Hot This Week: June 29

As we wind down June and head into July, the blockbuster American Sniper proves to be just as popular at home as it was at the box office. Folk rocker James Taylor scores the first #1 album in his long and storied career. Familiar favorites remain atop the fiction list for the waning days of Audiobook Month, joined on the list by some big names like Danielle Steel and Brad Meltzer, while comedian Aziz Ansari joins the non-fiction fray.

DVD

1. American Sniper
2. Chappie
3. Fifty Shades of Grey 
4. The Duff
5. Project Almanac
6. The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water
7. Black or White
8. The Boy Next Door 
9. Taken 3
10. Blackhat

CD

1. James Taylor, Before This World
2. Taylor Swift, 1989
3. Adam Lambert, The Original High
4. Ed Sheeran, X
5. Hilary Duff, Breathe In. Breathe Out.
6. Sam Hunt, Montevallo 
7. Nate Reuss, Grand Romantic
8. Meghan Trainor, Title
9. Maroon 5, V
10. Mumford & Sons, Wilder Mind

Fiction

1. The Girl on the Train, Paula Hawkins
2. All the Light We Cannot See, Anthony Doerr
3. Finders Keepers, Stephen King
4. Tom Clancy's Under Fire, Grant Blackwood
5. The President's Shadow, Brad Meltzer
6. The Rumor, Elin Hilderbrand
7. Radiant Angel, Nelson DeMille
8. Country, Danielle Steel
9. In the Unlikely Event, Judy Blume 
10. Memory Man, David Baldacci

Non-Fiction

1. The Wright Brothers, David McCullough
2. Modern Romance, Aziz Ansari
3. Bill O'Reilly's Legends and Lies, Bill O'Reilly and David Fisher
4. Dead Wake, Erik Larson
5. It's a Long Story, Willie Nelson and David Ritz
6. The Road to Character, David Brooks
7. Being Mortal, Atul Gawande
8. And the Good News Is..., Dana Perino
9. The Quartet, Joseph J. Ellis
10. A Lucky Life Interrupted, Tom Brokaw 

Hot This Week: June 22

There's something for everyone on this week's movie list, which is topped by the thriller Project Almanac. Rock band Muse rockets to the top of the music chart with their new release, while a new reissue brings a Stones classic back to the chart 44 years later. Paula Hawkins reclaims the top fiction spot, joined by new titles from Dorothea Benton Frank, Laurell K. Hamilton, and Jessica Knoll, and last week's non-fiction favorites stay strong.

DVD

1. Project Almanac
2. Fifty Shades of Grey 
3. The Duff
4. The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water
5. The Boy Next Door 
6. Taken 3
7. Blackhat
8. Serena
9. The Wedding Ringer
10. Hot Tub Time Machine 2

CD

1. Muse, Drones
2. Taylor Swift, 1989
3. Of Monsters and Men, Beneath the Skin
4. Florence + the Machine, How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful
5. Rolling Stones, Sticky Fingers
6. Ed Sheeran, X
7. Sam Hunt, Montevallo
8. A$AP Rocky, At.Long.Last.A$AP
9. Maroon 5, V
10. Meghan Trainor, Title

Fiction

1. The Girl on the Train, Paula Hawkins
2. Finders Keepers, Stephen King
3. All the Light We Cannot See, Anthony Doerr
4. In the Unlikely Event, Judy Blume
5. Radiant Angel, Nelson DeMille
6. All the Single Ladies, Dorothea Benton Frank
7. Dead Ice, Laurell K. Hamilton
8. Luckiest Girl Alive, Jessica Knoll
9. Memory Man, David Baldacci
10. The Nightingale, Kristin Hannah

Non-Fiction

1. The Wright Brothers, David McCullough
2. Primates of Park Avenue, Wednesday Martin
3. Bill O'Reilly's Legends and Lies, Bill O'Reilly and David Fisher
4. The Road to Character, David Brooks
5. Dead Wake, Erik Larson
6. And the Good News Is..., Dana Perino
7. It's a Long Story, Willie Nelson and David Ritz
8. Being Mortal, Atul Gawande
9. Elon Musk, Ashlee Vance
10. The Quartet, Joseph J. Ellis

New Music Fridays – Starting in July!

