A positive spin in ’04 record sales

ALBUM sales in the U.S. increased by 1.6% last year over 2003, which doesn’t sound like much until you consider that it’s the first time since 2000 that they haven’t decreased.

So how are consumers dividing the pie? According to Nielsen SoundScan, it’s still a world ruled by R&B;, which accounted for nearly a quarter of the 657 million total sales. If you add in the related rap field, the share is more than 35% of the market.

Here’s how the main styles of music fared during 2004, with percentages determined by comparing sales to the total market. (Some albums appear in more than one category, and SoundScan, strangely, doesn’t create a separate genre for contemporary pop, so we don’t know where Ashlee and Jessica fit into all of this.)

R&B;: Led by the 8 million sales of Usher’s “Confessions,” this genre remained the dominant force in American pop music, which may explain why next month’s Grammy telecast may look like an R&B;/hip-hop revue. Usher, Alicia Keys and rapper Kanye West are all nominated for album of the year -- along with R&B; legend Ray Charles. Its 162-million total is a 10-million increase from 2003 and represents 24% of album sales.

Alternative: This modern-rock sound, which incorporates everything from Franz Ferdinand to U2, climbed steadily since 1998, reaching the 20% mark in 2004 with sales of 133 million.

Rap: Eminem, West, Nelly and OutKast contributed to rap’s total of 81 million, up 5 million from 2003. Market share: 12%.

Country: Kenny Chesney, Gretchen Wilson, Tim McGraw and Shania Twain accounted for nearly a fourth of the 78 million total, up from 69 million in 2003. It accounts for 12% of the market.

Metal: A genre that’s held steady at about 11% for several years. 2004 totals: 75.2 million, up from 73.8 million the previous year.

Christian/Gospel: Market share has dropped to 6.4% after hit band Evanescence was moved out of the category. 2004 sales: 43 million.

Latin: Nearly 32 million copies during the year, an increase of 16% over 2003. Market share: 4.8%.

Soundtrack: The days of “8 Mile,” “O Brother” and especially “Titanic” are gone. “Shrek 2,” the biggest soundtrack of 2004, didn’t break a million. 2004 total: 27 million, down from 33 million. Market share: 4%.

Jazz: Norah Jones might not really be jazz, but when “Come Away With Me” sold 5 million in 2003 SoundScan included those sales in this category, enabling jazz to reach its highest total in seven years, 23 million (and a 3.5% market share). 2004: 19 million. Market share: 2.8%.

Classical: Josh Groban might not really be classical, but SoundScan includes him in this category, and he’s helped the genre stay around the 3% level for three years. 2004: 18.6 million, down from 18.8 million. Market share: 2.8%.

New Age: Reaching advanced old age. Last year’s 4.7 million was down from 5.6 million. Market share: 0.7%.