David Bowie Debuts Behind Bon Jovi, Still Manages To Have His Highest-Charting Album Yet

Robbie Daw | March 20, 2013 11:01 am

Let’s pause for a minute and take in the fact that the Top 10 of the Billboard 200 is a bit of a Rock Legend Renaissance, given that David Bowie, Eric Clapton and Jimi Hendrix take up three of the chart positions. Then let it sink in that Bowie’s The Next Day, already a chart-topping album in 12 other countries, was beat to #1 by Bon Jovi. Sigh. Ain’t that America?

Bon Jovi’s 12th studio LP What About Now sold 96,000 copies in its first week, edging the Thin White Duke’s The Next Day out by about 11,000. Still, this marks Bowie’s highest-charting album in the States, an honor previously owned by the artist’s 1976 rock-and-soul classic Station To Station, which peaked at #3 on the Billboard 200.

And speaking of Station To Station, here’s (a slightly out-of-it?) Bowie doing “Golden Years” on the eternally cool Soul Train back in ’76:

Four other new albums make their way into the Top 10, which will no doubt get quite the shakeup once Justin Timberlake‘s The 20/20 Experience smashes its way to the top and crushes countless other artists’ dreams in seven days.

The Top 10 Of Billboard’s Top 200 Chart

1. Bon Jovi, What About Now *new* *1 week* 2. David Bowie, The Next Day *new* 3. Luke Bryan, Spring Break…Here To Party 4. Various, Passion: Let The Future Begin *new* 5. Bruno Mars, Unorthodox Jukebox 6. Mindless Behavior, All Around The World *new* 7. Eric Clapton, Old Sock *new*8. Various, Sound City soundtrack *new* 9. Mumford & Sons, Babel 10. Jimi Hendrix, People, Hell And Angels