1. Kenny Chesney–“Save It for a Rainy Day” (3rd week at #1)
2. Brett Eldredge–“Lose My Mind” (up 1)
3. Luke Bryan–“Strip It Down” (up 1)
4. Keith Urban–“John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16” (down 2)
5. Florida Georgia Line–“Anything Goes”
6. Chase Rice–“Gonna Wanna Tonight” (up 2)
7. Old Dominion–“Break Up With Him” (down 1)
8. Cole Swindell–“Let Me See Ya Girl” (up 2)
9. Carrie Underwood–“Smoke Break” (down 2)
10. Maddie & Tae–“Fly” (up 1)
11. Dan + Shay–“Nothin’ Like You” (up 1)
12. Blake Shelton–“Gonna” (up 1)
13. Chris Young–“I’m Comin’ Over” (up 1)
14. Jason Aldean–“Gonna Know We Were Here” (up 1)
15. Tim McGraw–“Top of the World” (up 1)
16. Cam–“Burning House” (up 1)
17. Brothers Osborne–“Stay a Little Longer” (up 2)
18. Big & Rich–“Run Away With You” (up 3)
19. Parmalee–“Already Callin’ You Mine” (up 1)
20. Kelsea Ballerini–“Dibs” (up 2)
21. LoCash–“I Love This Life” (up 2)
22. Jana Kramer–“I Got the Boy” (up 2)
23. Hunter Hayes–“21” (up 2)
24. Brad Paisley–“Country Nation” (up 2)
25. Randy Houser–“We Went” (up 3)
26. Sam Hunt–“Break up in a Small Town” (entering top 30)
27. A Thousand Horses–(“This Ain’t No) Drunk Dial” (up 3)
28. The Band Perry–“Live Forever” (down 1)
29. Jake Owen–“Real Life” (down 11)
30. Thomas Rhett–“Die a Happy Man” (entering top 30)
Kenny Chesney’s “Save It for a Rainy Day” remains at the top for a 3rd week
next week’s #1 prediction: “Lose My Mind
Sam Hunt’s horrible “Break up in a Small Town” and Thomas Rhett’s “Die a Happy Man” enter the top 30 this week
Chris Janson’s “Buy Me a Boat” fell from #9 to out of the top 30
Chase Bryant’s “Little Bit of You” fell from #29 to #31
Billboard Top Country Albums
What a victory for country music!
1. Don Henley–Cass County [debut]
2. George Strait–Cold Beer Conversation [debut]
3. Thomas Rhett–Tangled Up [debut]
4. Luke Bryan–Kill the Lights
5. Sam Hunt–Montevallo
6. Alabama–Southern Drawl
7. Brett Eldredge–Illinois
8. Zac Brown Band–Jekyll + Hyde
9. Eric Church–The Outsiders
10. Florida Georgia Line–Anything Goes
11. Little Big Town–Painkiller
12. Maddie & Tae–Start Here
13. Clint Black–On Purpose [debut]
14. Alan Jackson–Angels and Alcohol
15. Jason Aldean–Old Boots, New Dirt
16. Turnpike Troubadours–Turnpike Troubadours
17. Brantley Gilbert–Just as I Am
18. Kacey Musgraves–Pageant Material
19. Various Artists–Now That’s What I Call Country, Volume 8
20. Chase Rice–Ignite the Night
21. Chris Stapleton–Traveller
22. Kip Moore–Wild Ones
23. Willie Nelson/Merle Haggard–Django and Jimmie
24. Home Free–Country Evolution
25. Jason Isbell–Something More Than Free
Don Henley’s Cass County and George Strait’s Cold Beer Conversation each sold more than 80,000 copies, coming in at #1 and #2
Thomas Rhett’s Tangled Up missed Strait by 20,000 copies and came in at #3…this is the best sentence I have ever written on this blog
Clint Black’s On Purpose unimpressively debuts at #13
1. Kenny Chesney–“Save It for a Rainy Day” (2nd week a #1)
2. Keith Urban–“John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16”
3. Brett Eldredge–“Lose my Mind” (up 1)
4. Luke Bryan–“Strip It Down” (up 2)
5. Florida Georgia Line–“Anything Goes” (up 2)
6. Old Dominion–“Break Up With Him” (up 5) [tied for biggest gainer]
7. Carrie Underwood–“Smoke Break” (up 2)
8. Chase Rice–“Gonna Wanna Tonight”
9. Chris Janson–“Buy Me a Boat” (down 6)
10. Cole Swindell–“Let Me See Ya Girl” (up 2)
11. Maddie & Tae–“Fly” (down 1)
12. Dan + Shay–“Nothin’ Like You” (up 1)
13. Blake Shelton–“Gonna” (up 1)
14. Chris Young–“I’m Comin’ Over” (up 1)
