Beyoncé Knowles and 50 Cent have two of the best-selling albums so far this year. Nonetheless, when Borders Books & Music recently redesigned the layouts of the music sections in its more than 420 superstores, the CD's from these and other young hit-makers were booted from prime browsing display space in favor of albums from the likes of Rod Stewart, Sting and Barbra Streisand.
The rearranging proved prescient, as the release of the latest Billboard top 200 albums chart demonstrated. While Clay Aiken, runner-up in the most recent "American Idol" contest and no hipster himself, took the top spot with his debut album, "Measure of a Man," Mr. Stewart finished second with "As Time Goes By: The Great American Songbook Vol. II."
New releases from Ms. Streisand and the Eagles also landed in the Top 10. All told, artists over the age of 40, like Bette Midler, Van Morrison, Michael McDonald and Simon and Garfunkel, held 11 of the top 50 spots in the Billboard chart. In the same week last year, 7 baby boomers finished in the Top 50.
The growing success of albums by older artists -- and of singers like Norah Jones, who appeal to less cutting-edge tastes -- offers some solace to an industry mired in a three-year sales slump. Record executives are desperate for any hopeful sign, even if it comes from people with more wrinkles than tattoos.
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