MOST pop stars would be thrilled to hear their album looked set to sell up to five million copies around the world, particularly given how much the music market has shrunk during the last decade or so.

That is the target an executive at Sony Music UK has put on Scottish singer Susan Boyle's second record "The Gift", in stores in Britain yesterday and in the United States today.

For Boyle, however, it may be a sign that the overnight success she enjoyed following her appearance on the "Britain's Got Talent" show last year may be difficult to sustain over the longer term.

Her debut, "I Dreamed a Dream", was the biggest selling album in the world last year with sales of 8.3 million, partly owing to huge media interest in her first television appearance and subsequent trials and tribulations on the show.

Boyle's rendition of "I Dreamed a Dream", from the musical "Les Miserables", has been downloaded over 300 million times on the YouTube video sharing site.

Unit sales of "five million around the world would be absolutely incredible," Dave Shack, vice president of international for Sony Music UK told Billboard recently.

The Gift is being released by Sony in partnership with British music impresario Simon Cowell's Syco Music.

"We're taking nothing for granted," Shack added. "But the conversations we're having with the territories indicate there's a proven fan base out there for Susan Boyle."

According to Billboard, Sony Music Entertainment plans an initial US shipment of 1.2 million units and expects first-week US sales of 300,000 units, less than half the amount her debut sold.

Early reviews of The Gift, which includes Christmas carols and a smattering of pop classics, have been mixed.

"Though her renditions of 'Away in a Manger' et al are pleasant, she renders Lou Reed's 'Perfect Day' and Leonard Cohen's 'Hallelujah' sterile," wrote Hugh Montgomery in The Observer newspaper.

"You don't begrudge Boyle dreaming her dream, but you do wish she, and her svengali (Cowell), could dream bigger."

• executive [ig´zekjutiv] a.行政的 n.行政官 (初中英语单词)
• singer [´siŋə] n.歌手，演唱者 (初中英语单词)
• yesterday [´jestədi] n.&ad.昨天；前不久 (初中英语单词)
• sustain [sə´stein] vt.支撑；蒙受；确认 (初中英语单词)
• partly [´pɑ:tli] ad.部分地；不完全地 (初中英语单词)
• musical [´mju:zikəl] a.音乐的；悦耳的 (初中英语单词)
• absolutely [´æbsəlu:tli] ad.绝对地；确实 (初中英语单词)
• international [,intə´næʃənəl] a.国际的，世界的 (初中英语单词)
• entertainment [,entə´teinmənt] n.招(款)待；联欢会 (初中英语单词)
• amount [ə´maunt] n.总数；数量 v.合计 (初中英语单词)
• observer [əb´zə:və] n.遵守者；观察员 (初中英语单词)
• decade [´dekeid] n.十年(间) (高中英语单词)
• subsequent [´sʌbsikwənt] a.其次的；其后的 (高中英语单词)
• partnership [´pɑ:tnəʃip] n.合伙关系 (高中英语单词)
• initial [i´niʃəl] a.最初的 n.首字母 (高中英语单词)
• scottish [´skɔtiʃ, ´skɑtiʃ] a.&n.苏格兰人(的) (英语四级单词)
• overnight [,əuvə´nait] ad.通宵 a.昨晚的 (英语四级单词)
• shipment [´ʃipmənt] n.装运；载货量 (英语四级单词)
• taking [´teikiŋ] a.迷人的 n.捕获物 (英语六级单词)