15. Jason Aldean–“Gonna Know We Were Here” (up 5) [tied for biggest gainer]
16. Tim McGraw–“Top of the World” (up 2)
17. Cam–“Burning House” (up 2)
18. Jake Owen–“Real Life” (down 1)
19. Brothers Osborne–“Stay a Little Longer” (up 2)
20. Parmalee–“Already Callin’ You Mine” (up 3)
21. Big & Rich–“Run Away With You” (up 1)
22. Kelsea Ballerini–“Dibs” (up 2)
23. LoCash–“I Love This Life” (up 2)
24. Jana Kramer–“I Got the Boy” (up 2)
25. Hunter Hayes–“21” (up 2)
26. Brad Paisley–“Country Nation” (entering top 30)
27. The Band Perry–“Live Forever” (up 1)
28. Randy Houser–“We Went” (entering top 30)
29. Chase Bryant–“Little Bit of You” (up 1)
30. A Thousand Horses–(“This Ain’t No) Drunk Dial” (down 1)
Kenny Chesney’s “Save It for a Rainy Day” remains at the top for a 2nd week
next week’s #1 prediction: “John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16”
Thomas Rhett’s “Crash and Burn” and Lady Antebellum’s “Long Stretch of Love” fell from #5 and #16, respectively, to out of the top 30
Brad Paisley’s mediocre “Country Nation” and Randy Houser’s unoriginal “We Went” enter the top 30 this week
Billboard Top Country Albums
1. Luke Bryan–Kill the Lights
2. Alabama–Southern Drawl [debut]
3. Turnpike Troubadours–The Turnpike Troubadours [debut]
4. Home Free–Country Evolution [debut]
5. Brett Eldredge–Illinois
6. Sam Hunt–Montevallo
7. Eric Church–The Outsiders
8. Zac Brown Band–Jekyll + Hyde
9. Florida Georgia Line–Anything Goes
10. Little Big Town–Painkiller
11. Maddie & Tae–Start Here
12. Jason Aldean–Old Boots, New Dirt
13. Alan Jackson–Angels and Alcohol
14. Brantley Gilbert–Just as I Am
15. Various Artists–Now That’s What I Call Country, Volume 8
16. Kacey Musgraves–Pageant Material
17. Kip Moore–Wild Ones
18. Chris Stapleton–Traveller
19. Chase Rice–Ignite the Night
20. Zac Brown Band–Greatest Hits So Far…
21. Jason Isbell–Something More Than Free
22. Carrie Underwood–Greatest Hits: Decade #1
23. Elvis Presley–Elvis Presley Forever
24. Cole Swindell–Cole Swindell
25. Alabama–Angels Among Us: Hymns & Gospel Favorites
Luke Bryan is back on top with the unfortunate Kill the Lights
Turnpike Troubadours debut at #3 with their brilliant self-titled album…if you have not listened to and/or bought this, do it now
Alabama’s Southern Drawl debuts at #2
at least Sam Hunt was not in the top 5 for once
seriously, who is buying these Now That’s What I Call Country albums?
1. Kenny Chesney–“Save It for a Rainy Day” (up 3)
2. Keith Urban–“John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16”
3. Chris Janson–“Buy Me a Boat”
4. Brett Eldredge–“Lose My Mind” (up 1)
5. Thomas Rhett–“Crash and Burn” (down 4)
6. Luke Bryan–“Strip it Down” (up 2)
7. Florida Georgia Line–“Anything Goes” (up 2)
8. Chase Rice–“Gonna Wanna Tonight” (up 3)
9. Carrie Underwood–“Smoke Break” (up 5) [tied for biggest gainer]
10. Maddie & Tae–“Fly”
11. Old Dominion–“Break Up With Him” (up 1)
12. Cole Swindell–“Let Me See Ya Girl” (up 1)
13. Dan + Shay–“Nothin’ Like You” (up 2)
14. Blake Shelton–“Gonna” (up 2)
15. Chris Young–“I’m Comin’ Over” (up 5) [tied for biggest gainer]
16. Lady Antebellum–“Long Stretch of Love” (up 1)
17. Jake Owen–“Real Life” (up 1)
18. Tim McGraw–“Top of the World” (up 3)
19. Cam–“Burning House”
20. Jason Aldean–“Gonna Know We Were Here” (up 2)
21. Brothers Osborne–“Stay a Little Longer” (up 3)
22. Big & Rich–“Run Away With You” (up 1)
23. Parmalee–“Already Callin’ You Mine” (up 2)
24. Kelsea Ballerini–“Dibs” (up 2)
25. LoCash–“I Love This Life” (up 2)
26. Jana Kramer–“I Got the Boy” (up 2)
27. Hunter Hayes–“21” (up 2)
28. The Band Perry–“Live Forever” (up 2)
