Holds Back Rihanna

Robbie Daw | November 30, 2011 9:36 am

The dust has now settled on the race for the peak position on this week’s Top 200 chart, and it’s not either of the new offerings from Nickelback or Rihanna at #1 — it’s Michael Buble, with his holiday hit album Christmas. With just over 227,000 copies sold, Buble’s festive LP, which is now in its fifth week of release, narrowly beat out Nickelback’s Here And Now (which Billboard notes sold just under 227,000). So where does that leave Rihanna? Talk That Talk (197,000) goes into the chart at #3, thus matching the peak position of Rihanna’s previous album Loud (which opened with 207,000). Her highest-charting album to date is 2007’s Good Girl Gone Bad, which peaked at #2.

Mary J. Blige also has a ho-hum debut with My Life II: The Journey Continues, Act I (156,000) at #5. Better luck with Act II?

Getting back to Buble, with Christmas at #1 and Justin Bieber having topped the chart earlier this month with Under The Mistletoe, Billboard points out that this is the first year that two Christmas albums made it to the top since 1957, when Elvis Presley’s Elvis’ Christmas Album and Bing Crosby’s Merry Christmas both capped the Top 200.

Meanwhile, in its 40th week on the chart, Adele’s 21 (140,000) drops out of the Top 5 for the first time, down to #7. We have the UK singer pegged as a shoo-in for getting several Grammy nominations tonight. And if our predictions come true, she could see 21 get a boost up again in the weeks to come.

The final new entry in the Top 10 is Daughtry’s Break The Spell at #8. The band’s third LP sold 129,00, less than half the 269,000 their previous album Leave This Town moved two years ago.

The Top 10 Of Billboard’s Top 200 Chart

1. Michael Buble, Christmas *1 week* 2. Nickelback, Here And Now *new* 3. Rihanna, Talk That Talk *new* 4.Drake, Take Care 5. Mary J. Blige, My Life II: The Journey Continues, Act I *new* 6. Justin Bieber, Under The Mistletoe 7. Adele, 21 8. Daughtry, Break The Spell *new* 9. Scotty McCreery, Clear As Day 10.Coldplay, Mylo Xyloto