Barbra Streisand hits No. 1 on Billboard chart in record sixth decade

Barbra Streisand’s new album is called “Partners,” but in at least one way she’s in a class of her own.

The singer’s latest disc -- featuring duets with Billy Joel, Stevie Wonder and John Legend, among others -- debuted Wednesday atop the Billboard 200 album chart, reflecting sales of 196,000 copies in the week ended Sept. 21, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

That makes Streisand the first artist to have a No. 1 album in each of the last six decades. Her first, wrote Billboard’s Keith Caulfield, was “People,” which hit the top spot nearly 50 years ago, in October 1964.

“Partners” is the singer’s 10th chart-topper, the same number scored by Elvis Presley. Only the Beatles, Jay Z and Bruce Springsteen have notched more.

Behind Streisand on this week’s chart, four other new albums debuted in the top 5, headed up by Chris Brown’s “X” at No. 2 with sales of 146,000 copies.

The latest from country stars Tim McGraw (“Sundown Heaven Town”) and George Strait (“The Cowboy Rides Away: Live From AT&T Stadium”) entered at Nos. 3 and 4, respectively, followed by Train’s “Bulletproof Picasso” at No. 5.

Twitter: @mikaelwood