Coldplay's new album opens at Number 1

LOS ANGELES - Rock band Coldplay clinched its first American chart topper on Wednesday as its latest album X&Y logged first-week US sales of more than 737,000 copies and also shot to Number 1 in 21 other countries.

The strong debut for Coldplay's highly anticipated third studio release marked the biggest opening so far this year for a rock album and came as especially welcome news for the band's label, EMI Group.

Last month, EMI reported lower annual profits for its fiscal year ended March 31, citing the delayed release of X&Y and a record from another band, Gorillaz.

Nevertheless, Coldplay lead singer Chris Martin, who is married to Oscar-winning actress Gwyneth Paltrow, has made clear he had little concern about how the band's fortunes affect his label's bottom line.

"I don't really care about EMI," he told Reuters at a recent appearance in Manhattan. "I think shareholders are the great evil of this modern world."

X&Y tallied sales of 737,294 copies its first week in the United States, dislodging singer Mariah Carey's latest album from the top of the Billboard 200 chart, according to Nielsen SoundScan. EMI said digital downloads accounted for 8 percent of the album's US sales, the biggest share for any new release to date.

The Coldplay album also sold 464,000 units in Britain, making it the second-biggest album debut ever in that country and the biggest UK seller so far this year, EMI said.

Oasis holds the record for the highest first-week album sales in Britain, with 1997's Be Here Now, which opened with UK sales of 696,000 units.

The record company said that in addition to the United States and Britain, X&Y has topped the charts in at least 20 other countries.

X&Y marks the band's first collection of new music since its breakout 2002 release, A Rush of Blood to the Head, which opened at Number 5 and went on to sell about 3.8 million copies in the United States alone, according to SoundScan.

Rush of Blood and the band's 2000 debut LP, Parachutes both earned Coldplay Grammy Awards for best alternative-music album. Coldplay is due to open a two-month North American tour on August 2 in Toronto.

- REUTERS