Jump to content

Greatest Hits (Billy Joel albums): Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
"Honesty" appears in the Japanese, South Korean and Dutch editions of the album
Line 32: Line 32:
''Greatest Hits – Volume I & Volume II'' has been [[RIAA certification|certified double diamond]] by the [[RIAA]], selling over 11.5 million copies (23 million units) and is tied with [[Pink Floyd]]'s ''[[The Wall]]'' and [[Led Zeppelin]]'s ''[[Led Zeppelin IV]]'' for third most certified album of all time in the U.S.<ref>[http://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?table=tblTop100 "RIAA List of Best Selling Albums"]</ref>
''Greatest Hits – Volume I & Volume II'' has been [[RIAA certification|certified double diamond]] by the [[RIAA]], selling over 11.5 million copies (23 million units) and is tied with [[Pink Floyd]]'s ''[[The Wall]]'' and [[Led Zeppelin]]'s ''[[Led Zeppelin IV]]'' for third most certified album of all time in the U.S.<ref>[http://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?table=tblTop100 "RIAA List of Best Selling Albums"]</ref>


The '''''Greatest''' '''Hits Volume I & Volume II''''' album includes hits from 1973 to 1985 in chronological order with one exception. The album includes two previously unreleased tracks, "You're Only Human (Second Wind)" and "The Night Is Still Young" (this track exclusive to this collection, and repackaged variants, whereas "You're Only Human" later featured on the compilation Billy Joel The Ultimate Collection released in 2000). Some pressings do not include "Honesty" as the last song on side 2, and instead include "Don't Ask Me Why" as the third song on side 3.
The '''''Greatest''' '''Hits Volume I & Volume II''''' album includes hits from 1973 to 1985 in chronological order with one exception. The album includes two previously unreleased tracks, "You're Only Human (Second Wind)" and "The Night Is Still Young" (this track exclusive to this collection, and repackaged variants, whereas "You're Only Human" later featured on the compilation ''[[The Ultimate Collection (Billy Joel album)|The Ultimate Collection]]'' released in 2000). Some pressings do not include "Honesty" as the last song on side 2, and instead include "Don't Ask Me Why" as the third song on side 3.<ref name="greatest">Sources for the Dutch and Japanese editions of ''[[Greatest Hits (Billy Joel albums)|Greatest Hits Volume 2]]'':
*{{cite AV media notes |title=Greatest Hits Volume 2 |others=[[Billy Joel]] |id= |year=1985 |type=Dutch Edition |publisher=[[Columbia Records]]}}
*{{cite AV media notes |title=Greatest Hits Volume 2 |others=Billy Joel |id= |year=1985 |type=Japanese Edition |publisher=Columbia Records}}
*{{cite AV media notes |title=Greatest Hits Volume 2 |others=Billy Joel |id= |year=1985 |type=South Korean Edition |publisher=Columbia Records}}
</ref>


== LP release tracklist ==
== LP release tracklist ==
Line 132: Line 136:
== Cassette release tracklist ==
== Cassette release tracklist ==


The same as the LP version, but since it is on one cassette LP sides 1 and 2 are put onto one side of the cassette and LP, sides 3 and 4 are put onto the other side.{{citation needed|date=October 2013}} Some pressings do not include "Honesty" as the last song on side 1, and instead include "Don't Ask Me Why" as the third song on side 2.{{citation needed|date=October 2013}}
The same as the LP version, but since it is on one cassette LP sides 1 and 2 are put onto one side of the cassette and LP, sides 3 and 4 are put onto the other side.{{citation needed|date=October 2013}} Some pressings do not include "Honesty" as the last song on side 1, and instead include "Don't Ask Me Why" as the third song on side 2.<ref name="greatest" />


==CD release tracklist==
==CD release tracklist==

Revision as of 22:25, 13 May 2014

Untitled
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic [1]
Rolling Stone Album Guide, 3rd Edition[citation needed]

Billy Joel's Greatest Hits is a collection released in two sets, 12 years apart. The first set, consisting of two discs, titled Volume I and Volume II, was released in 1985. The second, single disc titled Volume III was released in 1997. All songs but the last three on Volume III, "To Make You Feel My Love", "Hey Girl" and "Light as the Breeze" were written by Joel. "You're Only Human (Second Wind)" and "The Night Is Still Young" are only available on the first set. The other songs appear mostly in order of their release dates and generally represent Joel's most successful singles.

