Yearly Most Successful Female Album: The Divas (1983-1998)

1995 – Alanis Morissette – Jagged Little Pill

The Canadian era which kicked off with Celine Dion‘s Colour of My Love a couple of years before got into a new level with Alanis Morissette‘s powerful Jagged Little Pill. The album, supported by its trio of iconic singles Ironic, You Oughta Know and Hand In My Pocket, ended up as an absolute blockbuster.

#1 for 12 weeks in the US and 11 in the UK, the record also lasted respectively 45 and 35 weeks inside the Top 5. Selling 20 million copies in North America, 8 million in Europe and 5 million elsewhere, it became the second highest selling female album to date behind The Bodyguard. Morissette sold very few physical singles but almost all her 6 million sales of best of / live sets were achieved thanks to songs from Jagged Little Pill. Digital formats push its tally over the magical 40 million mark.

Challengers

Mariah Carey repeated her incredible successes with the release Daydream. This album was nearly as successful as Music Box. Always Be My Baby is now a fan’s favorite while One Sweet Day and Fantasy remain strong, concluding on a sizable share inside her compilation’s track lists. This adds more than 8 million sales to its 20 million pure album sales. With singles, the era ends on 31,4 million equivalent album sales, almost too good for #2.

Two pure North American products sold insanely well there. Shania Twain‘s The Woman in Me and Jewel‘s Pieces of You generated 18 million equivalent album sales each, most of which in the US and Canada! The former, one more terrific addition to the Canadian roster, was soon going to make it global.

Because of this stunning competition The Memory Of Trees by Enya almost looks weak at 12,7 million, a total obviously huge for anyone. Natalie Merchant‘s Tigerlil, Faith Hill‘s It Matters To Me, Annie Lennox‘ Medusa and Tracy Chapman‘s revival album New Beginning sold in the 5-10 million range.

Selena‘s posthumous latin album Dreaming of You moved over 3,5 million units in the US alone. It wasn’t the only ground breaking local language album from that year. Celine Dion‘s French album D’Eux became the highest selling female album of all-time in France with over 4 million units, an unthinkable amount before its release. Its singles did wonders too just like all live and best of albums covering it. This concludes on 12,4 million equivalent album sales.

Groups with female vocalists were more numerous every year. After Ace of Base, the Cranberries and TLC, the new smashing band was No Doubt with its Diamond album Tragic Kingdom and the immense single Don’t Speak.