Pop Album Chart : Metallica Stays in Front of the Pack

Metallica, which retains its position on top of the Billboard pop album chart, is far ahead of the pack. Right now, the group’s faithful are buying the heavy-metal “Metallica,” which should keep it on top for a few weeks. The question is whether the album will catch on with other pop listeners. Bryan Adams’ single from the “Robin Hood” soundtrack, “(Everything I Do) I Do It for You,” now the year’s top single, maintains its place at the top of the pop chart.

* One key to the popularity of hot new rappers Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch is that Mark is the younger brother of New Kids’ Donnie Wahlberg. But the hit single “Good Vibrations” is what’s selling the album, which jumped to No. 39.

Rank Rank 2 Weeks Title (Label) Last Week Weeks Ago on Chart 1.”Metallica” 1 ... 2 Metallica (Elektra) 2.”Unforgettable” 2 1 11 Natalie Cole (Elektra) 3.”C.M.B.” 3 5 5 Color Me Badd (Giant) 4.”For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge” 7 6 10 Van Halen (Warner Bros.) 5.”Luck of the Draw” 4 2 9 Bonnie Raitt (Capitol) *”Music for the People” 50 58 5 Marky Mark & the Funky Bunch