Fight disinformation. Get a daily recap of the facts that matter. Sign up for the free Mother Jones newsletter.
A fanzine writer once observed that sometimes a copy of a copy can be better than the original. But when it comes to pop music, where originality is about as prized as diversity, the real question is whether a copy of a copy can sell better than the original (or its copy). Certainly, to look at the progression from the Lawrence Welk Hotsy-Totsy Boys to the Bee Gees to Hanson is to understand that quality doesn’t vary much in aural ready-mades. Quantity of sales, however, does:
| ORIGINAL | SECOND GENERATION | THIRD GENERATION |
| Jackson 5 1 million |
New Edition 2 million |
Backstreet Boys 1 million |
| Rolling Stones*(’60s-’70s) 6 million |
Rolling Stones*(’80s) 4 million |
Rolling Stones*(’90s) 2 million |
| Barbara Streisand 5 million |
Whitney Houston 16 million |
Celine Dion 9 million |
| Velvet Underground 233,000 |
Galaxie 500* 60,000 |
Luna* 54,000 |
| The Beatles 16 million |
The Monkees 5 million |
Oasis 4 million |
| Led Zeppelin 16 million |
Soundgarden 5 million |
Pearl Jam 10 million |
Research by Tracy Hamilton and Katie Isenberg. Figures reflect sales of best-selling album.
*Indicates that bands share actual genetic makeup or members.
