20 Albums That Flopped in the U.S. But Topped Charts Abroad

Even some of the largest artists create albums that flop or do just 'okay.' It's even more interesting, though, when an album does exceptionally well in countries other than its origin. This is actually a lot more common than you'd think. There are specific stars, like Tina Turner, who are giants in their fields, loved by music lovers in the U.S. and abroad.

Another example of music artists that thrive in countries other than their own is Drake Bell, known for his role in "Drake & Josh." Now, while we've used the word flopped in the title, this doesn't mean all of these albums didn't sell. Some even charted relatively high on the Billboard Hot 100. However, they did better in countries other than the U.S.

Click through the slideshow for albums and the artists behind them that topped charts abroad. To find these albums, we scoured the internet searching for music and entertainment sources that focused on bands and solo artists that thrive globally.

• Artist: The Ramones
• Release Date: April 23, 1976
• U.S. Chart Peak Position: 111
• Countries Where The Album Topped: Sweden (46)

• Artist: Arcade Fire
• Release Date: September 14, 2004
• U.S. Chart Peak Position: 123
• Countries Where The Album Topped: Norway (27), Ireland (16), Portugal (16), and Canada (23)

• Artist: Billy Idol
• Release Date: June 28, 1993
• U.S. Chart Peak Position: 48
• Countries Where The Album Topped: Austria (5), Finland (5), Switzerland (11), Australia (12), and Hungary (18)

• Artist: The Buggles
• Release Date: Novemebr 1981
• U.S. Chart Peak Position: 161
• Countries Where The Album Topped: The Dutch Charts (26) and Sweden (50)

• Artist: The Beach Boys
• Release Date: August 3, 1992
• U.S. Chart Peak Position: None
• Countries Where The Album Topped: None

*This is a wild card addition to the list as this album flopped everywhere.

• Artist: Creedence Clearwater Revival
• Release Date: April 11, 1972
• U.S. Chart Peak Position: 12 (Although a high number, the album was received incredibly poorly.)
• Countries Where The Album Topped: Finland (2), Japan (3), and Italy (4)

• Artist: Katy Perry
• Release Date: September 20, 2024
• U.S. Chart Peak Position: 6 (Don't let this number fool you. This was only right after release. A few short weeks later, and she lost this position quickly.)
• Countries Where The Album Topped: Australia (2), Spain (3), and Scotland (4)

• Artist: Drake Bell
• Release Date: April 22, 2014
• U.S. Chart Peak Position: 182
• Countries Where The Album Topped: Mexico (5)

• Artist: Radiohead
• Release Date: March 13, 1995
• U.S. Chart Peak Position: 88
• Countries Where The Album Topped: The UK (4), Scotland (7), and New Zealand (7)

• Artist: Pat Benatar
• Release Date: April 9, 1991
• U.S. Chart Peak Position: 37
• Countries Where The Album Topped: Finland (17), Canada (22), and New Zealand (30)

• Artist: Thirty Seconds to Mars
• Release Date: September 15, 2023
• U.S. Chart Peak Position: 76
• Countries Where The Album Topped: Scotland (6), Switzerland (7), and Australia (9)

• Artist: David Hasselhoff
• Release Date: June 21, 1989
• U.S. Chart Peak Position: None
• Countries Where The Album Topped: Switzerland (3), Germany (5), and Austria (5)

• Artist: David Hasselhoff
• Release Date: February 2, 2004
• U.S. Chart Peak Position: None
• Countries Where The Album Topped: Germany (27) and Austria (11)

• Artist: Tina Turner
• Release Date: April 1, 1996
• U.S. Chart Peak Position: 61
• Countries Where The Album Topped: New Zealand (1), Switzerland (1), Italy (2), and Germany (2)

• Artist: Tina Turner
• Release Date: October 28, 1999
• U.S. Chart Peak Position: 21/29
• Countries Where The Album Topped: Switzerland (1), Canada (2), and Germany (3)

• Artist: Sixto Rodriguez
• Release Date: March 1970
• U.S. Chart Peak Position: None
• Countries Where The Album Topped: Denmark (4), Australia (11), and South Africa (16)

• Artist: The Dandy Warhols
• Release Date: September 13, 2005
• U.S. Chart Peak Position: 89
• Countries Where The Album Topped: Norway (18) and Australia (19)

• Artist: Alyssa Milano
• Release Date: May 21, 1991
• U.S. Chart Peak Position: None
• Countries Where The Album Topped: Japan (19)

• Artist: Nicole Scherzinger
• Release Date: October 17, 2014
• U.S. Chart Peak Position: None
• Countries Where The Album Topped: The UK (17), Australia (16), and Scotland (19)

• Artist: Faith No More
• Release Date: March 13, 1995
• U.S. Chart Peak Position: 31
• Countries Where The Album Topped: Australia (2), New Zealand (3), and the UK (5)