Greatest Hits is a compilation album by Queen. The album consisted of the band's biggest hits since their first chart appearance in 1974 with Seven Seas of Rhye, up to their 1980 hit Flash (or Under Pressure in some releases).
The album was a commercial success worldwide with sales of over 25 million copies, making it one of the best-selling albums of all time. It reached number one on the UK Albums Chart, spending four weeks at the top and sold consistently well throughout the 1980s, becoming the fourth-biggest selling album of the decade. The single "Under Pressure", which was released the same week as Greatest Hits, also topped the UK Singles Chart.
As of November 2020, Greatest Hits has spent over 900 weeks on the UK Albums Chart, and has been certified 22× platinum with sales of over 6 million copies, making it the best-selling album of all time in the UK. Greatest Hits peaked at number eight on the Billboard 200 in November 2020, the second-slowest ascent to the top ten of the US album chart in history. Among the longest charting albums in the US, as of November 2020, it has spent over 400 weeks on the Billboard 200, and has been certified 9× platinum in the US. It has also been certified 15× platinum in Australia, 10× platinum in New Zealand, and 3× platinum in Canada. Following the release of the Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody in 2018, it re-entered the charts of countries worldwide.
History[]
Release[]
There was no universal track listing or cover art for the Greatest Hits album, and each territory's tracks were dependent on what singles were released there and what tracks charted. In some cases, despite the band's popularity, not enough songs were issued as singles to fill a compilation album, and a few album tracks were used as filler. Some examples of these were "Sweet Lady" and "Love of My Life", neither of which was released as a single in any country, but appear on some regions' 1981 Hits release. In the UK, the album was limited to the Queen singles that had reached the top 20 in the UK singles chart up to that point, plus "We Will Rock You", which had been the B-side of "We Are the Champions".
The US ended up with its original edit of Queen's first single release, Keep Yourself Alive, which had been re-released in the US in 1975 (original release was 1973) after the success of Bohemian Rhapsody. The US version also added "Under Pressure", Queen's collaboration with David Bowie, which was released the same week as Greatest Hits and subsequently topped the UK Singles Chart and reached the top ten in many charts around the world. However, the song was not included on the European versions of Greatest Hits – according to Queen's business manager Jim Beach, this was because the longer manufacturing time required to press records in Europe meant that several hundred thousand copies of the album had already been pressed up before the song had been recorded.
In Argentina and Brazil, the LP edition included the same list of UK Greatest Hits minus "Seven Seas of Rhye", and including "Love of My Life" (Live Killers version). The CD version is the same as the British.
The cover photo that appeared on the UK and US release was taken by Lord Snowdon at his home studio using only natural light. For the 1981 release the photo was skewed but later presented as it was originally taken for the 2011 re-release.
In 1991, Queen sought to issue a second Greatest Hits collection worldwide, this time with a standard track listing. However, the band had just changed record labels in the US, from Capitol to Hollywood Records, who were keen on a massive promotion of the band's back catalogue. The problem was that Elektra still held the US rights to that first 1981 collection (despite being Hollywood's US licensee). Hollywood Records decided to not release Greatest Hits II to the US market, but instead created their own collection, Classic Queen (1992), peaking at number four. This compilation was made up of tracks such as "Bohemian Rhapsody", "Keep Yourself Alive" and "Under Pressure" (which had already appeared on the Elektra 1981 Hits collection) as well as newer tracks ("A Kind of Magic" and "Radio Ga Ga"). Some tracks were not even singles in the US ("One Year of Love") or anywhere ("Stone Cold Crazy"). Though well received, this collection would eventually pose the problem of overlapping track lists in the future.
Hollywood Records, later that year, re-released a companion collection Greatest Hits with similar artwork (on a red background, where Classic Queen was on royal blue). Commonly referred to as the Red Greatest Hits, it features most of the '70s tracks absent from Classic Queen (including "Another One Bites the Dust" [1980], "We Will Rock You", "We Are the Champions" and "Killer Queen"). In 2004, to promote the Las Vegas production of the musical We Will Rock You, Hollywood Records released Greatest Hits: We Will Rock You Edition which was the UK Greatest Hits with three bonus tracks.
We Will Rock You edition[]
Released in 27 July 2006 to coincide with the We Will Rock You musical, the "We Will Rock You" edition of Greatest Hits featured 3 bonus tracks not found on the original release: I'm In Love With My Car (as heard in the Jaguar campaign), Under Pressure, and Tie Your Mother Down (live versions from Queen On Fire - Live at the Bowl).
