Chart Watch: Backstreet's Back

November 29, 2000 -- Backstreet's Back: Well, they didn't top 'N Sync, but the Backstreet Boys can't be crying after U.S. fans bought 1,591,191 copies of their latest effort, Black & Blue.

The total gives Black & Blue the third-best single-week sales total ever, behind the aforementioned 'N Sync and Eminem, who sold more than 1.7 million copies of The Marshall Mathers LP in May. But there's no shame at coming in at No. 3 on a list like this — selling 1.6 million copies of a CD in seven days would have been absolutely unheard of just a year ago. And Backstreet publicists point out that the Boys have set a new global record, moving 5 million copies in a single week worldwide.

Gobble Gobble: The Backstreet Boys weren't the only group to see enormous sales. All across the board, sales jumped in tune with the Thanksgiving weekend. The Top 200 sold 11.9 million copies — up from 7.6 million the week before — and almost every album in the Top 50 saw a sales bump.

The Rest: Behind the Backstreet Boys was The Beatles' 1, their new collection of No. 1 hits. Having debuted at No. 1 a week ago, the album sells 662,000 copies this time around — actually outselling its first-week total. That's What I Call Music Vol. 5 also outsold its last total at No. 3, moving another 470,000 copies, while Tim McGraw's Greatest Hits bows at No. 4, with sales of more than 306,000.

In at No. 5 is the new one from the Wu-Tang Clan, The W, which sells almost 302,000 copies in its first week on the shelves. Sade's Lovers Rock sells 260,000 copies at No. 6, followed by R. Kelly's TP-2.com, with sales of more than 239,000. Outkast's Stankonia sells 232,000 at No. 8, while Limp Bizkit's Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water comes in at No. 9, selling more than 226,000 copies.

Ricky Martin's Sound Loaded rounds out the Top 10, but not, perhaps, in a way he's happy about. The new album sells another 193,000 copies in its second week of sales, about 120,000 fewer than in the previous week — not a good sign in an enormous sales week.

Sob Stories: Ricky isn't the only high-profile artist who isn't lighting things up. Jay-Z sells another 160,000 copies of The Dynasty: Roc la Familia 2000, almost exactly the same number as the previous week. And more seriously, the Offspring's Conspiracy of One sells only 96,000 copies in its second week, a drop of almost 30,000 copies. It falls from No. 9 to No. 29.

On the Other Hand: The Baha Men's Who Let the Dogs Out actually drops a notch to No. 12 but sees a bump of 60,000, selling more than 182,000. Creed's Human Clay follows at No. 13, selling 174,000, a bump of almost 60,000, and Britney Spears' Oops! … I Did It Again sees a similar jump, selling 162,000 copies at No. 15. Nelly's Country Grammar sells 166,000 copies, about 40,000 more than a week ago, and actually drops four spots to No. 14.

Notable Debuts: Erykah Badu's Mama's Gun sells more than 190,000 copies and can't crack the Top 10, coming in at No. 11. B.G.'s Checkmate comes in at No. 21, selling 127,000, while almost 119,000 fans pick up Enya's Day Without Rain, bringing the album to No. 23. Capone-N-Noreaga come in at No. 31 with Reunion, selling almost 94,000.

What Happened? Several albums didn't bow as high as expected, as well. The second volume of Everclear's Songs From an American Movie set, titled Good Time for a Bad Attitude, sells just 45,000 at No. 66, followed by Things Falling Apart, Nine Inch Nails' The Fragile remix companion, which comes in at No. 67, with sales of almost 44,000. Even further down is Oasis' Familiar to Millions, which, it seems, is only familiar to a little more than 12,000 at No. 182.

Bottom Feeding: This week's No. 200: Dwight Yoakam's Tomorrow's Sounds Today, which sells 9,718 copies to earn the honor.