Written by Jon Williams

For years, Monday was the standard day of the week for music album releases in the United States. Because so much commerce is shut down on Sundays, however, many outlets received their shipments too late to offer new albums at the start of business on Monday. That’s why, in 1989, the music industry agreed to move their release day to Tuesday, which it has been ever since.

That has not been the case around the world, though, as various countries have their own release schedules that haven’t always coincided with those in the U.S. The U.K., for instance, held onto Monday for their releases, while Germany and Australia saw new music come out on Friday. This non-uniformity caused angst for fans (who were upset when listeners in other countries got new tunes before they did) and the industry (with piracy concerns) alike.

That angst is about to go by the wayside. The music industry and music retailers have agreed to a new release day that will be the same around the globe. Beginning on July 10, new music everywhere will drop as 12:01 a.m. local time on Friday. Fans all around the world will be able to get the music they crave at approximately the same time as everyone else.

For libraries, the only difference is that new albums can be made available to your patrons on Fridays instead of Tuesdays. The last Tuesday release date for new music will be June 30. The following week , there will be no music releases on Tuesday (July 7). The releases will instead be on Friday (July 10), which will then be the standard.

If you have any questions about New Music Fridays and what they mean for your library, please contact our Customer Service department at 1.800.875.2785 or info@midwesttapes.com. You can also click here for a printable flyer to let your patrons know about the change.

Hot This Week: June 15

The zany denizens of Bikini Bottom surface atop this week's movie listing as one of three new entries, including the phenomenon that is Fifty Shades. Florence + the Machine see their stellar new album hit #1 on the music chart, joined there by Jason Derulo and the duo of Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard. Stephen King's follow-up to Mr. Mercedes rules the fiction list, while Wednesday Martin's look at life on the Upper East Side (a Midwest Tape exclusive) debuts in non-fiction.

DVD

1. The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water
2. The Boy Next Door 
3. Fifty Shades of Grey
4. Taken 3
5. Hot Tub Time Machine 2
6. The Wedding Ringer
7. The Gambler
8. The Cobbler
9. Black Sea
10. Paddington

CD

1. Florence + the Machine, How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful
2. Taylor Swift, 1989
3. A$AP Rocky, At.Long.Last.A$AP
4. Jason Derulo, Everything Is 4
5. Ed Sheeran, X
6. Pitch Perfect 2 Soundtrack
7. Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard, Django and Jimmie
8. Meghan Trainor, Title
9. Zac Brown Band, Jekyll + Hyde
10. Maroon 5, V

Fiction

1. Finders Keepers, Stephen King
2. The Girl on the Train, Paula Hawkins
3. All the Light We Cannot See, Anthony Doerr
4. In the Unlikely Event, Judy Blume
5. Radiant Angel, Nelson DeMille
6. Memory Man, David Baldacci
7. Seveneves, Neal Stephenson
8. 14th Deadly Sin, James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
9. Piranha, Clive Cussler and Boyd Morrison
10. The Nightingale, Kristin Hannah

Non-Fiction

1. The Wright Brothers, David McCullough
2. Primates of Park Avenue, Wednesday Martin
3. The Road to Character, David Brooks
4. And the Good News Is..., Dana Perino
5. Dead Wake, Erik Larson
6. It's a Long Story, Willie Nelson and David Ritz
7. Being Mortal, Atul Gawande
8. Bill O'Reilly's Legends and Lies, Bill O'Reilly and David Fisher
9. Elon Musk, Ashlee Vance
10. American Wife, Taya Kyle and Jim DeFelice

Hot This Week: June 8

Just one new movie makes this week's listing, but that movie - the Jennifer Lopez thriller The Boy Next Door - comes in at #1. There are three new CDs on the music chart, led by the sophomore release from hip-hop up-and-comer A$AP Rocky. The latest from Nelson DeMille tops this week's fiction list, which also includes the final novel from the late Kent Haruf. In non-fiction, a new offering from comedian Nick Offerman joins popular titles from last week.

