Jump to content

Greatest Hits (Queen album)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 134.113.239.21 (talk) at 19:46, 7 June 2019 (Certifications). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Greatest Hits
Original 1981 edition
Greatest hits album by
Released26 October 1981
Recorded1974–1980 (1981 UK edition (EMI) & 2011 UK edition (Island) & 1994 US edition)
1972–1981 (1981 US & Canada edition)
1974–1981 (1981 Japan edition & 2011 Japan Reissue edition)
1972–1983 (1992 US edition (Hollywood Records)
1973–1982 (2004 US edition (Greatest Hits: We Will Rock You)
GenreRock
Length58:19 (UK edition)
Label
ProducerQueen, various
Queen chronology
Greatest Hits
(1981)
The Complete Works
(1985)
Alternative cover
1992 US edition

Greatest Hits is a compilation album by the British rock band Queen, released worldwide on 26 October 1981.[1] The album consisted of Queen's biggest hits since their first chart appearance in 1974 with "Seven Seas of Rhye", up to their 1980 hit "Flash" (though in some countries "Under Pressure", the band's 1981 chart-topper with David Bowie, was included). There was no universal track listing or cover art for the album, and each territory's tracks were dependent on what singles had been released there and which were successful.

Greatest Hits was a commercial success worldwide. It received further boosts in sales following the death of Queen's lead singer Freddie Mercury in 1991, and the release of the biographical film Bohemian Rhapsody in 2018. In the UK the album spent four weeks at number one on the UK Albums Chart and sold consistently well throughout the 1980s, becoming the fourth-biggest selling album of the decade. As of February 2019 Greatest Hits has spent 861 weeks on the UK Albums Chart, has been certified twenty times platinum, and is the best-selling album of all time in the UK, with sales of over six million copies. It has been certified eight times platinum in the US, three times platinum in Canada, fifteen times platinum in Australia, and ten times platinum in New Zealand, and in total has sold more than 25 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling albums of all time.

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 was released as a single in any country, but appear on some regions' 1981 Hits release. In the UK and the US, where solid numbers could be collected, the album included only top 20 hits.

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.[2]

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). 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.[3][4]

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 no. 4.[5] 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").[6] Some tracks were not even singles in the US ("One Year of Love") or anywhere ("Stone Cold Crazy").[6] 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.

Greatest Flix and Greatest Pix

The release of Greatest Hits was accompanied simultaneously by Greatest Flix, a 60-minute compilation released on VHS video and LaserDisc of all the videos Queen had made up until that point in chronological order, and Greatest Pix, a 96-page paperback book edited by Jacques Lowe which featured photos of the band taken by Neal Preston.[2] Although Greatest Flix only listed 17 videos on its sleeve, it contained two videos for "We Will Rock You". The video for "Killer Queen" had been shot especially for Greatest Flix, as no video had been made for the song on its original release in 1974.[2]

Greatest Flix

  1. "Killer Queen"
  2. "Bohemian Rhapsody"
  3. "You're My Best Friend"
  4. "Somebody to Love"
  5. "Tie Your Mother Down"
  6. "We Are the Champions"
  7. "We Will Rock You"
  8. "We Will Rock You (Live)"
  9. "Spread Your Wings"
  10. "Bicycle Race"
  11. "Fat Bottomed Girls"
  12. "Don't Stop Me Now"
  13. "Love of My Life (Live)"
  14. "Crazy Little Thing Called Love"
  15. "Save Me"
  16. "Play the Game"
  17. "Another One Bites the Dust"
  18. "Flash"

Note: on the sleeve notes of the video, "We Will Rock You" is incorrectly listed before "We Are the Champions".

