Christmas Duets Charts In North America

This is good news! and with plenty of time before Christmas and a guarantee of airplay this could be a big one for Elvis & co

The following is taken from Fred Bronson's 'Chart Beat' Column in this weeks Billboard Magazine: Home For The Holidays: Elvis Presley is back on Top Country Albums with his highest-charting set in six years. "Christmas Duets" (RCA) is new at No. 13. It's Presley's best performance since "Elvis: 30 #1 Hits" spent three weeks at No. 1 in October 2002. On The Billboard 200, "Christmas Duets" enters at No. 61. It's the third Presley album to debut this year, the same number as last year, and it's the highest-charting Presley album since "Elvis: Viva Las Vegas" rolled the dice at No. 54 in September 2007. It is also No.5 on the Billboard Top Holiday Albums Chart.

Brian Quinn, thanks for the billboard info. what is your take on what credit Elvis will get from the riaa,eg. Bronson is clearly calling the duets album a Presley album and also the viva las vegas album as belonging to Elvis, yet the riaa listed the las vegas one under various artists therefore denying a certification to ELVIS, do you think the same thing will happen to the duets album?

Kenneth, In this instance I feel the RIAA will count the Christmas 'Duets' album as an Elvis album because he is featured on all the tracks. In the case of the 'Viva Las Vegas' CD he was not featured on eight of the tracks and I suspect this disqualified him under RIAA rules.

I know it is not unusual to put out a Christmas album in October, but I wonder if it would have been a better chart strategy to hold off until Thanksgiving. As far as I am concerned, this Cd consists of 3 tracks: The First Noel, Winter Wonderland and If I Get Home On Christmas Day. Yet, based solely on those, I heartily recommend buying it. Doesn't Billboard have a special "seasonal" chart just for the holidays?

Kingcreole, Billboard does indeed have a seasonal chart, its called the Top Holiday Album Chart.

In addition to James69 and Brian Quinn: The Elvis Presley Christmas Duets has entered the Top Holiday Album Chart at number five!!! Four to go...

I hope that it will be another no 1 for Elvis :-)

Last time we comment on this one. We have listened to this album and do NOT like it, nor buy it ! We also do hope that it'll be the FIRST & LAST of those Duet albums. Debateble if it's made for new and youngsters who also like Elvis. Will it pay off ? We don't think so ! They got their priorities wrong at FTD and BMG, now that is clear we agree Harvey but as long as you guys don't send in your creative ideas for Ernst and the Madison Ave. FTD Strategy Team to read, they will continue to spin around and come up with silly stuff and sadly so, not good sellers...which may lead to the closure of the FTD project and that would be disastrous if it would happen at this given moment. C'mon Scudder, Steve, John, Orion, Schemies, Otto: you all can do better by sharing your input with all of us (not only your negative comments).

The more I listen to the 'Duets' Album the more I like it. It is proving to be quite a hit already. In this weeks Cashbox Magazine, 'Elvis - Christmas Duets' Album is no.2 on the Christmas Album Chart with 'Elvis Christmas' at no.16. 'Duets' is also No.4 on the Top Country Album Chart.