Greatest (Duran Duran album)
1998 greatest hits album by Duran Duran
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Greatest is a greatest hits album by the English pop rock band Duran Duran, released in 1998.
| Greatest | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||
| Greatest hits album by | ||||
| Released | 3 November 1998 | |||
| Recorded | 1980–1997 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 78:23 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Producer | Various | |||
| Duran Duran chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [2] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music |  [3] |
| Pitchfork | 7.0/10[4] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [5] |
Background and release
Greatest is an update of the 1989 tenth anniversary compilation album, Decade. The new release includes songs from their eponymous debut album through 1997's Medazzaland (excluding 1995's Thank You). The album includes all 14 songs featured in Decade, plus "New Moon on Monday" and four singles from the '90s. However, several songs on the disc are presented in their edited forms in order to fit on a single CD. In addition, the disc uses an edit of "Rio" that was not actually used on any of the song's US single releases, and to this day, has not appeared on any release other than Greatest or The Essential Collection.
The album was released by EMI after parting ways with the band following the unsuccessful Medazzaland album release in 1997, marking the first of many releases designed to capitalise on the band's extensive EMI-controlled back catalogue. To coincide with the release of the Greatest album in the United Kingdom, the song "Electric Barbarella" was released as a single in that territory. This track was originally released as a single in North America in 1997 to promote the Medazzaland album (which was never released officially in Europe until 2022).
By 2008, the collection had sold 1.3 million copies in the United States, and was certified Platinum by the RIAA.[6] Greatest was released on vinyl in 2025 for the first time (with a remastered CD edition as well); that release used the album version of Notorious instead of the 45 mix that was on the previous releases. [7]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Simon Le Bon, Nick Rhodes, Andy Taylor, John Taylor and Roger Taylor, except where noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Original album | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Is There Something I Should Know?" | non-album single, 1983 | 4:10 | |
| 2. | "The Reflex" (7" version) | Seven and the Ragged Tiger, 1983 | 4:24 | |
| 3. | "A View to a Kill" |
| A View to a Kill soundtrack, 1985 | 3:34 |
| 4. | "Ordinary World" (single version) |
| Duran Duran (The Wedding Album), 1993 | 4:42 |
| 5. | "Save a Prayer" (US single version) | Rio, 1982 | 3:47 | |
| 6. | "Rio" (US edit) | Rio | 4:45 | |
| 7. | "Hungry Like the Wolf" (single version) | Rio | 3:25 | |
| 8. | "Girls on Film" | Duran Duran, 1981 | 3:27 | |
| 9. | "Planet Earth" | Duran Duran | 3:57 | |
| 10. | "Union of the Snake" | Seven and the Ragged Tiger | 4:22 | |
| 11. | "New Moon on Monday" | Seven and the Ragged Tiger | 4:16 | |
| 12. | "The Wild Boys" | Arena, 1984 | 4:17 | |
| 13. | "Notorious" (45 mix) |
| Notorious, 1986 | 4:00 |
| 14. | "I Don't Want Your Love" (Shep Pettibone 7" mix) |
| Big Thing, 1988 | 3:48 |
| 15. | "All She Wants Is" (45 mix) |
| Big Thing | 4:26 |
| 16. | "Electric Barbarella" (edit) |
| Medazzaland, 1997 | 4:17 |
| 17. | "Serious" (edit) |
| Liberty, 1990 | 3:56 |
| 18. | "Skin Trade" (radio cut) |
| Notorious | 4:26 |
| 19. | "Come Undone" (edit) |
| Duran Duran (The Wedding Album) | 4:17 |
| Total length: | 78:23 | |||
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Planet Earth" | |
| 2. | "Girls on Film" (short censored version) | |
| 3. | "The Chauffeur" | |
| 4. | "Hungry Like the Wolf" | |
| 5. | "Save a Prayer" | |
| 6. | "Rio" | |
| 7. | "Is There Something I Should Know?" | |
| 8. | "Union of the Snake" | |
| 9. | "New Moon on Monday" (edit version 1) | |
| 10. | "The Reflex" | |
| 11. | "The Wild Boys" (7" final edit) | |
| 12. | "A View to a Kill" | |
| 13. | "Notorious" | |
| 14. | "Skin Trade" | |
| 15. | "I Don't Want Your Love" | |
| 16. | "All She Wants Is" | |
| 17. | "Serious" | |
| 18. | "Burning the Ground" | |
| 19. | "Ordinary World" | |
| 20. | "Come Undone" (censored version) |
Video album
| Greatest | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 DVD cover | ||||
| Video by | ||||
| Released | 1999 November 2003 (DVD) | |||
| Recorded | 1981–1998 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 101 minutes | |||
| Label | EMI/Abbey Road Interactive | |||
| Producer | Various | |||
| Duran Duran chronology | ||||
| ||||
Greatest was followed in 1999 by the release of a videotape compilation of the band's groundbreaking music videos. The video album was certified platinum by the RIAA on 29 January 2004. In November 2003, the video album was released in DVD format, titled Duran Duran: Greatest – The DVD, with hidden extra materials, including alternative versions of some of the videos and interviews of the band; however, this version is much criticised for its extensive use of Easter egg features, which make it difficult to find and play some materials. In 2005, the disc was re-issued in a "Sight & Sound" package, containing both the CD and the DVD minus all of the latter's bonus material.
