We had high hopes for Mariah Carey’s “Caution” album. It got pretty good reviews; we really liked it. “Caution” entered the iTunes chart on Friday at number 4, and was high up on Amazon.
When the numbers were settled it seemed like “Caution” sold a respectable 40,000 copies with another 10,000 in sales from streaming.
There was a lot of celebrating.
But a new week began Friday in the music charts. Since then, “Caution” has dropped into the 30s on iTunes. On Amazon, it’s number 237. According to BuzzAngle, there have been between zero sales since Friday or maybe as 174 in streaming of singles.
This much is true: “Caution” has met a quick demise after one week. Can it be saved?
It’s unclear. Mariah is just one of many older acts who get a first week of sales on a new album, and then poof– they’re gone. The records get no airplay, which kills them fast, even if they’re very good. The top 40 is cluttered with crap, mostly. And the average age of the acts singing them is 12. We old folks listen to the new music of old friends and say “this sounds like a single.” But a single doesn’t matter if no one will play it.
Mariah will swallow a bitter pill on this, but she won’t be alone. (It does make you wonder who bought those 40,000 copies.)
One comparison: Cher has sold just 59,000 copies of her ABBA Album “Dancing Queen” in eight weeks of release. And that’s considered a success!
