WICKED cast album tops 2 million in sales

[frontrowcentre2]

Posted: 9/2/10 at 5:17pm

According to this week's Billboard cast album chart, the Decca Broadway original cast recording of WICKED has now passed 2 million scans, meaning it has sold in excess of two million units. That is phenomenal in a time when most cast albums are lucky to sell 20,000 units.

Once again this week WICKED is #1 on Billboard's cast albums chart, #154 on Billboard's list of the top 200 albums and #13 in the Top Catalog albums chart (for albums in release more than 2 years.)

Who says cast albums can't sell!

[aasjb4ever]

Posted: 9/2/10 at 6:45pm

Fancy.

I learned that from Everyday Rapture.

[frontrowcentre2]

Posted: 9/3/10 at 2:56pm

As far as I can tell, of all the shows and cast albums of the last decade only WICKED and JERSEY BOYS have sold over 1 million discs and are certified Platinum by the RIAA.

[defygravity24]

Posted: 9/3/10 at 2:59pm

it was only a matter of time.

[philitalia]

Posted: 9/3/10 at 3:05pm

Unfortunately I've got 1 of those 2 miilion copies

[mikem]

Posted: 9/3/10 at 4:58pm

frontrowcentre, thanks for the update! As of mid-July, Jersey Boys was at 1.13 million, selling about 2000 - 3500 copies a week. (Wicked sells around 3000 - 4000 copies a week.) I don't have a more updated number than that.

Can anyone guess what the biggest selling cast album has been since 1991, which is when Soundscan starting counting actual sales (rather than shipments to stores)? (Note that does not necessarily mean that the album was released after 1991, just that the sales total only counts sales from 1991 or later.)

Updated On: 9/3/10 at 04:58 PM

[Brick]

Posted: 9/3/10 at 5:11pm

My guess would be RENT.

[Salene]

Posted: 9/3/10 at 5:52pm

Les Mis.

[thesixtyfirstpupil]

Posted: 9/3/10 at 6:02pm

The Phantom of the Opera is my guess. :P

[ReiVallejo]

Posted: 9/3/10 at 6:09pm

Phantom of the Opera?

[mikem]

Posted: 9/3/10 at 6:29pm

The Phantom of the Opera is right! The "highlights" version (the single disc) has sold 4.9 million copies since 1991 in the US, and the full-length version has sold 2.6 million. So 7.5 million sales of the album since 1991. That's about as many albums sold as the biggest sellers by artists like 50 Cent and Carrie Underwood.

Those numbers are astounding, particularly when you take into account that the highlights disc was released in 1988 and the full-length in 1987, so the first few years of sales are not included.

I may be missing some, but I believe the big sellers in order since 1991 are:

Phantom
Les Mis
Wicked
Rent
**ONE THAT HASN'T BEEN GUESSED YET**
Jersey Boys

Those are the only million sellers since 1991.

Any guesses for the missing CD?

(edited to fix mistakes in order)

Updated On: 9/4/10 at 06:29 PM

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 9/3/10 at 6:32pm

If I remember correctly hasn't the revival recording of Chicago done some very good business?

[IAMmyownMUSICAL]

Posted: 9/3/10 at 7:16pm

I'm almost certain JB has not out sold RENT.

[Brave Sir Robin2]

Posted: 9/3/10 at 7:41pm

Maybe it's Lion King or Chicago? Or Miss Saigon....

[ReiVallejo]

Posted: 9/4/10 at 12:44am

It's GOTTA be 'The Lion King'.

[mikem]

Posted: 9/4/10 at 10:50am

IAMmyownMUSICAL, you're right that Rent has outsold Jersey Boys. I was using outdated numbers and also did not include the Rent highlights disc. I also didn't include the London Les Mis the first time around - combined, the two have outsold Wicked.

Here are the actual totals.

Phantom - 4.9 million highlights + 2.6 million full-length = 7.5 million as of March 2010

Les Mis - 1.5 million Broadway cast + 600K London cast = 2.1 million as of May 2005 -- these numbers could be a bit higher with the recent revival and Susan Boyle's "I Dreamed a Dream"; the Glee "I Dreamed a Dream" didn't really have much impact; like with Phantom, this doesn't include pre-1991 sales

Wicked - 2 million as of this week

Rent - 1.2 million full-length + 400K highlights = 1.6 million as of June 2009

**Mystery album** - 1.57 million as of June 2009

Jersey Boys - 1.13 million as of July 2010

Next in line:

Lion King - 783K as of June 2009

Miss Saigon - 729K as of June 2009 (again, not including pre-1991 sales; this is for the full-length original album only, not including highlights or the "complete" Miss Saigon)

************

The Chicago revival is at 424K as of May 2005 (which is still excellent - probably in Top 10 for post-1991 releases). So the mystery album still hasn't been guessed yet. Here is a hint -- the mystery album is NOT an original Broadway cast recording.

Updated On: 9/4/10 at 10:50 AM

[wdwfreak]

Posted: 9/4/10 at 10:56am

Cats?

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 9/4/10 at 11:25am

The original concept album of Jesus Christ Superstar?

[pinkyboy]

Posted: 9/4/10 at 12:57pm

Maybe Mamma Mia? The film probably got a lot of interest in it, and it was pretty popular before then :)

[CockeyedOptimist2]

Posted: 9/4/10 at 1:26pm

I'll second Mamma Mia. I believe the cast recording that's out there is the London cast.

[mikem]

Posted: 9/4/10 at 1:55pm

Yes, it is Mamma Mia! The movie soundtrack has also sold about 1.8 million. (although I can't imagine voluntarily listening to Pierce Brosnan sing over and over...)

Any guesses as to which soundtrack from a movie based on a stage musical has sold the most since 1991? (The movie is based on the musical, not the other way around; the movie soundtrack that has led to a musical that has sold the most since 1991 is The Lion King, which has sold almost 8 million of the movie soundtrack.)

(Good call on Jesus Christ Superstar, by the way -- the album has sold 450K, which is a lot more than I would have thought. It may be the best-selling cast or concept album since 1991 that was originally released before 1980. I don't have a number for Cats, although I imagine it was a strong seller in the 1990s.)

Updated On: 9/4/10 at 01:55 PM

[frontrowcentre2]

Posted: 9/4/10 at 3:54pm

My guess would be the movie soundtrack of GREASE which has been a steady catalog seller for the past 30 years.

Fun stuff, Mikem! Thanks for sharing the numbers.

How many units has the OBC of OKLAHOMA! moved since it came out on CD in 1993? (There are 2 editions one on MCA and one on DEcca Broadway.)

[mikem]

Posted: 9/4/10 at 11:57pm

Grease is the right answer! The Grease soundtrack has sold 5.9 million copies since 1991, an amazing figure considering that the album came out in 1978. Looking at sales from 1991 onward, it is the 3rd biggest seller of any album released before 1980. (The two biggest are Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon and James Taylor's Greatest Hits.) The Grease soundtrack sells about 1200 copies a week.

I don't have any information about the sales for Oklahoma. I actually have very little information on older cast albums. The only one I've seen a number for is West Side Story, which supposedly is at 424K, but I couldn't swear that number's not for the film soundtrack rather than the Broadway cast album.