Critical reception and legacy

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[7]
Entertainment WeeklyB+[8]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[9]

Initial reviews of the album in the British music press were negative. In NME Barney Hoskyns said, "All of [their songs], besides 'Another One Bites the Dust', are quite repulsive, unbelievably crass insults to their respective genres and uniformly vulgar music. It was only when Queen took vulgarity to its absolute limit that they stood out."[10] Melody Maker's Adam Sweeting stated, "I've never been the slightest bit interested in Queen's ridiculous pomposity and Freddie just makes me snigger, but I suppose songs like 'Killer Queen' are sort of catchy, while anything as preposterous as 'We Will Rock You' deserves an award if only for bad taste".[11]

However, retrospective reviews have rated the album higher: Ira Robbins gave Greatest Hits a B+ rating in Entertainment Weekly upon its reissue in 1992,[8] and William Ruhlmann of AllMusic awarded the record four and a half stars out of five.[7] In an interview in 2003 as part of the Arte television programme Music Planet 2Nite, Radiohead guitarist Ed O'Brien hailed the album as "impeccable" and "absolutely genius",[12] while British journalist Brian Viner called it the greatest album of all time.[13]

Commercial performance

In the UK, Greatest Hits debuted at number two on the UK Albums Chart and climbed to number one the following week, spending four weeks at the top. The album continued to sell well throughout the 1980s, appearing on several UK year-end charts, and by the end of the decade it had become the fourth-biggest selling album in the UK during the 1980s, with sales of over 1.9 million copies.[14] By 2006, Greatest Hits had become the best-selling album in the UK and the first album to sell more than five million copies there.[15] In February 2014, it was confirmed by the Official Charts Company that Greatest Hits had become the first album in the UK to sell over six million copies.[16][17] As of February 2019 the album has spent a total of 861 weeks on the UK Albums Chart.[18]

In the US the album sold moderately well on initial release in 1981, being certified platinum,[19] and peaked at number 11 on the Billboard 200 chart on its reissue in 1992.[20] However, it has since been certified eight times platinum for sales of eight million copies, making it the band's best-selling album there.[19][21] It is also the band's best-selling album worldwide, with total sales of more than 25 million copies.[22][23]

Track listing

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.

1981 UK edition (EMI) & 2011 UK edition (Island)
Has a photograph of the band as its cover.
Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Bohemian Rhapsody" (from A Night at the Opera, 1975)Freddie Mercury5:57
2."Another One Bites the Dust" (from The Game, 1980)John Deacon3:36
3."Killer Queen" (from Sheer Heart Attack, 1974)Mercury2:57
4."Fat Bottomed Girls" (single version, from Jazz, 1978)Brian May3:22
5."Bicycle Race" (from Jazz, 1978)Mercury3:01
6."You're My Best Friend" (from A Night at the Opera, 1975)Deacon2:52
7."Don't Stop Me Now" (from Jazz, 1978)Mercury3:29
8."Save Me" (Single Version on 1981 Release only, from The Game, 1980)May3:48
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
9."Crazy Little Thing Called Love" (from The Game, 1980)Mercury2:42
10."Somebody to Love" (from A Day at the Races, 1976)Mercury4:56
11."Now I'm Here" (from Sheer Heart Attack, 1974)May4:10
12."Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy" (from A Day at the Races, 1976)Mercury2:54
13."Play the Game" (from The Game, 1980)Mercury3:33
14."Flash" (single version, from Flash Gordon, 1980)May2:48
15."Seven Seas of Rhye" (from Queen II, 1974)Mercury2:47
16."We Will Rock You" (from News of the World, 1977)May2:01
17."We Are the Champions" (from News of the World, 1977)Mercury3:00
Total length:58:44
1981 US and Canada edition
No.TitleWriter(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 Bowie4:05
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)May3:32
14."Play the Game" 3:30
Total length:47:58
1981 Japan edition
No.TitleWriter(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)May5:00
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
1992 US edition (Hollywood Records)
Has a red cover with the Queen crest design.
No.TitleWriter(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)Mercury4:33
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" (single mix, from The Works, 1984)Deacon4:22
Total length:58:43
2004 US edition (Greatest Hits: We Will Rock You)
Same track listing as UK 1981 edition, followed by three additional tracks.
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
18."I'm in Love with My Car" (rare original single mix, from A Night at the Opera, 1975)Roger Taylor3:12
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)May3:52
Total length:69:17
2011 Japan reissue edition
From the bonus track for Japan, available on iTunes.
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
18."Teo Torriatte (Let Us Cling Together)" (From A Day at the Races, 1976)May5:07
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:[citation needed]

  • 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 "Tie Your Mother Down" as an extra track.
  • Bulgaria had "Death On Two Legs" and "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.

