Girls on top of billboard list. (US chartfile).

The post-Christmas slump in sales of the Top 200 albums has been halted, at least temporarily. Sales last week increased by a slender 1.46%, driven by the arrival of the year's first significant new release. Debuting at number four, with sales of more than 83,000, is the soundtrack to Chicago. At the top for a second week, Norah Jones continues to benefit from her five Grammy nominations, with sales of Come Away With Me up 6,000 week-on-week to 114,000 as it soars past the 3m mark overall. The album's second week at number one comes with a reduced margin, however, as Avril Lavigne (pictured)--also in the frame for a fistful of Grammys--climbs 3-2 with 105,000 buyers for her debut disc Let Go. With the Dixie `Chicks' Home rebounding 4-3 and Jennifer Lopez off 2-5, the only notable male presence in the Top Five is Chicago star Richard Gere.

Among UK acts, The Rolling Stones' Forty Licks disc continues to lead the way, remaining at number 17, despite a dip of more than 8% in its sales to 41,500. Rod Stewart also slips, declining 19-22 with his Great American Songbook set suffering a similar fall in support. After threatening to upstage the old-timers, Coldplay's A Rush Of Blood To The Head slips back 23-29. As it does so, the group's latest single, ...