I got this from another site. A couple seem to be slightly off.



In 2003, Rolling Stone did a Special Issue, the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, chosen by vote of 235 apparently qualified critics. In it they estimated sales using RIAA certifications, record labels and Soundscan.

Here are the sales of the soul music albums.

What's Going On - 1 million
Kind of Blue - Miles Davis - 3 million
Thriller - 26 million
The Great 28 - Chuck Berry - under 500,000
Innervisions - under 500,000
Live at the Apollo - James Brown - 1 million
King of the Delta Blues Singers - Robert Johnson - under 500,000
Muddy Waters - Anthology - 15,000
A Love Supreme - John Coltrane - under 500,000
It Takes A Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back - Public Enemy - 1 million
Here's Little Richard - under 500,000
Al Green's Greatest Hits - 1 million
The Birth of Soul - The Complete Atlantic R & B - Ray Charles - 60,000
Songs in the Key of Life - Stevie Wonder - 1 million
Sly and the Family Stone Greatest Hits - 500,000
Off the Walls - MJ - 7 million
Superfly - Curtis M - 500,000
Purple Rain - 13 million
Otis Blue - Otis Redding - under 500,000
Star Time - James Brown - 100,000
I Never Loved A Man The Way I Love You - Aretha - 500,000
Lady Soul - Aretha - 500,000
Dusty in Memphis - under 500,000
Talking Book - Stevie - 1 million
Sign O The Times - Prince - 1 million
Bitches Brew - Miles Davis - 1 million
There's A Riot Goin On - Sly - 1 million
Giant Steps - John Coltrane - under 500,000
Modern Sounds in C & W Music - Ray - 500,000
Portrait of a Legend 1951 - 1964 - Sam Cooke - 100,000
At Last - Etta James - under 500,000
Stand - Sly - 1 million
The Harder They Come - Soundtrack - under 500,000
Catch A Fire - Bob Marley - under 500,000
Ready to Die - Notorious BIG - 2,683,000
The Chronic - Dr. Dre - 4,551,000
Rejuvenation - The Meters - under 500,000
Straight Outta Compton - NWA - 2 million
The Otis Redding Anthology - 40,000
Moanin in the Moonlight - Howlin Wolf - under 500,000
The Dock of the Bay - Otis - 500,000
1999 - Prince - 4.2 million
Let's Get It On - Marvin - 1 million
One Nation Under A Groove - 1 million
The Anthology - 1961 - 1977 - Mayfield/Impressions - under 500,000
Natty Dread - Marley - under 500,000
Fresh - Sly - 500,000
Bad - MJ - 6 million
Dirty Mind - Prince - 1.2 million
Proud Mary - the Best of Ike & Tina Turner - 70,000
Go Bo Diddley - under 500,000
Two Steps from the Blues - Bobby Bland - under 500,000
Look Ka Py Py - Meters - under 500,000
Paid in Full - Eric B & Rakim - 1 million
Mr. Excitement - Jackie Wilson - 17,000
Dictionary of Soul - Otis - under 500,000
Whitney Houston - Whitney Houston - 13 million
The Velvet Rope - Janet - 6 million
The Genius of Ray Charles - under 500,000
Going to a Go Go - Smokey - under 500,000
Can't Get Enough - Barry White - 500,000
Music of My Mind - Stevie - under 500,000
I'm Still in Love With U - Al - 1 million
Call Me - Al - 500,000
Back Stabbers - O Jays - 500,000
In the Jungle Groove - James Brown - under 500,000
Crazy Sexy Cool - TLC - 7,167,000
Anthology - Tempts - 1995 - 200,000
James Brown - Greatest Hits - 1991 - 1 million
Presenting the Ronettes - 1964 - 100,000
Anthology - Ross/Supremes - 2001 - 104,000
Live at the Harlem Square Club 1963 - Sam Cooke - under 500,000
The World is a Ghetto - War - 500,000
Here My Dear - Marvin - 500,000
Golden Hits - The Drifters - under 500,000
Live in Europe - Otis - under 500,000
Maggot Brain - Funkadelic - under 500,000
That's the Way of the World - E W & F - 3 million
Born Under A Bad Sign - Albert King - 500,000

Of course there is the usual Rolling Stone bias in choices - but some huge numbers from the white rock bands. And Stevie's Songs in the Key of Life went on to be certified for 10 million later. And I believe Universal claims Where Did Our Love Go as the best selling album of 1964!

LittleBLUECorvette said:

I'm surprised Jackie Wilson didn't ell a lot of records.

LittleBLUECorvette said:

This has got to more than just slightly off. Makes me think they're just focusing on the impact of sales during the inital release, as opposed to cumulative sales over the decades since, but even then, less than half a mill seems way low for Innervisions.