Track Listings[]
This section includes the track listings for the original Greatest Hits in its various forms. For other compilations, including the second and third Greatest Hits albums, see the relevant articles.
On the 17-track UK editions, Freddie Mercury was the writer of ten of the songs, Brian May five and John Deacon two. Roger Taylor had not written any songs that had been released as singles for the band at that point.
All tracks are written by Freddie Mercury, except where noted.
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Bohemian Rhapsody" (from A Night at the Opera, 1975) | 5:57 | |
2. | "Another One Bites the Dust" (from The Game, 1980) | John Deacon | 3:36 |
3. | "Killer Queen" (from Sheer Heart Attack, 1974) | 2:57 | |
4. | "Fat Bottomed Girls" (single version, from Jazz, 1978) | Brian May | 3:22 |
5. | "Bicycle Race" (from Jazz, 1978) | 3:01 | |
6. | "You're My Best Friend" (from A Night at the Opera, 1975) | Deacon | 2:52 |
7. | "Don't Stop Me Now" (from Jazz, 1978) | 3:29 | |
8. | "Save Me" (single version, from The Game, 1980) | May | 3:48 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
9. | "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" (from The Game, 1980) | 2:42 | |
10. | "Somebody to Love" (from A Day at the Races, 1976) | 4:56 | |
11. | "Now I'm Here" (from Sheer Heart Attack, 1974) | May | 4:10 |
12. | "Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy" (from A Day at the Races, 1976) | 2:54 | |
13. | "Play the Game" (from The Game, 1980) | 3:33 | |
14. | "Flash" (single version, from Flash Gordon, 1980) | May | 2:48 |
15. | "Seven Seas of Rhye" (from Queen II, 1974) | 2:47 | |
16. | "We Will Rock You" (from News of the World, 1977) | May | 2:01 |
17. | "We Are the Champions" (from News of the World, 1977) | 3:00 | |
Total length: | 58:44 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Another One Bites the Dust" | 3:37 | |
2. | "Bohemian Rhapsody" | 5:58 | |
3. | "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" | 2:44 | |
4. | "Killer Queen" | 3:02 | |
5. | "Fat Bottomed Girls" | 3:23 | |
6. | "Bicycle Race" | 3:01 | |
7. | "Under Pressure" (later included on Hot Space, 1982) | Queen, David Bowie | 4:05 |
8. | "We Will Rock You" | 2:02 | |
9. | "We Are the Champions" | 3:01 | |
10. | "Flash" | 2:49 | |
11. | "Somebody to Love" | 4:58 | |
12. | "You're My Best Friend" | 2:52 | |
13. | "Keep Yourself Alive" (single version in mono, from Queen, 1973) | May | 3:32 |
14. | "Play the Game" | 3:30 | |
Total length: | 47:58 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Bohemian Rhapsody" | 5:55 | |
2. | "Another One Bites the Dust" | 3:33 | |
3. | "Killer Queen" | 3:00 | |
4. | "Fat Bottomed Girls" | 3:22 | |
5. | "Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy" | 2:32 | |
6. | "Don't Stop Me Now" | 3:28 | |
7. | "Save Me" | 3:48 | |
8. | "Under Pressure" | 4:05 | |
9. | "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" | 2:42 | |
10. | "Somebody to Love" | 4:55 | |
11. | "Now I'm Here" | 4:15 | |
12. | "Teo Torriatte" (single version, from A Day At The Races, 1976) | May | 5:00 |
13. | "You're My Best Friend" | 2:50 | |
14. | "Play the Game" | 3:28 | |
15. | "Flash's Theme A.K.A. Flash" | 2:47 | |
16. | "We Will Rock You" | 2:00 | |
17. | "We Are the Champions" | 2:58 | |
Total length: | 60:37 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "We Will Rock You" | 2:02 | |
2. | "We Are the Champions" | 3:01 | |
3. | "Another One Bites the Dust" | 3:37 | |
4. | "Killer Queen" | 3:01 | |
5. | "Somebody to Love" | 4:56 | |
6. | "Fat Bottomed Girls (LP version)" | 4:16 | |
7. | "Bicycle Race" | 3:02 | |
8. | "You're My Best Friend" | 2:51 | |
9. | "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" | 2:43 | |
10. | "Now I'm Here" | 4:14 | |
11. | "Play the Game" | 3:31 | |
12. | "Seven Seas of Rhye" | 2:48 | |
13. | "Body Language" (from Hot Space, 1982) | Mercury | 4:33 |
14. | "Save Me" | 3:48 | |
15. | "Don't Stop Me Now" | 3:34 | |
16. | "Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy" | 2:55 | |
17. | "I Want to Break Free" (from The Works, 1984) | Deacon | 3:19 |
Total length: | 58:43 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
18. | "I'm in Love with My Car" (rare original single mix, from A Night at the Opera, 1975) | Roger Taylor | 3:12 |
19. | "Under Pressure" (from Queen on Fire – Live at the Bowl, 2004) | 3:39 | |
20. | "Tie Your Mother Down" (from Queen on Fire – Live at the Bowl, 2004) | May | 3:52 |
Total length: | 69:17 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
18. | "Teo Torriatte (Let Us Cling Together)" (From A Day at the Races, 1976) | May | 5:07 |
Total length: | 63:00 |
In addition to the variations above, the official biography Queen: As It Began by Jacky Gunn and Jim Jenkins states the following variations on the original UK track listing:
- Argentina, Brazil, Mexico and Venezuela had "Love of My Life" (live version) instead of "Seven Seas of Rhye".
