by Marc Phillippe Babineau

Created on: July 05, 2008

The music industry has undergone a major transition since the days of vinyl records. With CD's, MP3, and many other forms of music on the market for newer bands, as well as the old stand-by's, selling major amounts of recorded music, in any format, is harder to do today. Even with almost double the population than in the 1960's, when most of the popular recording artists started selling music by the pound, the rock and roll invasion of the 1960's, blues, jazz and all other genres being included in this list, the top 10 list of the highest selling recording artists ever may surprise many a rock afficianado.

David Bowie, a rock god to many people in many countries, myself included, does not even come close to making the top 10 list of all time sales. The same goes for the Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, Genesis, Yes, Creedence Clearwater Revival, and Meatloaf as well. Surprised, I sure was. The Eagles, a mainstay in any 1970's music collection, have the North American market by the ears when it comes to all-out selling, but they do not make the top 10 list when international sales come into the fold. So, who are the top ten best selling music artists of all time? The list may surprise you, it sure surprised me, being a great Bowie, Grateful Dead and Meatloaf fan myself, here are the best sellers, ever;

#1. Elvis. That's right, Elvis Presley, with over 1 Billion record sales, and still selling strong. Between 1954 and 1977, Elvis recorded 77 albums, with all but nine of them reaching the Billboard Top of the Pop Albums chart. The sales picked up after his untimely death, and with boxed sets and special re-releases, the King of Rock and Roll is still unseated!

#2. The Beatles. No surprises here. The Beatles revolutionized the music industry in the 1960's, and are still one of the best selling bands, years after their last recording sessions. With over 750 Million record sales, the Beatles are a strong #2, but only recorded 12 original albums together. Since their split, they have released many boxed sets, re-recordings and digital re-mastered sets.

#3. Michael Jackson. Surprised? More than David Bowie and The Rolling Stones combined, the gloved wonder has sold more than 750 Million records, but is still shy of The Beatles in all-time sales. Mikey started his recording career at the tender age of 7 (Ben, a song that still brings tears to peoples' eyes), Michael Jackson had one of the most successful recording careers ever, with only 11 records, but countless singles.

#4.

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