U2 Chart/Sales Statistics

[ybird3k]

thats 36 Million+ ?

 

[edge3]

thats 36 Million+ ?

Oh maybe it says 'by now' not 'since'

 

[vaz02]

so thjats 24 mill ?

 

[edge3]

so thjats 24 mill ?

25-30

 

[ybird3k]

isnt it about time the RIAA updated the certifications?

 

[STING2]

thats 36 Million+ ?

Its possible, my sources say it hit 14 million in the first 10 months. I'd still say around 30 million to date though.

 

[vaz02]

wow thats super, when i was counting u2's total album sales i only had JT down as 25 max.

 

[Mirrorball06]

What are their overall current album sales including 18 singles?

 

[edge3]

What are their overall current album sales including 18 singles?

If you believe the reports of 170 million prior to U218's release then ~175 million. If not then ~150 million.

 

[edge3]

Oh maybe it says 'by now' not 'since'

Just checked again & it definitely does say 'since' :

'...fastest selling album (ever) in UK chart history, straight in at no.1 in 22 countries, 12 million sold in first 12 months & more than double that since.'

 

[mikeuk]

latest version of Q Magazine -a pretty good retrospective- has estimated sales at 15 million for JT, and 12 million for R&H. Both of these are imo too low, but estimates elsewhere in this thread for JT are way too high.

just before Bomb was released the BBC asked a number of q's to win tickets to a u2 show at their studios, and one was on how many had JT sold. BBC advised that record company figure was 20.8m.

Just really shows there is a need for the record company to publish up to date figures.


Mike

 

[ybird3k]

theres no way JT has sold only 15M and R&H 12M. JT has sold at least double R&H, (certainly has in the US)

R&H 12M and JT 24M more like

 

[mikeuk]

theres no way JT has sold only 15M and R&H 12M. JT has sold at least double R&H, (certainly has in the US)

R&H 12M and JT 24M more like

I would agree that these figures are more likely to be nearer the mark here - but with R&H perhaps at 13m


Mike

 

[vaz02]

12-14 Mill for R&H i say and 20-24 mill for JT.

 

[STING2]

latest version of Q Magazine -a pretty good retrospective- has estimated sales at 15 million for JT, and 12 million for R&H. Both of these are imo too low, but estimates elsewhere in this thread for JT are way too high.

just before Bomb was released the BBC asked a number of q's to win tickets to a u2 show at their studios, and one was on how many had JT sold. BBC advised that record company figure was 20.8m.

Just really shows there is a need for the record company to publish up to date figures.


Mike

The combined sales of the Joshua Tree in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, France and Germany are OVER 20 million so the BBC figure is out of date and more likely from 1991 as opposed to 2004.

The Joshua Tree hit the 14 million mark worldwide in December of 1987 when its sales in the USA were 4 million, UK 1.2 million, Canada over 1 million. Today, in those countries, the sales are 12 million in the USA, nearly 3 million in the UK and nearly 2 million Canada.

 

[ybird3k]

14 million in just 9months!, nothing sells like that these days

 

[doctorwho]

14 million in just 9months!, nothing sells like that these days

Maybe not, but U2 are still amazingly close. Keep in mind that JT was certified as "only" 4M sold its first year in the U.S. "Bomb" was certified as having sold 3M in just the first few months. Worldwide, "Bomb" sold about 9-10M its first year. Granted, not on the scale of 14M, but given the current world we live in (where downloads are easily available), not bad either. The same was true for ATYCLB as I think it neared 10M its first year worldwide as well.

What is gone are the days of anything selling 10M copies in the U.S. The fact that U2's last two albums went 4x and 3x Platinum is impressive to me. But even newer artists, who are the current "flavor of the day", may sell 5x at most. And it was only about 8 years ago that Britney Spears and N'Synce would have 10M+ selling albums (in the U.S.). No wonder the RIAA is complaining all the time.

 

[Mirrorball06]

This is a new updated list of the Mediatraffic top albums of all time.

