POP CHARTS

Whitney Houston’s “Whitney” joined that small, select circle of albums that have debuted on the Billboard pop chart at No. 1 when the LP turned the trick on this week’s Billboard pop charts. The last one to accomplish this feat was “Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Live 1975/85” last November. Houston’s single, “I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me),” also hit the top of the singles chart. Houston’s album deposes U2’s “The Joshua Tree,” which had been No. 1 for nine weeks. But the real shock of the week is the rocket-like rise of “Bigger and Deffer” by rapper L. L. Cool J. In its second week on the chart, it jumped from No. 52 to No. 13. The two other red-hot LPs are Motley Crue’s “Girls, Girls, Girls” (No. 2) and Heart’s “Bad Animals” (No. 6). Look for the fast-rising “Beverly Hills Cop II” sound-track album (No. 18) to crash the Top 10 in the next week or two. U2’s “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking for” (No. 25) and Fleetwood Mac’s “Seven Wonders” (No. 45) are the hot new singles.