WEEKEND CHART PREVIEW:

Activity continues at a fever pitch at the majors (see I.B. Bad’s column and the items below for the skinny on that), but using a very fast F-stop, we were able to take a snapshot of the competition that is more or less in focus. It appears to indicate that Sony may have four of the Top 5 albums when all is said and done next Tuesday, and three of them are debuts. Here's the picture as we head into the weekend:

* Carrie Underwood (19/Arista Nashville) 320-340k
Michael Jackson's This Is It (Epic) 160-170k
* Glee, Vol. 1 (Columbia) 115-125k
* Andrea Bocelli (Decca) 110-120k
* Now 32 (Sony Music) 85-90k
Taylor Swift (Big Machine) 65-70k
* Weezer (DGC) 60-65k
Sting (Deutsche Grammophon) 55-60k
Michael Buble (Reprise) 45-50k
Creed (Wind-up) 40-45k
Tim McGraw (Curb) 35-40k
* Foo Fighters (RCA/RMG) 35-40k
* Slayer (Columbia) 35-40k
Rod Stewart (J/RMG) 35-40k
Jay-Z (Roc Nation/Atlantic) 35-40k
* Denotes debut 
(11/6a)

 Taylor Swift - Fearless (wk 52)
Taylor Swift - Taylor Swift (wk 158)