I agree on these two. I think her run for going at the top is already long enough, give the others a chance! And based on the trends surrounding the Japanese pop music, we're far off away from the peak now...

Yeah, this is quite something that I am missing now... Ayu performing on TV shows very barely... (and I still haven't watched her FNS performance yet!!!)

Agreed as well :yes

6th Day
Position: #3
Sales: 5,660

Total 6 day sales - 79,795

http://www.oricon.co.jp/rank/ja/d/2012-08-12/

ASB's 1st week sales will be slightly higher than the NINKI no. given (79.90) but still , this's really unfortunate :no

A best album should have sold more than a studio album & not the opposite D:

i really missing SECRET, NEXT LEVEL AND ROCK N ROLL CIRCUS era !!!

^ couple years late for that...

looks like this is the end of the road...my only hope for her get back to popularity is through A BEST 3...

i will be more realistic from now on...i keep my faith on her...i still see her fans love her...and still well known (i know this when i took a picture in front of Rimmel poster, many people saw that and said...ooo..ayumi...ayumi).

It's hard to stay on top...but Namie can back to the top...i don't see why Ayu can't do that...

ASB not doing that bad, but really-really low for my expectation...to see the number...is really hard to accept..very sad...just so sad...

i love you, Ayu...i will keep support you no matter what..

People actually want a single.

Yeah, this is quite unfortunate... :(

The recent trends of ayu (over the past year or two) has recently made me focus too less of her and more of Sayuri Sugawara/miwa/Leo Ieiri/AKB48 for me... :(

the sad part is because she hasnt released a single in two years!!
TWO YEARS!
I cant believe it...
she must be planning something big for her 15th anny.

I wouldn't expect more than A BEST 3 hahaha XD

Or maybe she just doesn't see a point in releasing singles anymore. Come to think of it, the only reason to release singles is promotion really. She's proven to us that without singles, she can release much more cohensive (-> better) albums.

Maybe people don't want to buy the same songs they own over singles, multiple bests and albums...

Don't people get it? This is a Kuu-style COMPLETELY unnecessary best album, just like A COMPLETE. That's the reason this isn't selling well. Sure, promotion comes into play too, but I've seen a lot more for this album than I did for Party Queen. Party Queen had a few tiny billboards and that was it. But still, this is a complete waste of time. Ayu's my favorite singer and I have absolutely no desire to buy this, and I doubt it's gonna grab casuals either, because chances are they have most of these songs already as well. If they don't, they can always get the other bests for much cheaper used or something.

There's no need to say "this is the end for Ayu" based on this album's sales. It's obvious her popularity has declined, but everyone still knows her. How long exactly does anyone expect her to have stayed on top? Even Britney Spears can't sell as well as some newer, more popular artists now (and I think she debuted around the same time as Ayu). Her sales have gradually declined, and they'll keep declining, with a few decent hits here and there. She isn't going to have a million (or even 500k) selling single or album again. But what does it matter? We don't listen to her for her sales. She's going to keep making music probably for at least another 10 years, so I don't think anyone needs to panic...unless of course the music goes to **** (which, apart from FIVE, it hasn't).

Promotional tracks have the same promotional potential of a single.

Maybe if Ayu were to release a single...

^ yes.

I don't think she needs singles.

Why should she?

When you think about it, singles barely even make sense. Why buy something just for a few songs? And considering how much Japan loves to download everything...where's the incentive?

It's just for her fan base of collectors now.

Anyway. I really don't understand why people keep saying this is "A BEST". No, it's not really. It's not the same. It's a summer best. It might as well be like Koda's summer remix album. It's just a mix of summer songs.

^ Thats what I said about the "best." This isnt the best of her disco. its the best of her summer hits.

Anyways... the the whole single debate is mainly because the Japanese public loves singles.
May it be physical or digitial, I think singles keep people fresh in their minds.
I mean, look at AKB and their sister acts.
Or all the boy acts.
Singles are very relevant in the Japanese society.

They are, but they're becoming less so for anyone who isn't immediately popular.

They're going to have to address one day, that there are very few groups selling well with singles, and even less solo artists.

I think you could say the ones doing well with singles are mainly the ones known for "obsessive" fans, especially otaku fans. And especially the ones that use promotional tricks like "buy one to vote for your favorite member!". Nana Mizuki has seen a rise in single sales rather than a decline and is now one of the bestselling solo females in that area - and it's obvious a big part are her otaku fans. AKB48 are ****ing gigantic - and they seem to almost only have otaku fans and use promotional tricks like crazy to promote buying several copies of the same single.
That's how you sell singles now. To hardcore fans and by making them feel they need to buy them - not to casual listeners, you sell downloads to casual listeners - and you can usually download every song of an album individually, hence little need for singles when you have promotional songs.