Greatest Hits
Greatest hits album by
Neil Young
ReleasedNovember 16, 2004
Recorded1969–1991
GenreRock, country rock, folk rock, hard rock
Length76:07
LabelReprise
ProducerDavid Briggs, Neil Young, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Kendall Pacios, Elliot Mazer, Henry Lewy, Tim Mulligan, Ben Keith, Niko Bolas
Neil Young chronology
Greendale
(2003) 		Greatest Hits
(2004) 		Prairie Wind
(2005)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Pitchfork8.0/10[2]

Greatest Hits is Neil Young's third compilation album after Decade and Lucky Thirteen. Eleven of the first twelve tracks appear on Decade, and the disc spans his solo career from 1969 through 1992. On the rear cover of the album, Young comments that the tracks were selected "based on original record sales, airplay and known download history".

Mastering

All tracks on this album were mastered using the HDCD process, which Young had been utilizing for his studio work since 1995. The album was also released as a high-resolution DVD Video disc with 24bit 96 kHz audio, and in a two-disc format including the audio album plus a bonus DVD with videos for "Rockin' in the Free World" and "Harvest Moon". Extensive notes on the remastering process can be found on Young's website.[3]

On the press release, Young said:

One of the most important jobs of any musician is to provide quality sound to the people. Quality has taken a hit in recent years, but it's starting to come back thanks to DVD-stereo. There is just no comparison between DVD-stereo and a regular compact disc or even 5.1 sound. It's the difference between a true reflection of the music and a mere replica. I've always been a strong believer in analogue and this is about as close to the rewarding listening experience of vinyl as the real thing.[4]

Track listing

Track listing for Greatest Hits
# Title Writer(s) Performed by Length Album
1. "Down by the River" Neil Young Neil Young with Crazy Horse 9:16 Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere, 1969
2. "Cowgirl in the Sand" Young Neil Young with Crazy Horse 10:05
3. "Cinnamon Girl" Young Neil Young with Crazy Horse 2:59
4. "Helpless" Young Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young 3:37 Déjà Vu, 1970
5. "After the Gold Rush" Young Neil Young 3:46 After the Gold Rush, 1970
6. "Only Love Can Break Your Heart" Young Neil Young 3:08
7. "Southern Man" Young Neil Young 5:31
8. "Ohio" Young Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young 2:59 Non-album single, 1970; made first album appearance on So Far, 1974
9. "The Needle and the Damage Done" Young Neil Young 2:10 Harvest, 1972
10. "Old Man" Young Neil Young with The Stray Gators 3:22
11. "Heart of Gold" Young Neil Young with The Stray Gators 3:07
12. "Like a Hurricane" Young Neil Young and Crazy Horse 8:20 American Stars 'n Bars, 1977
13. "Comes a Time" Young Neil Young 3:04 Comes a Time, 1978
14. "Hey Hey, My My (Into the Black)" Young Neil Young and Crazy Horse 4:59 Rust Never Sleeps, 1979
15. "Rockin' in the Free World" Young Neil Young 4:41 Freedom, 1989
16. "Harvest Moon" Young Neil Young with The Stray Gators 5:03 Harvest Moon, 1992

7" single

Track listing for bonus 7"
# Title Writer(s) Performed by Length Album
1. "The Loner" Young Neil Young 3:50 Neil Young, 1968
2. "Sugar Mountain" Young Neil Young 5:41 Non-album B-side to "The Loner", 1969
Issued exclusively with the vinyl edition of the album

Charts

Certifications

Certifications for Greatest Hits
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[20] Platinum 70,000^
Belgium (BEA)[21] Gold 25,000*
Canada (Music Canada)[22] Gold 50,000^
Germany (BVMI)[23] Gold 100,000^
Ireland (IRMA)[24] Platinum 15,000^
Italy (FIMI)[25] Gold 25,000*
New Zealand (RMNZ)[26] 2× Platinum 30,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[27] Platinum 300,000^
United States (RIAA)[28] Gold 500,000^
Summaries
Europe (IFPI)[29] Platinum 1,000,000*

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

References

  1. ^ AllMusic review
  2. ^ "Neil Young: Greatest Hits". Pitchfork.
  3. ^ "Neil Young Archives". neilyoungarchives.com.
  4. ^ "Neil Young News: Greatest Hits of Neil Young To Be Released Nov. 14".
  5. ^ "Austriancharts.at – Neil Young – Greatest Hits" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 10, 2013.
  6. ^ "Ultratop.be – Neil Young – Greatest Hits" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 10, 2013.
  7. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Neil Young – Greatest Hits" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 10, 2013.
  8. ^ "Neil Young: Greatest Hits" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved April 10, 2013.
  9. ^ "Longplay-Chartverfolgung at Musicline" (in German). Musicline.de. Phononet GmbH. Retrieved April 10, 2013.
  10. ^ "GFK Chart-Track Albums: Week 47, 2004". Chart-Track. IRMA. Retrieved April 10, 2013.
  11. ^ "Charts.nz – Neil Young – Greatest Hits". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 10, 2013.
  12. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Neil Young – Greatest Hits". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 10, 2013.
  13. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Neil Young – Greatest Hits". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 10, 2013.
  14. ^ "Neil Young | Artist | Official Charts". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 10, 2013.
  15. ^ "Neil Young Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved April 10, 2013.
  16. ^ "Australiancharts.com – Neil Young – Greatest Hits". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 10, 2013.
  17. ^ "Ultratop.be – Neil Young – Greatest Hits" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 10, 2013.
  18. ^ "ARIA Top 100 Albums for 2005". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved November 16, 2021.
  19. ^ "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2005". Billboard. Retrieved October 6, 2021.
  20. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2005 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved April 10, 2013.
  21. ^ "Ultratop − Goud en Platina – albums 2006". Ultratop. Hung Medien. Archived from the original on 2021-03-08. Retrieved April 10, 2013.
  22. ^ "Canadian album certifications – Neil Young – Greatest Hits". Music Canada. Retrieved April 10, 2013.
  23. ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Neil Young; 'Greatest Hits')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved April 10, 2013.
  24. ^ "The Irish Charts - 2005 Certification Awards - Platinum". Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved April 10, 2013.
  25. ^ "Italian album certifications – Neil Young – Greatest Hits" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved April 3, 2017. Select "2017" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Select "Greatest Hits" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Album e Compilation" under "Sezione".
  26. ^ "Latest Gold / Platinum Albums". Radioscope. 17 July 2011. Archived from the original on 2011-07-24. Retrieved April 10, 2013.
  27. ^ "British album certifications – Neil Young – Greatest Hits". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved August 31, 2022.
  28. ^ "American album certifications – Neil Young – Greatest Hits". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved April 10, 2013.
  29. ^ "IFPI Platinum Europe Awards – 2014". International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved August 31, 2022.

External links

Neil Young
Authority control databases
Categories