Company Town : STACKING UP SALES

Total album and single sales of CDs and cassettes for the week ended July 3, compared to week-ago and year-ago levels, in millions of units sold:

Latest week:

Albums: 10.8

Singles: 2.0

*

Week-ago:

Albums: 10.5

Singles: 1.9

*

Year-ago:

Albums: 9.8

Singles: 2.3

Hits Magazine Tip of the Week

Who said vanity labels don’t succeed? When Madonna announced the formation of her Warner Bros.-distributed Maverick Records just over two years ago, jaded industry insiders laughed it off as just another toy for a superstar. Once again, it’s the Material Girl who’s having the last laugh. Maverick, headed by Madonna’s longtime manager, Freddy DeMann, has earned industrywide praise for introducing Seattle’s Candlebox, whose debut album is heading toward double platinum (sales of 2 million copies) and climbing steadily. The single and video “Far Behind” also continue their rise.

Note: Hits magazine is a weekly music industry trade publication.

Source: Soundscan Inc.