A Repeat Performance for ‘Britney’

Britney Spears has indeed done it again, on the sales chart.

The young pop siren’s “Britney” entered the nation’s album chart at No. 1 on Wednesday after selling 746,000 copies during its first week on the shelves.

All three of her albums have debuted at the top of the charts.

The figure was the second-highest first-week total of the year, behind the 1.88 million in July by ‘N Sync’s “Celebrity.” But it was far behind the 1.3 million mark of her “Oops! ... I Did It Again” last year, another sign that the teen pop boom of recent years is waning.

Spears’ first album, 1999’s “ ... Baby One More Time,” sold 121,000 copies its first week, enough to reach No. 1 in a slow sales week.

“Given that this year’s teen acts are not selling what they sold last year, this is a very respectable figure for Britney,” Geoff Mayfield, director of charts for Billboard magazine, said Wednesday.

The week’s other big arrival was Pink Floyd’s “Echoes,” a two-disc compilation. It sold 215,000, enough for second place. Michael Jackson’s “Invincible” finished third with sales of 202,000 in its second week in stores.

Five other new arrivals debuted in the Top 25: George Strait’s “Road Less Traveled” (No. 9), Petey Pablo’s “Diary of a Sinner: 1st Entry” (No. 13), Faith Evans’ “Faithfully” (No. 14), “The Wash” soundtrack (No. 19) and Angie Stone’s “Mahogany Soul” (No. 22).

The remaining places in the Top 10 were claimed by Enrique Iglesias (No. 4), Enya (5), DMX (6), the Backstreet Boys (7), Nickelback (8) and Ja Rule (10).

The soundtrack for “O Brother, Where Art Thou?,” which has already sold more than 2.6 million copies, jumped from No. 30 to No. 16 after being named album of the year last week by the Country Music Assn.

Looking ahead, Garth Brooks’ new “Scarecrow” reportedly got off to a fast start in its first day in stores Tuesday. It is expected to enter the charts at No. 1 next week with another of the year’s biggest first-week totals.

Whitney Houston’s “The Star Spangled Banner” is the best-selling single for the sixth consecutive week. It is trailed by another patriotic record, Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the U.S.A.”