In the weeks since Michael Jackson's death, his posthumous sales have gone through the roof, regularly outperforming the top new releases on the US Billboard albums chart. Sales for 'Thriller' have been so robust that the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is reporting that it's about to surpass the Eagles' 'Their Greatest Hits' (1971-1975) as the top-selling album of all time in the USA.

Their Greatest Hits was certified platinum for the 29th time back in 2006, meaning that sales of the compilation surpassed 29 million copies in the United States. Meanwhile, Thriller was last certified in March, when it passed 28 million and the RIAA believes that demand has brought the number up to 29 million.

That does not necessarily mean that Thriller has sold 29 million copies, as the RIAA's certification process is based on the number of albums shipped to stores, not necessarily the number actually sold. But based on the rabid consumption of Michael Jackson's music in the past few weeks and the hard numbers released weekly by SoundScan, it's doubtful that there is much distance between the number of CDs shipped and the number sold. If the pace continues, Thriller will become the first album to go triple diamond, meaning 30 million albums sold.

The RIAA's certifications are simply a formality, though, asThriller is already recognized as the top-selling album according to worldwide sales. Though numbers vary, it's reasonable to estimate that the album has moved 110 million copies worldwide since its release. As a comparison, the Eagles' Their Greatest Hits has moved only an estimated 42 million worldwide.      

MJFC / MTV / mjcool