King of Pop Dethroned

MICHAEL JACKSON29. For only the second time in two months, someone has sold more records than Michael Jackson. The first to do so, a month ago, was Daughtry, and this week the country hero George Strait has the best-selling album in the country with “Twang” (MCA Nashville), which opens at No. 1 on the Billboard chart with 155,000 sales, according to Nielsen SoundScan. No. 2 is Neil Diamond’s new CD/DVD package “Hot August Night/NYC” (Sony), recorded live at Madison Square Garden last year. Available only at Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club stores, it sold 57,000 copies. The Black Eyed Peas are No. 3 with “The E.N.D.” (Interscope), selling 45,000 copies, and the rock band Cobra Starship opens at No. 4 with 42,000 sales of its new “Hot Mess” (Fueled by Ramen/Decaydance). Kings of Leon’s “Only by the Night” (RCA) is fifth with just under 42,000, which brings that album’s 47-week total to more than 1.3 million.

Sales of Mr. Jackson’s albums have been slipping in recent weeks but are still strong. “Number Ones” (Epic) sold 80,000 copies, and was technically the second-best selling album in the United States last week. (Like most of Mr. Jackson’s titles, it is too old to qualify for Billboard’s standard album chart.) “The Essential Michael Jackson” (Epic) moved 43,000, and “Thriller” (Epic) 34,000.

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