Madonna tops charts for 6th time

MADONNA’S return to the dance floor vaulted the veteran pop strategist to the top of the nation’s album sales chart Wednesday for the sixth time in her colorful career.

The singer’s “Confessions on a Dance Floor” sold 350,000 copies in its first week in stores, outpacing the debut by “American Idol’s” Carrie Underwood.

The latter’s countrified pop album “Some Hearts” sold 315,000 in its first week to finish at No. 2, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The impressive showing proves that “Idol” is still a potent calling card in pop.

Madonna’s sales represented a strong commercial recovery after the lukewarm sales of her last album, 2003’s thoughtful but sonically spare “American Girl.” That CD sold a respectable 241,000 copies in its first week but ended up selling fewer than 700,000 copies, a career low.

The only other new releases to enter the Top 20 this week were country duo Big & Rich’s “Comin’ to Your City,” which finished No. 7 with sales of 157,000 copies; Green Day’s live “Bullet in a Bible,” No. 8 with sales of 92,000; Ginuwine’s “Back II Da Basics,” No. 12, with sales of 74,000; and Bruce Springsteen’s deluxe “Born to Run” anniversary set, No. 18, with 53,000.

Thanks to an upgraded edition of the album, Mariah Carey’s “The Emancipation of Mimi” leaped 11 places to No. 4. Last week’s sales of 185,000 pushes the total to 3.9 million.

Kenny Chesney’s “The Road and the Radio,” which entered the chart at No. 1 last week, fell to No. 3 as sales dropped from 469,000 to 191,000.