Greatest Hits
Greatest hits album by
the Doors
ReleasedOctober 1980 (1980-10)
Recorded1966–1971
GenreRock
Length48:10
LabelElektra
Producer
The Doors chronology
An American Prayer
(1978) 		Greatest Hits
(1980) 		Alive, She Cried
(1983)

Greatest Hits is a compilation album by American rock band the Doors, released in 1980. The album, along with the film Apocalypse Now, released the previous year, created for the band an entirely new audience of the generation that did not grow up with the Doors. The album went on to become one of the highest-selling compilations of all time, with combined CD and vinyl sales of 5,000,000 in the United States alone.[1]

The album was re-released in October 1996 as an enhanced CD with a different track listing and cover art. The songs "The Ghost Song", "The End" and "Love Her Madly" were added, whereas "Not to Touch the Earth" was omitted.[2]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]

Critic Andy Kellman of AllMusic, reviewing the 1996 reissue, rated Greatest Hits with three-and-a-half out of five stars, and praised that it compiled "some of the band's most enduring songs", such as "Light My Fire," "Break on Through", "Touch Me", "Hello, I Love You" and "Riders on the Storm". His only complaints were on "Not to Touch the Earth" and "The Ghost Song" as "poor choices" and that it could "have been replaced with any number of more significant songs in the band's catalog".[2]

Track listing

All songs written by all members of the Doors (Jim Morrison, Ray Manzarek, Robby Krieger, John Densmore), except "Light My Fire" which some sources identify Krieger and Morrison to be the lone songwriters.[3] Details are taken from the 1980 Elektra Records release and may differ from other sources.[4]

Side one
No.TitleOriginal albumLength
1."Hello, I Love You"Waiting for the Sun (1968)2:16
2."Light My Fire"The Doors (1967)7:05
3."People Are Strange"Strange Days (1967)2:10
4."Love Me Two Times"Strange Days3:14
5."Riders on the Storm"L.A. Woman (1971)7:11
Side two
No.TitleOriginal albumLength
1."Break On Through (To the Other Side)"The Doors2:26
2."Roadhouse Blues"Morrison Hotel (1970)4:04
3."Not to Touch the Earth"Waiting for the Sun3:55
4."Touch Me"The Soft Parade (1969)3:11
5."L.A. Woman"L.A. Woman7:49

1996 additional CD tracks[2]

  1. "Love Her Madly" (Krieger) – 3:17
  2. "The Ghost Song" (Morrison) – 4:13
  3. "The End" – 6:28 (edited version for George S. Clinton from Apocalypse Now (1979))
  4. "Wintertime Love" (Japanese 1995 CD version only)[5]

Personnel

Per album notes as shown at the Back cover:[4]

The Doors

Additional musicians

Technical

Charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Argentina (CAPIF)[8] Gold 30,000^
Australia (ARIA)[9] 2× Platinum 140,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[10]
CD edition 		5× Platinum 500,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[10]
LP edition 		2× Platinum 200,000^
France (SNEP)[11] Gold 100,000*
United Kingdom (BPI)[12] Silver 60,000*
United States (RIAA)[13]
CD edition 		2× Platinum 2,000,000^
United States (RIAA)[14]
LP edition 		3× Platinum 3,000,000^

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

References

  1. ^ Ruhlmann, William; Unterberger, Richie. "The Doors – Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved August 23, 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d Kellman, Andy. "The Doors – Greatest Hits [1996]". AllMusic. Retrieved August 23, 2022.
  3. ^ "The Doors: Break on Thru - A Celebration of Ray Manzarek". January 16, 2020. Retrieved August 23, 2022.
  4. ^ a b Greatest Hits (Album notes). The Doors. Burbank, California: Elektra Records. 1980. LP labels & Back cover. SE-515.((cite AV media notes)): CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  5. ^ Greatest Hits (Album notes). The Doors. Japan: Elektra Records. 1995. WPCR-537.((cite AV media notes)): CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  6. ^ "The Doors Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  7. ^ "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1981". Billboard. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  8. ^ "Discos de oro y platino" (in Spanish). Cámara Argentina de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Archived from the original on 6 July 2011. Retrieved 15 August 2012.
  9. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2001 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association.
  10. ^ a b "Canadian album certifications – The Doors – Greatest Hits". Music Canada.
  11. ^ "French album certifications – Doors – Greatest Hits" (in French). InfoDisc. Select DOORS and click OK. 
  12. ^ "British album certifications – Doors – Greatest Hits". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 27 July 2022.
  13. ^ "American album certifications – The Doors – Greatest Hits _1996_". Recording Industry Association of America.
  14. ^ "American album certifications – The Doors – Greatest Hits _LP_". Recording Industry Association of America.


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