Alison Krauss and Union Station have flown into the top spot on Billboard's Country Albums chart with the No. 1 debut of their latest album, 'Paper Airplane.' The disc also scores the No. 3 spot on the Billboard 200, behind Foo Fighters and Adele, with 83,000 copies sold in its first week, according to Nielsen Soundscan.

'Paper Airplane' is the first-ever No. 1 album of Alison's career. It follows the 2007 Grammy-winning album, 'Raising Sand,' which the singer recorded with rock legend Robert Plant. That disc, which peaked at No. 2, sold 112,000 copies in its first week.

Jason Aldean's 'My Kinda Party' drops to No. 2, while the 'Country Strong' soundtrack vaults back to the No. 3 spot, no doubt aided by the release of the film on DVD.

When it comes to the success she's enjoyed through the years, Alison Krauss admits she's unsure why she and her band have flourished while other bluegrass acts haven't garnered the same measure of mainstream success.

"The only thing I can say," Alison tells The Boot, "is that I'm grateful that I got to experience this whole thing with the people I've got to experience it with. I know of so many musicians that inspire me and keep me up at night that the majority of the population may never get to hear. I don't understand it, why it didn't work [for them]. They're still proud of what they're doing, it's just not on a grand scale."

Alison Krauss and Union Station featuring Jerry Douglas recently announced their summer tour schedule.


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