The Very Best of Elton John | ||||
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Compilation album by | ||||
Released | 29 October 1990 [1] | |||
Recorded | 1970–1990 | |||
Genre | Rock, pop | |||
Length | 137:56 | |||
Label | Polygram | |||
Producer | Gus Dudgeon, Clive Franks, Chris Thomas, Don Was | |||
Elton John chronology | ||||
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Singles from The Very Best of Elton John | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Very Best of Elton John is a greatest hits compilation album by English musician Elton John, released in October 1990. His first career-retrospective compilation album, and fourth official greatest-hits album overall, it was released in the United Kingdom and throughout Europe, and in other countries such as Japan and Australia, but not in the United States, where the box set To Be Continued... was released the following month instead.
The compilation spans his second album Elton John in 1970 to Sleeping with the Past in 1989. After the double A-sided "Sacrifice/Healing Hands" single became a hit and the third best-selling single of 1990 in the United Kingdom, the album became an instant smash in that country. It spent its first two weeks at #1 on the UK Albums Chart followed by nine weeks at #2, kept there by Madonna's Immaculate Collection . In all, the compilation spent 145 weeks inside the UK top 200 album chart, making a total of 11 re-entries, and it was certified 9× Platinum by the BPI on 1 March 1995. [4]
It includes a total of 28 hit singles plus the new songs "Easier to Walk Away" and "You Gotta Love Someone", both of which also made the charts between 1990 and 1991. The release also spawned a music video compilation, which was originally released on both laserdisc and VHS, and reissued on DVD.
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Album | Length |
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1. | "Your Song" | Elton John, Bernie Taupin | Elton John , 1970 | 4:03 |
2. | "Rocket Man (I Think It's Going To Be a Long, Long Time)" | John, Taupin | Honky Château , 1972 | 4:42 |
3. | "Honky Cat" | John, Taupin | Honky Château | 5:15 |
4. | "Crocodile Rock" | John, Taupin | Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player , 1973 | 3:58 |
5. | "Daniel" | John, Taupin | Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player | 3:56 |
6. | "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" | John, Taupin | Goodbye Yellow Brick Road , 1973 | 3:17 |
7. | "Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting" | John, Taupin | Goodbye Yellow Brick Road | 4:57 |
8. | "Candle in the Wind" | John, Taupin | Goodbye Yellow Brick Road | 3:51 |
9. | "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" | John, Taupin | Caribou , 1974 | 5:38 |
10. | "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" | Lennon–McCartney | Non-album single, 1974 | 6:17 |
11. | "Philadelphia Freedom" (Edited version) | John, Taupin | Non-album single, 1975 | 5:42 |
12. | "Someone Saved My Life Tonight" | John, Taupin | Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy , 1975 | 6:47 |
13. | "Pinball Wizard" (not on vinyl) | Pete Townshend | Tommy soundtrack, 1975 | 5:16 |
14. | "The Bitch Is Back" (not on vinyl) | John, Taupin | Caribou | 3:46 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Album | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
15. | "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" (with Kiki Dee) | John, Taupin (but credited to Ann Orson/Carte Blanche, respectively) | Non-album single, 1976 | 4:32 |
16. | "Bennie and the Jets" | John, Taupin | Goodbye Yellow Brick Road | 5:21 |
17. | "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word" | John, Taupin | Blue Moves , 1976 | 3:51 |
18. | "Song for Guy" | John | A Single Man , 1978 | 6:41 |
19. | "Part-Time Love" | John, Gary Osborne | A Single Man | 3:16 |
20. | "Blue Eyes" | John, Osborne | Jump Up! , 1982 | 3:28 |
21. | "I Guess That's Why They Call It the Blues" | John, Taupin, Davey Johnstone | Too Low for Zero , 1983 | 4:46 |
22. | "I'm Still Standing" | John, Taupin | Too Low for Zero | 3:04 |
23. | "Kiss the Bride" | John, Taupin | Too Low for Zero | 3:56 |
24. | "Sad Songs (Say So Much) (Single Version)" | John, Taupin | Breaking Hearts , 1984 | 4:11 |
25. | "Passengers" | John, Taupin, Johnstone, Phineas Mkhize | Breaking Hearts | 3:24 |
26. | "Nikita" | John, Taupin | Ice on Fire , 1985 | 5:45 |
27. | "I Don't Wanna Go on with You Like That" (not on vinyl) | John, Taupin | Reg Strikes Back , 1988 | 4:00 |
28. | "Sacrifice" | John, Taupin | Sleeping with the Past , 1989 | 5:08 |
29. | "Easier to Walk Away" (not on vinyl) | John, Taupin | Soon to be released on To Be Continued... , 1990 | 4:25 |
30. | "You Gotta Love Someone" | John, Taupin | Days of Thunder soundtrack, 1990 | 5:01 |
Song | Format |
---|---|
"Medicine Man" | "You Gotta Love Someone" 7"/12"/CD (UK) |
"Medicine Man" (with Adamski) | "You Gotta Love Someone" 12"/CD (UK) |
"Made for Me" | "Easier to Walk Away" 12"/CD (UK) |
"I Swear I Heard the Night Talkin'" | "Easier to Walk Away" 7"/12"/CD (UK) "You Gotta Love Someone" 7" (France) |
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
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Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Australia (ARIA) [30] | 6× Platinum | 420,000^ |
Austria (IFPI Austria) [31] | 3× Platinum | 150,000* |
Belgium (BRMA) [32] | 3× Platinum | 150,000* |
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil) [33] | Gold | 100,000* |
Finland (Musiikkituottajat) [34] | Gold | 25,000 [34] |
France (SNEP) [35] | Diamond | 2,300,000 [36] |
Germany (BVMI) [37] | 2× Platinum | 1,000,000^ |
Italy (FIMI) [38] | Platinum | 450,000 [38] |
Netherlands (NVPI) [39] | 2× Platinum | 200,000^ |
New Zealand (RMNZ) [40] | Platinum | 15,000^ |
Norway (IFPI Norway) [41] | Platinum | 100,000 [41] |
Spain (PROMUSICAE) [42] | 3× Platinum | 300,000^ |
Sweden (GLF) [43] | Platinum | 100,000^ |
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland) [44] | 4× Platinum | 200,000^ |
United Kingdom (BPI) [4] | 9× Platinum | 2,700,000^ |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. |