When American album sales for last year were tallied up, Taylor Swift edged out Susan Boyle for the No. 1 spot. But Ms. Boyle has the last word when it comes to the global charts.
Her debut, “I Dreamed a Dream,” was the most popular album around the world, with 8.3 million sales, according to a report by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, a trade group based in London. “I Dreamed a Dream,” released in late November, beat out not only Ms. Swift’s album, “Fearless,” which placed fourth in global sales, but also the Black Eyed Peas‘ “The E.N.D.” (No. 2) and the soundtrack to “Michael Jackson’s This Is It” (No. 3). Jackson was the best-selling artist over all, with 22.9 million album sales around the world; five of his titles are in the top 20.
