The two disc set, which contains 20 new tracks, was released last week exclusively at Wal-Mart, Walmart.com, Sam's Club, and Samsclub.com. For the first time, Billboard allowed an album not available to general retailers onto its Billboard 200 chart. (Previously, exclusive albums were eligible only for Billboard's Top Comprehensive Albums chart.)

"We were confident that Eagles fans would embrace 'Long Road Out of Eden' but it has exceeded our first week projections," Gary Severson, Wal-Mart's senior vice president of Entertainment, said in a statement. "With the holiday season approaching we are confident that the double CD package will be one of the biggest sellers in Wal-Mart history. We've notified the RIAA of the sales to quickly certify 'Long Road Out of Eden's' multi-platinum status."

Last year, the Eagles and Wal-Mart Stores announced they'd entered a "long-term strategic marketing agreement that will encompass sponsorship, exclusive audio and video releases, and product visibility," according to a statement issued at the time. Wal-Mart priced "Eden" at $11.88--far below most double albums--and digital downloads of the album are priced at $10.88.

"The band produced and delivered an album of integrity that was in keeping with their legacy ... and the fans responded," Eagles manager Irving Azoff said in a statement. "The phenomenal first week sales of 'Long Road Out of Eden' are a testament to Wal-Mart's marketing and distribution."

Billboard's last-minute rule-change denied Britney Spears [ tickets ] her fifth consecutive No. 1 album. Fans snapped up 290,000 copies of her new set, "Blackout," during its first week in stores, and it enters the chart at No. 2.

Carrie Underwood [ tickets ]'s "Carnival Ride" falls two notches to No. 3 on sales of 170,000 copies, according to Billboard, which bases its main album chart on Nielsen SoundScan retail reports. Avenged Sevenfold [ tickets ]'s new, self-titled set sold 94,000 copies and debuts at No. 4. Josh Turner [ tickets ]'s "Everything is Fine" makes its debut on the chart at No. 5, with sales of 84,000.

Rounding out the Top 10 are Robert Plant and Alison Krauss [ tickets ]' "Raising Sand," Backstreet Boys [ tickets ]' "Unbreakable," Josh Groban [ tickets ]'s "Noel," Andrea Bocelli [ tickets ]'s "The Best of Andrea Bocelli: Vivere," and Rascal Flatts [ tickets ]' "Still Feels Good."