Simon and Garfunkel's Greatest Hits | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | ||||
Greatest hits album by | ||||
Released | June 14, 1972 | |||
Recorded | March 1964–November 1969 | |||
Genre | Folk rock | |||
Length | 43:25 | |||
Label | Columbia | |||
Producer | ||||
Simon & Garfunkel chronology | ||||
|
Simon and Garfunkel's Greatest Hits is the first compilation album from Simon & Garfunkel, which was released on June 14, 1972, two years after Simon & Garfunkel had parted ways. [1]
The album is currently available on CD under Legacy's Playlist banner.
The album was a mix of original studio recordings and four previously unreleased live recordings. The album's minimalist packaging does not specifically date the latter; however, the live versions of "For Emily, Whenever I May Find Her" and "Kathy's Song" included on Greatest Hits were also included on the 2008 album Live 1969 . The liner notes to Live 1969 state that these two songs were both recorded at a November 1969 concert in St. Louis, Missouri. According to the liner notes from Collected Works , however, the version of "Kathy's Song" was taken from a 1968 concert in Vermont.
In a 1975 BBC Radio 1 interview, Roy Halee identified this version of "The 59th Street Bridge Song" as being from Simon & Garfunkel's 1970 performance at Carnegie Hall, "the last concert they did together" (prior to their disbanding later in 1970). A live version of "Homeward Bound" was also included on the album.
The remaining ten studio songs comprise nine singles released between 1965 and 1972, "America" being issued as a single several years after its appearance as a track on the Bookends album, and one album track, "Bookends" (without its parent song "Old Friends").
All the singles included, except "America," "El Condor Pasa (If I Could)," and "Scarborough Fair/Canticle" made the Top Ten, with the last peaking at No. 11. "Mrs. Robinson" topped the chart aided by its appearance in Mike Nichols' hit movie The Graduate . "The Sound of Silence" and "Bridge over Troubled Water" also peaked at No. 1 as singles in their studio versions, and "The Boxer" peaked as a single at No. 7.
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Rolling Stone | (favorable) [3] |
Simon and Garfunkel's Greatest Hits peaked on the U.S. albums chart at No. 5. On the UK Album Chart, it was a No. 2 hit. The album has proven a long and durable seller, currently being certified for 14 million units sold in the U.S. alone. It is easily their best-selling album in the U.S., and holds the record in the U.S. for the best-selling album by a duo.
In 2003, the album was ranked No. 293 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.
All songs composed by Paul Simon unless otherwise noted.
Chart | Position |
---|---|
Australian Kent Music Report [4] | 10 |
Belgian Albums Chart (Flanders) [5] | 5 |
Canadian RPM Albums Chart [6] | 2 |
Dutch Albums Chart [7] | 1 |
German Media Control Albums Chart [8] | 6 |
Japanese Oricon Albums Chart [9] | 3 |
New Zealand Albums Chart [10] | 12 |
Norwegian Albums Chart [11] | 7 |
Spanish Albums Chart [12] | 2 |
Swedish Kvällstoppen Chart [13] | 2 |
UK Albums Chart [14] | 2 |
US Billboard 200 [15] | 5 |
Chart (1972) | Position |
---|---|
Dutch Albums Chart [16] | 3 |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [17] | 3 |
UK Albums Chart [18] | 3 |
US Top Pop Albums | 72 |
Chart (1977) | Position |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [19] | 13 |
Chart (1978) | Position |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [20] | 29 |
Chart (1979) | Position |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [21] | 16 |
Chart (1980) | Position |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [22] | 48 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Belgium (BRMA) [23] | Gold | 25,000* |
Canada (Music Canada) [24] | 5× Platinum | 500,000^ |
Finland (Musiikkituottajat) [25] | Gold | 33,092 [25] |
France (SNEP) [26] | Diamond | 1,000,000* |
Germany (BVMI) [27] | 2× Platinum | 1,500,000 [28] |
Greece (IFPI Greece) [29] | Gold | 50,000^ |
Hong Kong (IFPI Hong Kong) [30] | Platinum | 20,000* |
Ireland | — | 25,000 [31] |
Italy (FIMI) [32] sales since 2009 | Gold | 25,000* |
Japan | — | 123,000 [9] |
New Zealand (RMNZ) [33] | Gold | 7,500‡ |
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland) [34] Columbia/Sony | 4× Platinum | 200,000^ |
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland) [34] Columbia/Sony Music | 2× Platinum | 100,000^ |
United Kingdom (BPI) [35] 1972-2006 sales | Platinum | 1,840,454 [36] |
United Kingdom (BPI) [37] reissue, 2011-2025 sales | 4× Platinum | 1,200,000‡ |
United States (RIAA) [38] | 14× Platinum | 14,000,000^ |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. |