Greatest Hits | ||||
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Greatest hits album by | ||||
Released | 7 November 2001 | |||
Recorded | 1979–2001 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 68:08 69:26 (bonus disc) | |||
Label | ||||
The Cure chronology | ||||
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Singles from The Cure: Greatest Hits | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Alternative Press | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
musicOMH | (average) [4] |
Q | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Greatest Hits is a greatest hits album by English rock band the Cure. It was first released in Japan on 7 November 2001, [6] before being released in the UK and Europe on 12 November and then in the US the day after. The band's relationship with longtime label Fiction Records came to a close, and the Cure were obliged to release one final album for the label. Lead singer Robert Smith agreed to release a greatest hits album under the condition that he could choose the tracks himself. The band also recorded a special studio album released as a bonus disc to some versions of the album. The disc, titled Acoustic Hits, consists of the eighteen songs from the North American release re-recorded using acoustic instruments.
Greatest Hits features select singles from the Cure's then-25 year history, along with the two new tracks "Cut Here" and "Just Say Yes". [7] All songs were newly remastered by Tim Young at Metropolis Mastering specifically for the collection.
The UK and international editions of the album feature a similar track listing, with the exception of three songs that only appear on one or the other: the international release features "The Walk", while the UK release excludes it in favour of "The Caterpillar" and "Pictures of You".
In an effort to provide something new for the hardcore fans who owned the previously released songs, Smith arranged for the band and former member Boris Williams to re-record acoustic versions of the Greatest Hits. Only the select first pressings of Greatest Hits were bundled with the bonus disc of Acoustic Hits.
Greatest Hits was also released on VHS and DVD. The video track listing mirrors that of the North American audio CD, with the exception of "The Caterpillar", "Pictures of You" and "Close to Me (Closest Mix)" which appear as hidden Easter eggs. Six of the acoustic performances also appear on the DVD.
The first vinyl version of this album was released on Record Store Day 2017 (22 April 2017) as two LP picture discs by the label Elektra Catalog Group. A quantity of 3250 were pressed. The release does not include the content of the Acoustic Hits disc, [8] which was given its own standalone release on standard black vinyl. On 5 July 2019, the album reached a new peak of number 19 in the UK Albums Chart following the Cure's headline set at that year's Glastonbury Festival.
No. | Title | Original album | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Boys Don't Cry" | Non-album single (1979) | 2:42 |
2. | "A Forest" (Shortened Edit) | Seventeen Seconds (1980) | 4:44 |
3. | "Let's Go to Bed" | Non-album single (1982) | 3:34 |
4. | "The Love Cats" | Non-album single (1983) | 3:40 |
5. | "The Caterpillar" | The Top (1984) | 3:42 |
6. | "In Between Days" | The Head on the Door (1985) | 2:58 |
7. | "Close to Me" (Remix) | The Head on the Door | 3:42 |
8. | "Why Can't I Be You?" | Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me (1987) | 3:14 |
9. | "Just Like Heaven" (Remix) | Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me | 3:32 |
10. | "Lullaby" (Remix) | Disintegration (1989) | 4:11 |
11. | "Lovesong" (Remix) | Disintegration | 3:28 |
12. | "Pictures of You" (Single Edit) | Disintegration | 4:49 |
13. | "Never Enough" (Single Mix) | Mixed Up (1990) | 4:28 |
14. | "High" (Single Mix) | Wish (1992) | 3:35 |
15. | "Friday I'm in Love" | Wish | 3:35 |
16. | "Mint Car" (Radio Mix) | Wild Mood Swings (1996) | 3:29 |
17. | "Wrong Number" (Single Mix) | Galore (1997) | 6:01 |
18. | "Cut Here" | Previously unreleased | 4:10 |
19. | "Just Say Yes" | Previously unreleased | 3:29 |
Acoustic Hits, the bonus disc features newly recorded acoustic versions of songs.
Disc 1, Side A [8]
Disc 1, Side B [8]
Disc 2, Side A [8]
Disc 2, Side B [8]
The following is the personnel for the Greatest Hits disc, and does not apply to the Acoustic Hits bonus disc.
Chart (2001–2002) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australian Albums (ARIA) [10] | 27 |
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [11] | 34 |
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) [12] | 5 |
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia) [13] | 8 |
Danish Albums (Hitlisten) [14] | 38 |
European Albums ( Music & Media ) [15] | 30 |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [16] | 22 |
Greek Albums (IFPI) [17] | 8 |
Irish Albums (IRMA) [18] | 11 |
Italian Albums (FIMI) [19] | 30 |
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista) [20] | 24 |
Polish Albums (ZPAV) [21] | 18 |
Scottish Albums (OCC) [22] | 47 |
Spanish Albums (AFYVE) [23] | 29 |
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [24] | 48 |
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [25] | 24 |
UK Albums (OCC) [26] | 33 |
US Billboard 200 [27] | 58 |
Chart (2016) | Peak position |
---|---|
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ) [28] | 17 |
Chart (2017) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australian Albums (ARIA) [10] | 27 |
Irish Albums (OCC) [29] | 17 |
Portuguese Albums (AFP) [30] | 33 |
Scottish Albums (OCC) [31] | 58 |
UK Albums (OCC) [32] | 48 |
US Top Tastemaker Albums (Billboard) [33] | 9 |
Chart (2019) | Peak position |
---|---|
Scottish Albums (OCC) [34] | 21 |
UK Albums (OCC) [35] | 19 |
Chart (2017) | Peak position |
---|---|
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia) [36] | 156 |
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [37] | 110 |
Irish Albums (IRMA) [38] | 65 |
UK Albums Sales (OCC) [39] | 65 |
UK Physical Albums (OCC) [40] | 53 |
UK Vinyl Albums (OCC) [41] | 10 |
US Top Tastemaker Albums (Billboard) [33] | 22 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Argentina (CAPIF) [42] | Platinum | 40,000^ |
Australia (ARIA) [43] | 2× Platinum | 140,000^ |
Belgium (BEA) [44] | Gold | 25,000* |
Germany (BVMI) [45] | Platinum | 300,000‡ |
Italy (FIMI) [46] | Gold | 25,000* |
United Kingdom (BPI) [47] | 3× Platinum | 900,000‡ |
Summaries | ||
Europe (IFPI) [48] | Platinum | 1,000,000* |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. |
...Greatest Hits featured 'Just Say Yes', a good-natured vocal trade-off between Smith and Republica shouter Saffron, and 'Cut Here'...