Top Ten - record industry banks on talents of a few stars
Prince, Bruce, Lionel, Michael. Huey. When these guys put out some vinyl, disc jockeys sit up and pay attention. MTV goes on alert. The National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences takes notice when it hands out the annual Grammy Awards, as it will tonight in Los Angeles. And people start buying records.
Lots of records.
ACCORDING TO THE Record Industry Association of America, albums by all five musicians made the select list of the best-selling record albums sold in the United States over the past 10 years.
The RIAA began certifying gold records at least 500,000 copies sold in 1958. The platinum designation, which signifies a million copies sold, came along in 1976.
The RIAA list isn’t perfect. For one thing, the organization certifies sales only when requested to by the record companies, and it doesn’t keep running totals.
SOME RECORD companies, for example, will have a record certified platinum and then not bother to have the RIAA re-certify when the album reaches higher sales levels.
That means it’s entirely possible that there are records out there that have sold millions in the past 10 years, but aren’t on the list because the record company didn’t have sales certified past a certain point.
The list also does not take foreign sales into account. Michael Jackson’s Thriller, for example, sold millions of copies outside the United States that are not reflected in the RIAA figures.
IN A RECENT article, The Washington Post estimated that Thriller has sold an incredible 38 million copies around the world. But according to the RIAA figures, Jackson’s U.S. sales are at 20 million and even that estimate probably is low.
And if you’re wondering where the Beatles records are, well, the band broke up in 1969, and this list only covers the past decade.
So here they are, RIAA’s top 10 albums of the past 10 years, listed in order of sales:
Thriller, Michael Jackson, at least 20 million sold - The big one. This is the 1983 record that made Jackson a worldwide phenomenon and proved it was possible to obtain half a dozen hit singles from one album.
Jackson became a major force in video with the songs from this album,
The top nine recording artists of the past 10 years are portrayed above: 1. Michael Jackson was tops with Thriller, 2. Stevie Nicks and Mick Fleetwood helped make Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours a top seller; 3. The Bee Gees ran a temperature for Saturday Night Fever, 4. Bruce Springsteen rocked with Born in the USA; 5. Lionel Richie kept moving fast with Can’t Slow Down; 6. Prince & the Revolution made it with Purple Rain, 7. John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John made Grease a hit; 8. Madonna was hot with Like a Virgin; and 9. Huey Lewis & the News were a hit with Sports.
Disc jockeys like Jackson, Bruce, Prince
Folks in the music business have a certain healthy respect for a record album that can sell 7 million, 10 million or even 20 million copies.
Of course, when it comes down to a matter of personal preference, individuals respect some best-selling albums a little more than others.
“My personal favorites were Purple Rain and Michael Jackson’s Thriller,” said Renie Hale, a disc jockey for WDKX-FM. “I have to give credit to Thriller for bringing people back into the record stores.”
Going back a few years, Hale remembers the massive success of Saturday Night Fever during the height of the disco era: “I worked at the House of Guitars several years ago, and I can remember we were going through cases of it.”
The record Hale likes least on the list was the soundtrack to Grease, which he found overly commercial-and aimed at a very young audience.
By Andy Smith