Which Are the Five Best-Selling Albums in Music History?

Landmark report has published an article introducing the first five albums from the list of the best-selling records in music history. This list begins with works by Michael Jackson and ends with them.

First: Thriller (1982) by Michael Jackson — over 110 million copies sold

After the extraordinary success of his fifth studio album in 1979, Off the Wall; Thriller was a revolutionary album for Jackson and the music industry. As a fusion of R&B, pop, contemporary music, and funk, it achieved massive commercial success and captured the hearts of critics.

Co-produced by Quincy Jones and featuring four songs that Michael wrote himself, this album was the result of the intense drive Jackson felt to fight the racial boundaries that had prevented him from reaching career milestones in the industry—such as MTV and Rolling Stone magazine.

It was because of Thriller’s success that Jackson and other Black artists gained the respect and status they deserved.

Second: Back in Black (1980) by AC/DC — 50 million copies sold

Third: The Dark Side of the Moon (1973) by Pink Floyd — 50 million copies sold

Fourth: The Bodyguard (1992) soundtrack by Whitney Houston — 45 million copies sold

Fifth: Bad (1987) by Michael Jackson — 45 million copies sold

Five years after the release of Thriller, Jackson made Bad. This album had more artistic components than Thriller. The album became number one around the world; Bad was the first album whose five of its songs reached number one. (The only album to achieve this record since then has been Katy Perry’s 2010 album Teenage Dream.) Nine of the eleven tracks on the album were released as singles, and ten of them were among the top ten songs on music charts.

Although Bad didn’t match Thriller commercially, singles from it such as Man in the Mirror and Smooth Criminal were each purchased millions of times.

In September this year, Epic will release a memorial collection for this album.

Source: eMJey.com / Landmark report