POP LP CHART : New Kids, Vanilli in Top Slots

Artists who were unknown as recently as two years ago hold down the top four spots on Billboard magazine’s pop album chart again this week. Teen heroes New Kids on the Block remain at No. 1; dance popsters Milli Vanilli make a surprising spurt to No. 2, and Richard Marx and Paula Abdul dip to Nos. 3 and 4, respectively. But the latest albums by two veteran acts who had been written off by virtually the entire music industry are also doing well. Cher’s “Heart of Stone” sprints to No. 16--and has a good chance of becoming her first Top 10 album since Sonny & Cher’s salad days in 1965. And Alice Cooper’s “Trash” jumps to No. 38, becoming his first Top 40 album since 1976. Gloria Estefan’s “Don’t Wanna Lose You,” her first single on which Miami Sound Machine wasn’t billed, is the new No. 1 pop hit.

* The Rolling Stones’ “Steel Wheels” debuted at No. 44--a respectable but hardly spectacular start for the group’s first album in more than three years. But help is on the way. The band’s “Mixed Emotions” single enters the Top 30 this week, and the group is in the midst of its first tour since 1981.

Rank Rank 2 Weeks Title (Label) Last Week Weeks Ago on Chart 1. “Hangin’ Tough” 1 2 56 New Kids on the Block (Columbia) 2. “Girl You Know It’s True” 4 5 26 Milli Vanilli (Arista) 3. “Repeat Offender” 2 1 18 Richard Marx (EMI) 4. “Forever Your Girl” 3 4 61 Paula Abdul (Virgin) 5. “Batman” 5 3 11 Prince (Warner Bros.) * “Steel Wheels” -- -- 1 Rolling Stones (Columbia)