- Belgium and Spain had "Spread Your Wings" as an extra track.
- Australia was identical to the US version, but had the single version of "Tie Your Mother Down" as an extra track.
- Bulgaria had the single version of "Death On Two Legs" and the album version of "Sweet Lady" as extra tracks.
- Canada, France, Germany, Israel and Netherlands had "Under Pressure" as an extra track.
- Germany also added "Spread Your Wings" on some first pressing copies.
- Poland, Italy, Russia, Finland, and Denmark had "'39", "Let Me Entertain You", the single version of "She Makes Me (Stormtrooper In Stilettoes)", and "Need Your Loving Tonight" as extra tracks.
Personnel[]
- Freddie Mercury – lead, backing and operatic vocals, acoustic piano, jangle piano, fingersnaps, bicycle bells, handclaps, acoustic guitar, organ, synthesizer, footstomps, fingersnaps (on original North American release only), drum machine (on 1991 North American release only), synth bass
- Brian May – acoustic and electric guitars, co-lead vocals on "Fat Bottomed Girls" (chorus), backing and operatic vocals, bicycle bells, handclaps, piano, synthesizer, footstomps, fingersnaps (on original North American release only), co-lead vocals on "Keep Yourself Alive" (bridge), harmonium (on Japanese release only)
- Roger Taylor – acoustic and (on 1991 North American release only) electronic drums, percussion, backing and operatic vocals, timpani, gong, triangle, chimes, bicycle bells, handclaps, woodblocks, tambourine, footstomps, fingersnaps (on original North American release only), cowbell, co-lead vocals on "Keep Yourself Alive" (bridge), rhythm guitar (on 2004 US edition), lead vocals (on 2004 US edition)
- John Deacon – bass guitar, electric guitar, acoustic and electric pianos, bicycle bells, handclaps, footstomps, fingersnaps (on original North American release only), synthesizer (on 1991 North American release only)
- Additional personnel (original UK release)
- Mike Stone – co-lead vocals on "Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy"
- Roy Thomas Baker – stylophone on "Seven Seas of Rhye"
- Additional personnel (original North American release)
- David Bowie – co-lead vocals on "Under Pressure"
- Additional personnel (1991 North American release)
- Fred Mandel – synthesizer on "I Want to Break Free"
Chart Performance[]
Certifications and sales[]
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Argentina (CAPIF) | Diamond | 506,916 |
Australia (ARIA) | 15× Platinum | 1,050,000^ |
Austria (IFPI Austria) | 4× Platinum | 200,000* |
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil) | Platinum | 250,000* |
Canada (Music Canada) | 3× Platinum | 300,000^ |
Finland (Musiikkituottajat) | Platinum | 55,058 |
France (SNEP) | 2× Platinum | 400,400 |
Germany (BVMI) | 7× Gold | 1,750,000^ |
Italy (FIMI)
sales since 2009 |
Gold | 25,000* |
Japan (RIAJ) | Gold | 100,000^ |
New Zealand (RMNZ) | 10× Platinum | 150,000 |
Poland (ZPAV) | Gold | 10,000 |
Spain (PROMUSICAE) | Gold | 50,000^ |
Sweden (GLF) | Gold | 50,000^ |
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland) | 5× Platinum | 250,000^ |
United Kingdom (BPI) | 22× Platinum | 6,120,000 |
United States (RIAA) | 9× Platinum | 9,000,000^ |
* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
Gallery[]
Main article: Greatest Hits/Gallery