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)
  • 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)
Additional personnel (original North American release)
Additional personnel (1991 North American release)

Charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Argentina (CAPIF)[76] 3× Platinum 180,000^
Australia (ARIA)[77] 15× Platinum 1,050,000^
Austria (IFPI Austria)[78] 4× Platinum 200,000*
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[79] Platinum 250,000*
Canada (Music Canada)[80] 3× Platinum 300,000^
Finland (Musiikkituottajat)[81] Platinum 55,058[81]
France (SNEP)[83] Gold 400,400[82]
Germany (BVMI)[84] 7× Gold 1,750,000^
Italy (FIMI)[85]
(since 2009)
Gold 25,000*
New Zealand (RMNZ)[86] 10× Platinum 150,000
Poland (ZPAV)[87] Gold 10,000
Sweden (GLF)[88] Gold 50,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[89] 5× Platinum 250,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[91] 21× Platinum 6,300,000[90]
United States (RIAA)[19] 8× Platinum 8,000,000^

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Date Region Label Format Catalog number
26 October 1981 United Kingdom EMI/Parlophone LP / cassette EMTV 30
United States Elektra LP 5E-564
1990 Soviet Union Melodiya LP А60 00703 001[92]
15 September 1992 United States Hollywood CD 61265
17 August 2004 United States Hollywood CD 2061-62465-2
3 January 2011 United Kingdom Island CD 2758364

