Madonna edges out Springsteen to top US charts

NEW YORK: Charting like it’s 1985? Legends Madonna and Bruce Springsteen are taking fans on a trip down memory lane, respectively nabbing numbers one and two of the US top album tally.

Madonna’s ‘Madame X’ struck gold on the Billboard 200 chart, landing the icon her ninth number one album atop the list, which the industry tracker will publish in full on Tuesday. Springsteen’s “Western Stars” raced in at second — marking the first t ime since 1985 that the Queen of Pop and The Boss are reigning over the album chart together.

For two weeks in January and February of that year, Springsteen’s ‘ Born in the USA’ held the top spot as Madonna’s ‘Like a Virgin’ came in second, before the seminal albums traded places in the two weeks that followed.

The era saw the two superstars — Madonna is now 60, Springsteen 69 — along with Prince and Michael Jackson usher in the brave new world of MTV, the music video television network that gave albums longer staying power than seen prior.

Though widely panned by critics, Madonna’s latest effort — a mash-up of Latin beats, acoustic ballads and oddly inward-looking reflections on marginalised communities — soared to the top of the charts in part thanks to her bundling strategy.

The sales method is rampant in the industry — with adherents including Taylor Swi and Katy Perry — and pairs albums with performance ticket or merchandise purchases in a bid to bolster sales.

Though the Queen held her own stateside, Springsteen’s dreamy sonic portrait of the American West did beat out ‘Madame X’ in both Australia and Britain.

His second-place finish in the US marked his 20th top-ten effort there.