1 Michael Jackson - Thriller
Epic - 1983
2 Beatles - Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Parlophone / Capitol - 1967
3 Eagles - Greatest Hits 1971-1975
Asylum - 1976
4 Pink Floyd - The Dark Side Of The Moon
Harvest - 1973
5 AC/DC - Back In Black
Atlantic - 1980
6 Soundtrack - Saturday Night Fever
RSO - 1978
7 Meat Loaf - Bat Out Of Hell
Epic - 1978
8 Soundtrack - The Bodyguard
Arista - 1992
9 Beatles - Abbey Road
Apple - 1969
10 Fleetwood Mac - Rumours
Warner Bros. - 1977
11 Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin IV
Atlantic - 1971
12 Shania Twain - Come On Over
Mercury - 1997
13 Soundtrack - Dirty Dancing
RCA - 1987
14 Alanis Morissette - Jagged Little Pill
Maverick / Sire - 1995
15 Eagles - Hotel California
Asylum - 1976
16 Soundtrack - Titanic
Sony Classical - 1998
17 Celine Dion - Let's Talk About Love
550 Music / Epic - 1997
18 Backstreet Boys - Millennium
Jive - 1999
19 Guns'n Roses - Appetite For Destruction
Geffen - 1988
20 Celine Dion - Falling Into You
550 Music / Epic - 1996
21 Simon & Garfunkel - Bridge Over Troubled Water
Columbia - 1970
22 Dire Straits - Brothers In Arms
Warner Bros. - 1985
23 Santana - Supernatural
Arista - 1999
24 Michael Jackson - Bad
Epic - 1987
25 Bruce Springsteen - Born In The U.S.A.
Columbia - 1984

26 Metallica - Metallica
Elektra / Vertigo - 1991
27 Beatles - 1
Apple - 2000
28 Norah Jones - Come Away With Me
Blue Note - 2002
29 Mariah Carey - Music Box
Columbia - 1993
30 Soundtrack - Grease
RSO - 1978
31 Bon Jovi - Slippery When Wet
Mercury - 1986
32 Pink Floyd - The Wall
Columbia - 1979
33 Carol King - Tapestry
Ode - 1971
34 Michael Jackson - Dangerous
Epic - 1991
35 Backstreet Boys - Backstreet Boys
Jive - 1998
36 Beatles - The Beatles (White Album)
Apple - 1968
37 U2 - The Joshua Tree
Island - 1987
38 Oasis - (What's The Story) Morning Glory)
Epic - 1995
39 Simon & Garfunkel - Greatest Hits
Columbia - 1972
40 Prince - Purple Rain
Warner Bros. - 1984
41 Abba - Gold Greatest Hits
Polydor - 1992
42 Beatles - 1967-1970
Apple - 1973
43 Madonna - The Immaculate Collection
Sire - 1990
44 Beatles - 1962-1966
Apple - 1973
45 Eminem - The Marshall Mathers LP
Aftermath / Interscope - 2000
46 Britney Spears - Baby One More Time
Jive - 1999
47 Fugees - The Score
Ruffhouse - 1996
48 AC/DC - Highway To Hell
Atlantic - 1979
49 Beatles - Revolver
Parlophone / Capitol - 1966
50 Boston - Boston
Epic - 1976

51 Soundtrack - Sound Of Music
RCA - 1965
52 Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here
Capitol - 1975
53 Whitney Houston - Whitney Houston
Arista - 1985
54 Spice Girls - Spice
Virgin - 1996
55 Backstreet Boys - Black & Blue
Jive - 2000
56 M.C.Hammer - Please Hammer Don't Hurt 'Em
Capitol - 1990
57 Lionel Richie - Can't Slow Down
Motown - 1983
58 Def Leppard - Hysteria
Mercury - 1987
59 Eric Clapton - Unplugged
Reprise - 1992
60 Eminem - The Eminem Show
Aftermath / Interscope - 2002
61 Mariah Carey - Daydream
Columbia - 1995
62 Madonna - True Blue
Sire - 1986
63 Supertramp - Breakfast In America
A&M - 1979
64 Guns'n Roses - Use Your Illusion I
Geffen - 1991
65 Queen - Greatest Hits
Elektra / EMI - 1981
66 Bee Gees - Spirits Having Flown
RSO - 1979
67 Peter Frampton - Comes Alive
A&M - 1976
68 Guns'n Roses - Use Your Illusion II
Geffen - 1991
69 Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin II
Atlantic - 1969
70 Bob Marley & The Wailers - Legend
Island - 1984
71 Elton John - Greatest Hits
MCA - 1974
72 Ace Of Base - The Sign (Happy Nation)
Arista - 1994
73 Madonna - Like A Virgin
Sire - 1984
74 Ricky Martin - Ricky Martin
C2 / Sony - 1999
75 Michael Jackson - Off The Wall
Epic - 1979

