SONY SIDE UP WITH TWO HIT SOUNDTRACKS

With a pair of new soundtracks, Rob Stringer and Steve Barnett have put a charge into Columbia Records just in time for the label’s fiscal year to start off with a bang.

The Glee phenomenon has continued apace since the show returned to Fox on April 20, scoring some of its best ratings to date, with a record 13.6 million tuning in, its rating of 5.7/15 persons 18-49 representing a 46% jump over its previous high.

Debuting at #1, The Power of Madonna is the third Glee release on Columbia, following Volumes 1 and 2, which each entered the charts in the Top 5. The first edition is up to more than 750k in sales, while the second volume is closing in on 600k. Songs from the show have dominated the iTunes chart, selling upwards of 4.5 million downloads to date. A Live Nation-promoted month-long tour of the cast gets underway May 15 at Phoenix’s Dodge Theater, and closes out with five shows at Radio City Music Hall, starting May 28 through 30, with two shows apiece on 29 and 30. The tour also plays four shows at L.A.’s Gibson Amphitheatre (May 20-22) and two at Chicago’s Rosemont Theater (May 25-26).

Columbia/Epic Label Group chief Stringer, who signed the original deal with Fox last spring, is elated at how things have turned out.

“We knew that once the show started rolling, it would be great,” he said. “But to be honest, I didn’t think it would be this big this quickly. I thought it would take people a moment to catch up, but the reaction has been instant.”

Entering right behind Glee, the AC/DC Iron Man 2 seems to be the perfect fit between band and movie, a veritable greatest hits collection from a band that’s never released one, while the latest Glee soundtrack, The Power of Madonna, is the follow-up to two straight gold releases, and more than 4.5 million total downloads.

Iron Man 2, a partnership between the Sony Music label and Marvel Studios, was preceded by the track, “Shoot to Thrill,” with a video filmed in Buenos Aires during the band’s Black Ice world tour.

Barnett credits “the vision and passion” director Jon Favreau has for AC/DC’s music in his ability to blend the songs seamlessly into the movie. “The music really underscores the high energy and excitement of this incredible film,” he says.

A special edition of the soundtrack hit Walmart on April 19, including a limited-edition reprint of the 1968 comic The Invincible Iron Man and a cartoon drawn by Angus Young, as well as a 50-minute DVD of live DC footage, along with a movie preview. The album will also be available in a Deluxe Edition, a double-vinyl LP and a CD. In fact, the only configuration Iron Man 2 doesn’t come in is a download as AC/DC remains a digital holdout.