See also

Notes

  1. ^ "Record News". NME. 17 October 1981. p. 48.
  2. ^ a b c Grein, Paul (17 October 1981). "Row over Rent-Only Plan for Queen Vid". Billboard. pp. 3 & 84.
  3. ^ "January 2017". www.brianmay.com. Retrieved 14 January 2017.
  4. ^ "Greatest Hits". Queen official website. Retrieved 14 January 2017.
  5. ^ Billboard 25 Jul 1992 p.8. Billboard. Retrieved 30 May 2011
  6. ^ a b Queen Album: Classic Queen Archived 27 February 2008 at the Wayback Machine MTV. Retrieved 30 May 2011
  7. ^ a b Ruhlmann, William. "Greatest Hits (1981) – Queen". AllMusic.
  8. ^ a b Robbins, Ira (13 November 1992). "Greatest Hits Review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 11 June 2012. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  9. ^ "Queen: Album Guide". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 4 December 2011. Retrieved 20 February 2019.
  10. ^ Hoskyns, Barney (31 October 1981). "Queen – Greatest Hits". NME. p. 36.
  11. ^ Sweeting, Adam (31 October 1981). "Queen – Greatest Hits". Melody Maker. p. 18.
  12. ^ "Radiohead live at Le Réservoir (Paris, France)". Music Planet 2nite. 3 July 2003. 26:34 minutes in. Arte. Queen did their Greatest Hits, and the first one is impeccable, isn't it? It's absolutely genius.
  13. ^ Viner, Brian (14 February 2014). "Why Queen's Greatest Hits is the greatest album EVER". Daily Mail. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
  14. ^ a b Jones, Alan (16 December 1989). "Chartfile". Record Mirror. p. 45.
  15. ^ "Queen head all-time sales chart". BBC News. 16 November 2006. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  16. ^ "Queen's Greatest Hits becomes first album to sell 6 million in the UK". Official Charts Company. 10 February 2014. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  17. ^ "Queen reach six million album sales in UK". BBC News. 11 February 2014. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  18. ^ a b "Queen | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart.
  19. ^ a b c "American album certifications – Queen – Greatest Hits". Recording Industry Association of America.
  20. ^ a b "Queen Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.
  21. ^ Caulfield, Keith (10 February 2014). "Queen's 'Greatest Hits' Becomes First Album to Sell 6 Million in U.K." Billboard. Retrieved 11 February 2014.
  22. ^ "In Pictures: 50 years of pop". BBC News. Retrieved 17 January 2011.
  23. ^ Anderson, Sarah (12 November 2010). "The 50 best-selling albums ever". NME. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  24. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, New South Wales, Australia: Australian Chart Book. p. 243. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  25. ^ "Austriancharts.at – Queen – Greatest Hits" (in German). Hung Medien.
  26. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Queen – Greatest Hits" (in Dutch). Hung Medien.
  27. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Queen – Greatest Hits" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts.
  28. ^ "Charts.nz – Queen – Greatest Hits". Hung Medien.
  29. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Queen – Greatest Hits". Hung Medien.
  30. ^ "Australiancharts.com – Queen – Greatest Hits". Hung Medien.
  31. ^ "100 Albums (CD's & Cassettes)" (PHP/PDF). RPM. 56 (16). 17 October 1992. ISSN 0315-5994. Retrieved 25 July 2011.
  32. ^ "Les "Charts Runs" de chaque Album Classé". InfoDisc (in French). Archived from the original (PHP) on 18 February 2010. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help) Find "QUEEN" under the drop-down menu to see statistics.
  33. ^ "Album Top 40 slágerlista – {{{year}}}. {{{week}}}. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ.
  34. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Queen – Greatest Hits". Hung Medien.
  35. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Queen – Greatest Hits". Hung Medien.
  36. ^ "Spanishcharts.com – Queen – Greatest Hits". Hung Medien.
  37. ^ "Ultratop.be – Queen – Greatest Hits" (in French). Hung Medien.
  38. ^ "Lescharts.com – Queen – Greatest Hits". Hung Medien.
  39. ^ "Mexicancharts.com – Queen – Greatest Hits". Hung Medien.
  40. ^ "Portuguesecharts.com – Queen – Greatest Hits". Hung Medien.
  41. ^ "Queen Chart History (Top Hard Rock Albums)". Billboard.
  42. ^ "Top Álbum - Del 30 de noviembre al 06 de diciembre 2018" (in Spanish). Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Archived from the original on 21 December 2018. Retrieved 24 January 2019.
  43. ^ "ARIA Charts". Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  44. ^ "Oricon Charts". Retrieved 15 January 2019.
  45. ^ "IFPI ČR Hitparáda - CZ - ALBUMS - TOP 100 Týden - 201902". {{cite web}}: |archive-date= requires |archive-url= (help)
  46. ^ "Queen Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.
  47. ^ "Jaaroverzichten – Album 1981". Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  48. ^ "Top Selling Albums of 1981". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  49. ^ Scaping, Peter, ed. (1982). "The Top 200 LPs: January–December 1981". BPI Year Book 1982 (5th ed.). The British Phonographic Industry Ltd. pp. 50–53. ISBN 0-906154-03-0.
