Simpson debuts at top

Ashlee Simpson may not have to go through life much longer being known primarily as Jessica’s little sister. The 19-year-old quasi-punkette’s debut album, “Autobiography,” entered the sales charts at No. 1 on Wednesday after selling 398,000 copies in its first week in stores.

That sales figure is the sixth-highest first-week total of 2004 and the highest for any teen pop singer, even topping the 381,000 opening-week sales that Avril Lavigne’s latest album, “Under My Skin,” reached in May.

Besides the Jessica connection, this Simpson’s album sales were aided by the radio exposure of the singer’s “Pieces of Me” single and her reality series on MTV.

The only other new release to crack the top 10 this week is Van Halen’s retrospective, “The Best of Both Worlds.” The two-disc package finished No. 3 after selling 138,000 copies.

Jimmy Buffett’s “License to Chill,” which entered the charts at No. 1 last week, fell to No. 2 after selling 148,000 more copies. Its two-week total: 388,000. It features interpretations of the singer’s favorite “bar gig” tunes.

The Hives, the entertaining Swedish band that is part of a refreshing new crop of vital rock bands, got off to a disappointing start. Its “Tyrannosaurus Hives” finished No. 33.