Greatest Hits – Volume I & Volume II has been certified double diamond by the RIAA, selling over 11.5 million copies (23 million units) and is tied with Pink Floyd's The Wall and Led Zeppelin's Led Zeppelin IV for third most certified album of all time in the U.S.[2]

The Greatest Hits Volume I & Volume II album includes hits from 1973 to 1985 in chronological order with one exception. The album includes two previously unreleased tracks, "You're Only Human (Second Wind)" and "The Night Is Still Young" (this track exclusive to this collection, and repackaged variants, whereas "You're Only Human" later featured on the compilation The Ultimate Collection released in 2000). Some pressings do not include "Honesty" as the last song on side 2, and instead include "Don't Ask Me Why" as the third song on side 3.[3]

LP release tracklist

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."Piano Man" (1973)5:36
2."Say Goodbye to Hollywood" (1981) (live edited version)3:54
3."New York State of Mind" (1976) (contains different saxophone solo than Turnstiles version)6:02
4."The Stranger" (1977)5:07
5."Just the Way You Are" (1977) (radio edit version)3:36
Side two
No.TitleLength
1."Movin' Out (Anthony's Song)" (1977)3:28
2."Only the Good Die Young" (1977)3:53
3."She's Always a Woman" (1977)3:17
4."My Life" (1978) (radio edit version)3:51
5."Big Shot" (1978) (radio edit version)3:43
6."You May Be Right" (1980)4:09
Side three
No.TitleLength
1."It's Still Rock and Roll to Me" (1980)2:54
2."Don't Ask Me Why"2:57
3."Pressure" (1982) (radio edit version)3:15
4."Allentown" (1982)3:48
5."Goodnight Saigon" (1982)7:00
Side four
No.TitleLength
1."Tell Her About It" (1983) (radio edit version)3:35
2."Uptown Girl" (1983)3:15
3."The Longest Time" (1983)3:36
4."You're Only Human (Second Wind)" (1985)4:48
5."The Night Is Still Young" (1985)5:28

Cassette release tracklist

The same as the LP version, but since it is on one cassette LP sides 1 and 2 are put onto one side of the cassette and LP, sides 3 and 4 are put onto the other side.[citation needed] Some pressings do not include "Honesty" as the last song on side 1, and instead include "Don't Ask Me Why" as the third song on side 2.[3]

CD release tracklist

Disc one
No.TitleLength
1."Piano Man"5:39
2."Captain Jack"6:57
3."The Entertainer"3:40
4."Say Goodbye to Hollywood"4:39
5."New York State of Mind"6:05
6."The Stranger"5:09
7."Scenes from an Italian Restaurant"7:36
8."Just the Way You Are"4:51
9."Movin' Out (Anthony's Song)"3:30
10."Only the Good Die Young"3:54
11."She's Always a Woman"3:20
Total length:55:20
Disc two
No.TitleLength
1."My Life"4:44
2."Big Shot"4:02
3."Honesty" (instead of disc two, track 6)3:51
4."You May Be Right"4:13
5."It's Still Rock and Roll to Me"2:58
6."Don't Ask Me Why" (instead of disc two, track 3)2:59
7."She's Got a Way [Live]"3:02
8."Pressure"4:37
9."Allentown"3:48
10."Goodnight Saigon"7:02
11."Tell Her About It"3:50
12."Uptown Girl"3:16
13."The Longest Time"3:39
14."You're Only Human (Second Wind)"4:49
15."The Night Is Still Young"5:26
Total length:58:25

The LP and Cassette have 21 tracks. The CD has 4 additional tracks: "Captain Jack", "The Entertainer", "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant" and "She's Got a Way" (the live version from Songs in the Attic). There are two versions of the CD available, the first version has "Honesty" as the third track on disc 2, the second version has "Don't Ask Me Why" as the fifth track on disc 2. However, the disc with "Honesty" does not have "Don't Ask Me Why" and vice versa.[4]

In 1998, the two CD set with "Don't Ask Me Why" was digitally remastered and packaged with two bonus videos ("You're Only Human (Second Wind)" and "The Night Is Still Young") on disc 1. All of the songs that were edited in the 1985 package ("Pressure", "My Life", "Big Shot", "Just the Way You Are" and "Tell Her About It") were restored to their original album lengths. Also, the live version of "Say Goodbye to Hollywood" was removed and replaced with the studio version from Joel's 1976 album Turnstiles.

Certifications and sales

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[5] 3× Platinum 210,000^
Austria (IFPI Austria)[6] Gold 25,000*
Canada (Music Canada)[7] 2× Platinum 200,000^
France (SNEP)[9] Gold 100,000[8]
Japan (Oricon Charts)[11] 3× Platinum + 1× Gold 700,000[10]
Netherlands (NVPI)[13] Platinum 100,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[14] Platinum 15,000^
Norway (IFPI Norway)[15] Platinum 50,000*
United Kingdom (BPI)[16] Platinum 400,000^
United States (RIAA)[17] 23× Platinum 11,500,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Greatest Hits Volume III

Untitled

The Greatest Hits Volume III album includes hits from 1983 to 1997. Three previously unreleased studio tracks are included, "To Make You Feel My Love", "Hey Girl", and "Light as the Breeze". All three tracks are covers songs (a rare occurrence in his catalogue), and although "To Make You Feel My Love" and "Hey Girl" were recorded to be singles for this album, Joel originally recorded the song "Light as the Breeze" for a Leonard Cohen tribute album, Tower of Song, released in 1995.