  50. ^ Jones, Alan; Lazell, Barry; Rees, Dafydd (1982). "The Top 200 Albums (UK)". Chart File 1982. Virgin Books. pp. 78–81. ISBN 0-907080-49-9.
  51. ^ Kent (1993). "1982 – Top 25 Albums". p. 434.
  52. ^ "Jahreshitparade Alben 1982". Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  53. ^ "Jaaroverzichten – Album 1982". Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  54. ^ "Top 100 Album – Jahrescharts 1982". Offizielle Deutsche Charts. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  55. ^ "Top Selling Albums of 1982". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  56. ^ Rees, Dafydd; Lazell, Barry; Jones, Alan (1983). "The Top 100 UK Albums". Chart File Volume 2. Virgin Books. pp. 82–83. ISBN 0-907080-73-1.
  57. ^ "Top 100 Albums". Music Week. London, England: Morgan-Grampian plc: 42. 26 January 1985.
  58. ^ Scaping, Peter, ed. (1985). "Top 100 Albums: 1984". BPI Year Book 1985 (7th ed.). British Phonographic Industry. pp. 48–49. ISBN 0-906154-06-5.
  59. ^ "Top 100 Albums". Music Week. 18 January 1986. p. 11.
  60. ^ Scaping, Peter, ed. (1986). "Top 100 Albums: 1985". BPI Year Book 1986 (8th ed.). British Phonographic Industry. pp. 50–51. ISBN 0-906154-07-3.
  61. ^ "Top 100 Albums". Music Week. 24 January 1987. p. 25.
  62. ^ "1991 Top 100 Albums". Music Week. 11 January 1992. p. 21.
  63. ^ "ARIA End of Year Albums 1992". ARIA. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  64. ^ "Jahreshitparade Alben 1992". Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  65. ^ "Top 100 Album – Jahrescharts 1992". Offizielle Deutsche Charts. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  66. ^ "Top Selling Albums of 1992". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  67. ^ "Year End Charts: Top Albums". Music Week. 16 January 1993. p. 10.
  68. ^ "Los más vendidos 2016" (in Spanish). Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Archived from the original on 18 January 2017. Retrieved 18 January 2017.
  69. ^ "ARIA End of Year Albums 2017". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 5 January 2018.
  70. ^ "Los más vendidos 2017" (in Spanish). Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Archived from the original on 4 February 2018. Retrieved 5 February 2018.
  71. ^ "2018 Annual ARIA Albums Chart". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
  72. ^ "Los más vendidos 2018" (in Spanish). Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Archived from the original on 24 January 2019. Retrieved 24 January 2019.
  73. ^ "Top Selling Albums of 2018". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 14 December 2018.
  74. ^ "End of Year Album Chart Top 100 – 2018". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 4 January 2019.
  75. ^ "Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2018". Billboard. Retrieved 5 December 2018.
  76. ^ "Discos de oro y platino" (in Spanish). Cámara Argentina de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Archived from the original on 6 July 2011. Retrieved 16 September 2012.
  77. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2014 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association.
  78. ^ "Austrian album certifications – Queen – Greatest Hits I" (in German). IFPI Austria.
  79. ^ "Brazilian album certifications – Queen – Queen Greatest Hits" (in Portuguese). Pro-Música Brasil.
  80. ^ "Canadian album certifications – Queen – Greatest Hits". Music Canada.
  81. ^ a b "Queen" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland.
  82. ^ "Les Meilleures Ventes de CD / Albums Tout Temps" (in French). Infodisc.fr. Retrieved 19 February 2017.
  83. ^ "French album certifications – Queen – Greatest Hits" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique.
  84. ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Queen; 'Greatest Hits I')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
  85. ^ "Italian album certifications – Queen – Greatest Hits I" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Select "2016" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Type "Greatest Hits I" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Album e Compilation" under "Sezione".
  86. ^ "The Official New Zealand Music Chart". THE OFFICIAL NZ MUSIC CHART. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
  87. ^ "Wyróżnienia – Złote płyty CD - Archiwum - Przyznane w 2019 roku" (in Polish). Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 23 February 2019.
  88. ^ "Guld- och Platinacertifikat − År 1987−1998" (PDF) (in Swedish). IFPI Sweden. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 May 2011.
  89. ^ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards ('Greatest Hits')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien.
  90. ^ Myers, Justin (12 July 2016). "The greatest of the greatest: the UK's official Top 10 biggest hits collections revealed". Official Charts Company.
  91. ^ "British album certifications – Queen – Greatest Hits". British Phonographic Industry. Select albums in the Format field. Select Platinum in the Certification field. Type Greatest Hits in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  92. ^ "Queen – Greatest Hits". Discogs. Retrieved 4 September 2016.