DVD

1. The Boy Next Door
2. Taken 3
3. Hot Tub Time Machine 2
4. The Wedding Ringer
5. The Gambler
6. The Cobbler
7. Paddington
8. Mortdecai
9. Unbroken
10. Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb

CD

1. A$AP Rocky, At.Long.Last.A$AP
2. Taylor Swift, 1989 
3. Boosie BadAzz, Touch Down 2 Cause Hell
4. Pitch Perfect 2 Soundtrack
5. Hillsong United, Empires
6. Twenty One Pilots, Blurryface
7. Ed Sheeran, X
8. Meghan Trainor, Title
9. Fifty Shades of Grey Soundtrack
10. Furious 7 Soundtrack

Fiction

1. Radiant Angel, Nelson DeMille
2. The Girl on the Train, Paula Hawkins
3. All the Light We Cannot See, Anthony Doerr
4. Piranha, Clive Cussler and Boyd Morrison
5. Seveneves, Neal Stephenson
6. Memory Man, David Baldacci
7. 14th Deadly Sin, James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
8. Our Souls at Night, Kent Haruf
9. The Nightingale, Kristin Hannah
10. Beach Town, Mary Kay Andrews

Non-Fiction

1. The Wright Brothers, David McCullough
2. The Road to Character, David Brooks
3. And the Good News Is..., Dana Perino
4. Being Mortal, Atul Gawande
5. Bill O'Reilly's Legends and Lies, Bill O'Reilly and David Fisher
6. Gumption, Nick Offerman
7. Dead Wake, Erik Larson
8. It's a Long Story, Willie Nelson and David Ritz
9. American Wife, Taya Kyle and Jim DeFelice
10. Elon Musk, Ashlee Vance

Hot This Week: June 1

Welcome to June! The movie list heats up with three new titles, led by the latest Taken installment featuring Liam Neeson and his "very particular set of skills." Columbus-based duo Twenty One Pilots top the music chart with their new release, joined by popular new titles from Zedd, Brantley Gilbert, and Jamie Foxx. The latest from Neal Stephenson is the top newcomer in fiction, which also sees horror icon Clive Barker revisiting two favorite characters. In non-fiction, Ashlee Vance's biography of tech pioneer Elon Musk joins the list at #3.

DVD

1. Taken 3
2. Hot Tub Time Machine 2
3. The Wedding Ringer
4. The Gambler
5. Mortdecai
6. The Cobbler
7. Paddington
8. Still Alice
9. Cake
10. Unbroken

CD

1. Twenty One Pilots, Blurryface
2. Taylor Swift, 1989
3. Pitch Perfect 2 Soundtrack
4. Zedd, True Colors
5. Meghan Trainor, Title
6. Brantley Gilbert, Just As I Am
7. Ed Sheeran, X
8. Furious 7 Soundtrack
9. Jamie Foxx, Hollywood: A Story of a Dozen Roses
10. Fifty Shades of Grey Soundtrack

Fiction

1. The Girl on the Train, Paula Hawkins
2. All the Light We Cannot See, Anthony Doerr
3. Seveneves, Neal Stephenson
4. Memory Man, David Baldacci
5. 14th Deadly Sin, James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
6. Beach Town, Mary Kay Andrews
7. Gathering Prey, John Sandford
8. The Nightingale, Kristin Hannah
9. The Scarlet Gospels, Clive Barker
10. Robert B. Parker's Kickback, Ace Atkins

Non-Fiction

1. The Wright Brothers, David McCullough
2. The Road to Character, David Brooks
3. Elon Musk, Ashlee Vance
4. And the Good News Is..., Dana Perino
5. Bill O'Reilly's Legends and Lies, Bill O'Reilly and David Fisher
6. Clinton Cash, Peter Schweizer
7. A Lucky Life Interrupted, Tom Brokaw
8. Dead Wake, Erik Larson
9. Being Mortal, Atul Gawande
10. It's a Long Story, Willie Nelson and David Ritz