76 George Michael - Faith
Columbia - 1987
77 Mike Oldfield - Tubular Bells
Virgin - 1973
78 Bob Dylan - Highway 61 Revisited
CBS / Sony - 1965
79 Phil Collins - No Jacket Required
Atlantic - 1985
80 Britney Spears - Oops!...I Did It Again
Jive - 2000
81 Led Zeppelin - Physical Grafitti
Atlantic - 1975
82 No Doubt - Tragic Kingdom
Interscope - 1996
83 U2 - Achtung Baby
Island - 1991
84 Evanescence - Fallen
Wind-Up - 2003
85 Green Day - American Idiot
Reprise - 2004
86 Pearl Jam - Ten
Sony - 1991
87 Bob Dylan - Blonde On Blonde
CBS / Sony - 1966
88 John Lennon - Imagine
Capitol - 1971
89 Bruce Springsteen - Born To Run
Columbia - 1975
90 Red Hot Chili Peppers - Blood Sugar Sex Magik
Warner Bros. - 1991
91 Rolling Stones - Hot Rocks, 1964-1971
Abkco - 1972
92 Whitney Houston - Whitney
Arista - 1987
93 Shania Twain - The Woman In Me
Mercury - 1995
94 Billy Joel - Greatest Hits Vol.1 & 2
Columbia - 1985
95 Eagles - Greatest Hits Vol.2
Asylum - 1982
96 Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin
Atlantic - 1969
97 Paul Simon - Graceland
Warner Bros. - 1986
98 Red Hot Chili Peppers - Californication
Warner Bros. - 1999
99 Tina Turner - Private Dancer
Capitol - 1984
100 Coldplay - A Rush Of Blood To The Head
Parlophone - 2002

 

[rihannsu]

isnt it about time the RIAA updated the certifications?

I thought I read on the RIAA site that certifications are only done at the request of the artist and that they have to pay a fee for it. The fact that U2's certifications are so out of date to me indicates that proving their sales figures is not very important to them. Which kind of argues against the whole U2 is a greedy corporate monster theory. For supposedly greedy capitalists they miss out on tons of money making opportunities like you know their supports acts ought to be paying them because look at the exposure they get out of it, or Arcade Fire should have had to pay them for that last song before they hit the stage spot. I find it amusing when people label them greedy because if the are they are the least successful (at being greedy) greedy people in the music business.

Dana

 

[mikeuk]

This is a new updated list of the Mediatraffic top albums of all time.

B]

Are you sure this is a mediatraffic list ?

Mike

 

[Mirrorball06]

Are you sure this is a mediatraffic list ?

Mike

Yes

It stayed on the 'all time chart' section.

 

[mikeuk]

Yes

It stayed on the 'all time chart' section.

But I thought mediatraffic only captured sales since 2002 e.g. they had Norah Jones at the top of their chart ?

Mike

 

[Mirrorball06]

Take a look.

http://www.mediatraffic.de/alltime-album-chart.htm

 

[mikeuk]

Take a look.

http://www.mediatraffic.de/alltime-album-chart.htm

thanks- when I click on the all-time chart going direct from the mediatraffic site, rather than your link, I get the usual 2002 onwards all time chart- interesting.

Makes you wonder how mediatraffic have calculated this chart - clearly they can't use their usual formula ?


Mike

 

[ybird3k]

very interesting, i do find joshua tree a bit low though, and 'whats the story morning glory' only 1 place behind it?

would be good if they could put the actual sales estimates on.

 

[STING2]

Take a look.

http://www.mediatraffic.de/alltime-album-chart.htm

The list is not accurate at all, and is simply a collection of big selling albums it seems. Pearl Jam's Ten has sold more copies in the United States than Green Day's American Idiot has sold worldwide, yet Pearl Jam's Ten is listed below it. I don't think I saw Nirvana's Nevermind on there either, or the Police's Synchronicity.

 

[Mirrorball06]

I agree.

And we all know that The Joshua tree sold at least more than 20 million copies. But Norah Jones "Come away with me" stays higher than Joshua tree and according to MT it sold 18.734.000 copies. And does Fugees "The Score" sold more than Achtung Baby??

 

[vaz02]

Mediatraffic only counts album sales while they on top 100 am i right ? So that explains the missing sales i suppose

 

[STING2]

Mediatraffic only counts album sales while they on top 100 am i right ? So that explains the missing sales i suppose

They only estimate sales for albums that are in their top 40 which has only been going since 2002. How they came up with this top 100 is a mystery.

Hootie And The Blowfish's first album sold 16 million copies in the United States, but it does not even make the list.

 

[U2girl]

Do we have info for The Saints are coming and One with Mary J Blige highest position on Billboard and UK charts?

Am I right in thinking Saints was the highest U2 entry in the US Billboard charts in the last 6 years, not counting BD and Vertigo?