Crack A Bottle 97 on Billboard Chart!

The latest news in the world of Billboard's definitive sales and airplay charts.

January 15, 2009 05:40 PM

TIME AND A ‘BOTTLE’: After an absence of two years, Eminem returns to Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs with “Crack a Bottle” (Shady/Aftermath), a new entry at No. 93. It’s the first song on this chart with Eminem as lead vocalist since “You Don’t Know” debuted and peaked at No. 87 the week of Dec. 16, 2006.

“Crack a Bottle” is Eminem’s 32nd title to reach this chart in just over 10 years. He made his first appearance on the R&B/Hip-Hop tally the week of Nov.7 1998 with “Just Don’t Give a F***.” During his decade of chart hits, the gap between “You Don’t Know” and “Crack a Bottle” is his longest hiatus; he had at least one new song debut every year from 1998 to 2006.

Eminem has only had one top 10 hit on this chart to date: “Lose Yourself,” from the “8 Mile” soundtrack, peaked at No. 4 the week of Dec. 21, 2002.

“Crack a Bottle” is credited to Eminem featuring Dr. Dre and 50 Cent. This is Dr. Dre’s first appearance on this chart since “Encore,” an Eminem song that featured the same exact billing in the closing months of 2004. It’s a different story for 50 Cent, who falls 72-TK this week with “Get Up,” a song in its 14th chart week.

If “Crack a Bottle” opens on The Billboard Hot 100 next week, it will be Eminem’s first appearance as lead vocalist in exactly two years. “You Don’t Know” spent its sixth and final week on the Hot 100 the week of Jan. 27, 2007.


‘BAND’ ON THE RUN: A 3-1 hike for “Start a Band” (Arista) puts Brad Paisley and Keith Urban in first place on Hot Country Songs. It’s the 13th chart-topper for Paisley and the ninth for Urban. Not counting album tracks from a holiday set, “Band” is the ninth consecutive No. 1 for Paisley. He hasn’t missed the top spot since “Alcohol” peaked at No. 4 the week of Sept. 17, 2005. Paisley’s nine No. 1s in a row represent the longest string of chart-topping songs since Alabama had a record-setting 21 consecutive No. 1s from 1980-1987.

Paisley and Urban are the first male duo to occupy the country penthouse since Kenny Chesney and Uncle Kracker had a five-week reign in April-May 2004 with “When the Sun Goes Down.”

There’s another male duet in the upper reaches of the country chart. “Down the Road” (Blue Chair/BNA) by Kenny Chesney featuring Mac McAnally earns a backwards bullet as it dips 10-11. The track is a remake of McAnally’s 1990 single, which peaked at No. 70 the first time around. The duet is McAnally’s sixth chart entry but his first since “Junk Cars” drove to No. 72 in January 1993. By peaking at No. 10, this redo of “Down the Road” has become McAnally’s highest-charting hit, besting the No. 14 peak of his debut single, “Back Where I Come From,” in early 1990.


STILL ‘FEARLESS’ AFTER ALL THESE WEEKS: Taylor Swift’s “Fearless” (Big Machine) spends its sixth week in pole position on The Billboard 200, tying it with 50 Cent’s “The Massacre” in 2005 as the longest-running No. 1 album since Usher’s “Confessions” ruled for nine weeks in 2004.

“Fearless” is one of the longest-running No. 1 albums of this millennium. “Confessions” leads the dozen albums that have remained on top for six weeks or more:

9 weeks: “Confessions,” Usher (2004)
8 weeks: “No Strings Attached.” ’N Sync (2000)
8 weeks: “The Marshall Mathers LP,” Eminem (2000)
8 weeks: “1,” The Beatles (2000)
8 weeks: “Weathered,” Creed (2001)
7 weeks: “Speakerboxxx/The Love Below,” OutKast (2003)
6 weeks: “Hotshot,” Shaggy (2001)
6 weeks: “The Eminem Show,” Eminem (2002)
6 weeks: “Get Rich or Die Tryin’,” 50 Cent
6 weeks: “Feels Like Home,” Norah Jones (2004)
6 weeks: “The Massacre,” 50 Cent (2005)
6 weeks: “Fearless,” Taylor Swift (2008)