29. A Thousand Horses–“(This Ain’t No) Drunk Dial” (entering top 30)
30. Chase Bryant–“Little Bit of You” (entering top 30)
new #1: “Save It for a Rainy Day”
next week’s #1 prediction: “John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16”
Dustin Lynch’s “Hell of a Night” and Sam Hunt’s “House Party” fell from #6 and #7, respectively, to out of the top 30
A Thousand Horses and Chase Bryant enter the top 30 with the less than impressive “(This Ain’t No) Drunk Dial” and “Little Bit of You”
Billboard Top Country Albums
1. Brett Eldredge–Illinois [debut]
2. Luke Bryan–Kill the Lights
3. Sam Hunt–Montevallo
4. Zac Brown Band–Jekyll + Hyde
5. Eric Church–The Outsiders
6. Florida Georgia Line–Anything Goes
7. Maddie & Tae–Start Here
8. Little Big Town–Painkiller
9. Alan Jackson–Angels and Alcohol
10. Jason Aldean–Old Boots, New Dirt
11. Brantley Gilbert–Just as I Am
12. Kip Moore–Wild Ones
13. Kacey Musgraves–Pageant Material
14. Chris Stapleton–Traveller
15. Various Artists–Now That’s What I Call Country, Volume 8
16. Elvis Presley–Elvis Presley Forever
17. Zac Brown Band–Greatest Hits So Far…
18. Jason Isbell–Something More Than Free
19. Chase Rice–Ignite the Night
20. Kelsea Ballerini–The First Time
21. Willie Nelson/Merle Haggard–Django and Jimmie
22. Cole Swindell–Cole Swindell
23. Carrie Underwood–Greatest Hits: Decade #1
24. Darius Rucker–Southern Style
25. Various Artists–Mud Digger, Volume 6
Brett Eldredge’s mediocre r&b-influenced Illinois finally replaces Luke Bryan’s horrifying album at the top, and for that, I have to thank Brett
look at the staying power of Jason Isbell, Chris Stapleton, and Willie and Merle, enough said
1. Thomas Rhett–“Crash and Burn” (up 1)
2. Keith Urban–“John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16” (up 1)
3. Chris Janson–“Buy Me a Boat” (up 1)
4. Kenny Chesney–“Save It for a Rainy Day” (up 2)
5. Brett Eldredge–“Lose My Mind” (up 2)
6. Dustin Lynch–“Hell of a Night” (down 5)
7. Sam Hunt–“House Party” (down 2)
8. Luke Bryan–“Strip it Down”
9. Florida Georgia Line–“Anything Goes”
10. Maddie & Tae–“Fly”
11. Chase Rice–“Gonna Wanna Tonight” (up 1)
12. Old Dominion–“Break Up With Him” (up 2)
13. Cole Swindell–“Let Me See Ya Girl”
14. Carrie Underwood–“Smoke Break” (up 3)
15. Dan + Shay–“Nothin’ Like You”
16. Blake Shelton–“Gonna”
17. Lady Antebellum–“Long Stretch of Love” (up 2)
18. Jake Owen–“Real Life”
19. Cam–“Burning House” (up 3)
20. Chris Young–“I’m Comin’ Over”
21. Tim McGraw–“Top of the World” (up 2)
22. Jason Aldean–“Gonna Know We Were Here” (up 5) [biggest gainer]
23. Big & Rich–“Run Away With You” (up 1)
24. Brothers Osborne–“Stay a Little Longer” (up 1)
25. Parmalee–“Already Callin’ You Mine” (up 1)
26. Kelsea Ballerini–“Dibs” (up 2)
27. LoCash–“I Love This Life” (up 2)
28. Jana Kramer–“I Got the Boy” (up 2)
29. Hunter Hayes–“21” (re-entering top 30)
30. The Band Perry–“Live Forever” (entering top 30)
new #1: “Crash and Burn”
next week’s #1 prediction: “John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16”
Eric Church’s “Like a Wrecking Ball” and Kip Moore’s “I’m To Blame” fell from #11 and #21, respectively, to out of the top 30
Hunter Hayes’s “21” re-enters the top 30 this week, along with The Band Perry’s terrible new pop single, “Live Forever”
at least “Strip it Down” has stalled a little in its ridiculous climb to the top
Billboard Top Country Albums
1. Luke Bryan–Kill the Lights
2. Sam Hunt–Montevallo
3. Maddie & Tae–Start Here
4. Zac Brown Band–Jekyll + Hyde
5. Eric Church–The Outsiders
6. Elvis Presley–Elvis Presley Forever
