When Rolling Stone re-ranked its famous 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list in 2021, Pet Sounds by the Beach Boys placed at No. 2. It came in behind only What’s Going On by Marvin Gaye, which vaulted to the top spot.
Following the news that Pet Sounds mastermind and Beach Boys member Brian Wilson had passed, which was shared online in mid-June, Pet Sounds became a bestseller in America once again. Decades after its initial release, the title manages to debut on several Billboard rankings as Americans revisited the collection in huge numbers.
Pet Sounds Appears on Multiple Billboard Charts
Pet Sounds currently appears on a trio of Billboard tallies in America. As it returns to one list, the set also debuts on two others — rankings that didn’t exist back in the mid-1960s when Pet Sounds was new.
The title opens highest on the Top Album Sales chart, kicking off its time on that roster at No. 23. Luminate reports that the Beach Boys’ classic sold just under 3,700 copies in the past tracking period – a significant increase from the previous week.
At the same time, the title finally arrives on the Top Rock & Alternative Albums ranking. That roster lists the most consumed efforts in those genres in America, blending both pure purchases and streaming activity. Pet Sounds enters at No. 32 this week.
The Beach Boys Debut in a New Low Point
The Beach Boys score just a third career win on the Top Rock & Alternative Albums chart, with Pet Sounds now standing out as the band’s lowest-peaking success. The beloved act has previously landed one top 10, as Merry Christmas from the Beach Boys reached No. 10 at the end of 2020. The Warmth of the Sun debuted and stalled at No. 13 nearly 20 years ago.
The Beach Boys Fare Better With Sales
The Beach Boys have performed significantly better on the Top Album Sales chart, where Pet Sounds becomes the band’s seventeenth placement. Several of those titles have cracked the top 10, while others rose into positions that no longer exist, as the tally has featured just 50 spaces for several years now.
Pet Sounds Reappears on the Billboard 200
The Beach Boys manage to bring Pet Sounds back to the Billboard 200 for the first time in a while, as the title reenters at No. 136. Looking at total consumption, Pet Sounds shifted a little less than 10,700 equivalent units, with plays of the album’s many hits on Spotify, Apple Music, and other platforms aiding in its ascent.
The masterpiece once climbed as high as No. 10 and has now spent 48 weeks somewhere on the ranking of the most consumed albums in America across more than 50 years.