Track listing
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Girls on Film" (uncensored) | |
| 2. | "The Chauffeur" (uncensored) | |
| 3. | "Hungry Like the Wolf" | |
| 4. | "Save a Prayer" | |
| 5. | "Rio" | |
| 6. | "Is There Something I Should Know?" | |
| 7. | "Union of the Snake" | |
| 8. | "The Wild Boys" (extended version) | |
| 9. | "A View to a Kill" | |
| 10. | "Notorious" | |
| 11. | "Skin Trade" | |
| 12. | "I Don't Want Your Love" | |
| 13. | "All She Wants Is" | |
| 14. | "Serious" | |
| 15. | "Burning the Ground" | |
| 16. | "Ordinary World" | |
| 17. | "Come Undone" | |
| 18. | "Electric Barbarella" | |
| 19. | "My Own Way" | |
| 20. | "The Wedding Album EPK" |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Planet Earth" | |
| 2. | "Girls on Film" (long uncensored version) | |
| 3. | "The Chauffeur" | |
| 4. | "Hungry Like the Wolf" | |
| 5. | "Save a Prayer" | |
| 6. | "Rio" | |
| 7. | "Is There Something I Should Know?" | |
| 8. | "Union of the Snake" | |
| 9. | "New Moon on Monday" | |
| 10. | "The Reflex" | |
| 11. | "The Wild Boys" (7" edit version) | |
| 12. | "A View to a Kill" | |
| 13. | "Notorious" | |
| 14. | "Skin Trade" | |
| 15. | "I Don't Want Your Love" | |
| 16. | "All She Wants Is" | |
| 17. | "Serious" | |
| 18. | "Burning the Ground" | |
| 19. | "Ordinary World" | |
| 20. | "Come Undone" (uncensored version) | |
| 21. | "Electric Barbarella" |
Personnel
Duran Duran
- Simon Le Bon – lead vocals
- Nick Rhodes – keyboards
- John Taylor – bass (tracks 1–15, 17, 18)
- Andy Taylor – guitars (tracks 1–3, 5–12)
- Roger Taylor – drums (tracks 1–3, 5–12)
- Warren Cuccurullo – guitars (tracks 4, 13–19), bass (16)
- Sterling Campbell – drums (tracks 15, 17)
Production
- Nigel Reeve – mastering, co-ordination, compilation
- Terry Burch – mastering
- Malcolm Garrett – package design
Charts
Weekly charts
|
Year-end charts
|
Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Argentina (CAPIF)[30] | Platinum | 60,000^ |
| Australia (ARIA)[31] | Gold | 35,000^ |
| Belgium (BRMA)[32] | 2× Platinum | 100,000* |
| Canada (Music Canada)[33] | Gold | 50,000^ |
| Netherlands (NVPI)[34] | Gold | 50,000^ |
| New Zealand (RMNZ)[35] | Platinum | 15,000^ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[36] | 3× Platinum | 900,000* |
| United States (RIAA)[37] | Platinum | 1,000,000^ |
| Summaries | ||
| Europe (IFPI)[38] | Platinum | 1,000,000* |
|
* Sales figures based on certification alone. | ||