7. Kip Moore–Wild Ones
8. Florida Georgia Line–Anything Goes
9. Little Big Town–Painkiller
10. Alan Jackson–Angels and Alcohol
11. Brantley Gilbert–Just as I Am
12. Jason Aldean–Old Boots, New Dirt
13. Chris Stapleton–Traveller
14. Various Artists–Now That’s What I Call Country, Volume 8
15. Various Artists–Mud Digger, Volume 6
16. Luke Bryan–Crash My Party
17. Kacey Musgraves–Pageant Material
18. Jason Isbell–Something More Than Free
19. Zac Brown Band–Greatest Hits So Far…
20. Chase Rice–Ignite the Night
21. Darius Rucker–Southern Style
22. Cole Swindell–Cole Swindell
23. Willie Nelson/Merle Haggard–Django and Jimmie
24. Kelsea Ballerini–The First Time
25. Carrie Underwood–Greatest Hits: Decade #1
Luke Bryan is still at the top
Maddie & Tae sit at #3 like beacons of hope…they really have the top country album, because neither Kill the Lights nor Montevallo are country albums
Chris Stapleton’s Traveller moved up 7 spots from #20 to #13 this week
1. Dustin Lynch–“Hell of a Night” (up 1)
2. Thomas Rhett–“Crash and Burn” (up 1)
3. Keith Urban–“John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16” (up 2)
4. Chris Janson–“Buy Me a Boat”
5. Sam Hunt–“House Party” (down 4)
6. Kenny Chesney–“Save It for a Rainy Day” (up 2)
7. Brett Eldredge–“Lose My Mind”
8. Luke Bryan–“Strip It Down” (up 5) [biggest gainer]
9. Florida Georgia Line–“Anything Goes” (up 1)
10. Maddie & Tae–“Fly” (down 1)
11. Eric Church–“Like a Wrecking Ball”
12. Chase Rice–“Gonna Wanna Tonight”
13. Cole Swindell–“Let Me See Ya Girl” (up 2)
14. Old Dominion–“Break Up With Him” (up 2)
15. Dan + Shay–“Nothin’ Like You” (up 2)
16. Blake Shelton–“Gonna” (up 2)
17. Carrie Underwood–“Smoke Break” (up 5)
18. Jake Owen–“Real Life” (up 1)
19. Lady Antebellum–“Long Stretch of Love” (up 1)
20. Chris Young–“I’m Comin’ Over” (up 4)
21. Kip Moore–“I’m To Blame”
22. Cam–“Burning House” (up 1)
23. Tim McGraw–“Top of the World” (up 4)
24. Big & Rich–“Run Away With You” (up 1)
25. Brothers Osborne–“Stay a Little Longer” (up 1)
26. Parmalee–“Already Callin’ You Mine” (up 2)
27. Jason Aldean–“Gonna Know We Were Here” (up 2)
28. Kelsea Ballerini–“Dibs” (up 2)
29. LoCash–“I Love This Life” (entering top 30)
30. Jana Kramer–“I Got the Boy” (re-entering top 30)
new #1: “Hell of a Night”
next week’s #1 prediction: “Crash and Burn”
Jana Kramer adds quality to the top 30 with the re-entrance (finally) of “I Got the Boy”
this is balanced by LoCash’s “I Love This Life
Frankie Ballard’s “Young and Crazy” and Zac Brown Band’s “Loving You Easy” fell from #6 and #15, respectively, to out of the top 30
Luke Bryan has hit #8 with “Strip it Down” after only 5 weeks…draw your own conclusions about this
Billboard Top Country Albums
1. Luke Bryan–Kill the Lights
2. Maddie & Tae–Start Here [debut]
3. Sam Hunt–Montevallo
4. Zac Brown Band–Jekyll + Hyde
5. Eric Church–The Outsiders
6. Elvis Presley–Elvis Presley Forever
7. Kip Moore–Wild Ones
8. Florida Georgia Line–Anything Goes
9. Little Big Town–Painkiller
10. Alan Jackson–Angels and Alcohol
11. Brantley Gilbert–Just as I Am
12. Jason Aldean–Old Boots, New Dirt
13. Darius Rucker–Southern Style
14. Luke Bryan–Crash My Party
15. Various Artists–Mud Digger, Volume 6 [debut]
16. Various Artists–Now That’s What I Call Country, Volume 8
17. Kacey Musgraves–Pageant Material
18. Jason Isbell–Something More Than Free
19. Kenny Chesney–The Big Revival
20. Chris Stapleton–Traveller
21. Chase Rice–Ignite the Night
22. Zac Brown Band–Greatest Hits So Far…
23. Michael Ray–Michael Ray
24. Kelsea Ballerini–The First Time
25. Cole Swindell–Cole Swindell