Hammer Still in Top Spot

Challengers come and go but M. C. Hammer continues to hammer them all into submission. His “Please Hammer Don’t Hurt ‘Em” continues to cling to the No. 1 position on the Billboard magazine pop chart, for the 20th week. George Michael’s “Listen Without Prejudice,” which seemed poised to unseat Hammer’s 6-million seller, dropped a notch to No. 3. Michael’s slide made room for AC/DC’s “The Razor’s Edge,” which jumped four places to No. 2. “Family Style,” a duet blues album featuring the late Stevie Ray Vaughan and brother Jimmie, climbed six more notches to No. 8.

* Slayer, those thrash metal kingpins, have softened their music a bit--down to hard rock--on the new “Seasons in the Abyss.” It debuted at No. 57 but seems destined for the Top 20--at least.

POP ALBUM CHART

Rank Rank 2 Weeks Title (Label) Last Week Weeks Ago on Chart 1. “Please Hammer Don’t Hurt ‘Em” 1 1 34 M.C.Hammer (Capitol) 2. “The Razor’s Edge” 6 19 4 AC/DC (Atco) 3. “Listen Without Prejudice” 2 4 5 George Michael (Columbia) 4. “Mariah Carey” 3 3 18 Mariah Carey (Columbia) 5. “To the Extreme” 7 23 6 Vanilla Ice (SBK) * “Seasons in the Abyss” ... ... 1 Slayer (Def American)