Chronologically, Greatest Hits Volume III overlaps slightly with Volume II, as the first two tracks, "Keeping the Faith" and "An Innocent Man", first appeared on his album An Innocent Man.

All songs written by Billy Joel except as noted:

No.TitleLength
1."Keeping the Faith"4:38
2."An Innocent Man"5:19
3."A Matter of Trust"4:12
4."Baby Grand"4:05
5."This Is the Time"5:00
6."Leningrad"4:04
7."We Didn't Start the Fire"4:48
8."I Go to Extremes"4:24
9."And So It Goes"3:38
10."The Downeaster 'Alexa'"3:44
11."Shameless"4:27
12."All About Soul (Remix)"6:01
13."Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)"3:35
14."The River of Dreams"4:11
15."To Make You Feel My Love" (Written by Bob Dylan)3:53
16."Hey Girl" (Written by Gerry Goffin & Carole King)3:57
17."Light as the Breeze" (Written by Leonard Cohen)6:12

Certifications and sales

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[18] Gold 35,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[7] Gold 50,000^
Japan (Oricon Charts)[11] Gold 100,000[10]
United Kingdom (BPI)[16] Silver 60,000^
United States (RIAA)[17] Platinum 1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

The Complete Hits Collection: 1973–1997

Untitled

On October 14, 1997, a boxed set was released that included all three Greatest Hits volumes as well as a fourth disc (entitled An Evening of Questions & Answers... & A Little Music) that contains live tracks and a Q&A with Joel.

An Evening of Questions & Answers... & A Little Music
No.TitleLength
1."Billy Joel Spoken Intro/Music Concepts" (live, mostly spoken)10:18
2."Scenes From an Italian Restaurant" (unreleased version – live)7:50
3."Beatles Influence" (live, mostly spoken)5:18
4."A Hard Day's Night" (unreleased version – live)2:53
5."Why Vienna?" (live, mostly spoken)9:28
6."Vienna" (unreleased version – live)3:41
7."History Through the Music" (live, mostly spoken)4:31
8."We Didn't Start the Fire" (unreleased version – live)5:13
9."Music Source" (live, mostly spoken)9:14
10."The River of Dreams" (unreleased original studio recording)5:20
11."Piano Bar" (live, mostly spoken)7:46
12."Piano Man" (unreleased version – live)6:31
Total length:1:18:03

Certifications and sales

Region Certification Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[17] Platinum 250,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

See also

References

  1. ^ AllMusic
  2. ^ "RIAA List of Best Selling Albums"
  3. ^ a b Sources for the Dutch and Japanese editions of Greatest Hits Volume 2:
    • Greatest Hits Volume 2 (Dutch Edition). Billy Joel. Columbia Records. 1985.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
    • Greatest Hits Volume 2 (Japanese Edition). Billy Joel. Columbia Records. 1985.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
    • Greatest Hits Volume 2 (South Korean Edition). Billy Joel. Columbia Records. 1985.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  4. ^ "Billy Joel – Greatest Hits Volume I & Volume II at Discogs"
  5. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1992 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association.
  6. ^ "Austrian album certifications – Billy Joel – Greatest Hits" (in German). IFPI Austria. Retrieved 25 July 2012.
  7. ^ a b "Canadian album certifications – Billy Joel – Greatest Hits". Music Canada.
  8. ^ "Les Albums Or". infodisc.fr. SNEP. Retrieved 2011-10-03.
  9. ^ "French album certifications – Billy Joel – 52nd Street" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique.
  10. ^ a b Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970-2005. Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9. {{cite book}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  11. ^ a b UNSUPPORTED OR EMPTY REGION: Japan (Oricon Charts).
  12. ^ NVPI "de branchevereniging van de entertainmentindustrie". Retrieved 2011-08-17. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)Note: User needs to enter "Billy Joel" in the "Artiest" field and click below "zoek" button.
  13. ^ "Dutch certifications" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers.
  14. ^ "New Zealand album certifications – Billy Joel – Greatest Hits". Recorded Music NZ.
  15. ^ "Norwegian album certifications – Billy Joel – Greatest Hits" (in Norwegian). IFPI Norway.
  16. ^ a b "British album certifications – Billy Joel – 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. Cite error: The named reference "United KingdomBilly JoelGreatest HitsalbumCertRef" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  17. ^ a b c "American album certifications – Billy Joel – Greatest Hits". Recording Industry Association of America.
  18. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1997 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 25 July 2012.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Greatest_Hits_(Billy_Joel_albums)&oldid=608459216"