Curated Music Experiences for Casual Listeners

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r/music

Bands whose greatest hits album is all you really need?

Posted by u/Lewd_throwaway_2024•07/18/2025

Everyone’s always searching for the deep cuts and hidden gems, but what about bands whose greatest hits album is really all you need to listen to? Credence Clearwater Revivals compilation Ch

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u/claudemcbanister

But Goodbye Yellow Brick Road is so good that its almost a greatest hits.

u/R1leyEsc0bar

I like more than their greatest hits, but I grew up listening to Red Hot Chili Peppers greates hits and they are indeed all you need, although I'd add a few tracks from the albums they releas

u/Discoriented

I can’t go for that. Abandoned Luncheonette is where it’s at.

u/Lewd_throwaway_2024

Haha I agree with supertramp and elo as well, and I think Lynne is a phenomenal arraigner but their hits definitely shine above the rest of their discography

u/costapanther

Ramble Tamble, so so good!

u/specialagentflooper

When I worked in a record store in college, Steve Miller Band's greatest hits was always one of the top sellers every Christmas... that and Goidbye Yellow Brick Road although that was just a

u/WhoFan

I actually disagree. Especially for their first... 5 albums or so... they gave as much care, attention, virtuoso skill, and unique production value to every song on each early album that they

u/Ehboyo

Midnight Special

u/No-Conversation1940

Many older country musicians, because Nashville is so oriented toward the single. You'll get a Merle Haggard or Johnny Cash who will use the album tracks to made interesting detours, but for

u/too_oh_ate

The disrespect to Creedence is so great it's not even worth educating you on all the great songs that you are missing out on.

u/Apprehensive-Cup-335

Foreigner for me.

u/edg444

The Born on the Bayou slander 😤

u/Ap0kal1ps3

Sublime. The greatest hits CD has it all.

u/CagCagerton125

Aerosmith. Had the greatest hits album growing up. Never needed anything else.

u/Pithecanthropus88

I love the ELO deep cuts. You’re never going to hear The Whale on the radio (or streaming).

u/specialagentflooper

The first two albums are both no-skip records for me.

u/kodio2000

Perfect answer to this question.

u/Nautiwow

Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band. The greatest hits is a great album and just has the most memorable tunes.

u/OpabiniaGlasses

Ramble Tamble is actually on Cosmo's Factory, which somehow makes that tracklist even more stacked. That album is basically a greatest hits comp.

u/philament

Not really a ‘greatest hits’, but Buzzcocks’ “Singles Going Steady” gathers all of their early (mostly non album) output for those who don’t want to dive into the first few (excellent) albums

u/Nautiwow

Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band. The greatest hits is a great album and just has the most memorable tunes.

u/GripSock

queen. i had their greatest hits album, it was like 4 cds or some shit. its already a bit too much

u/AxelShoes

I loved his Greatest Hits, but recently got [*The Essential Donovan.*](https://a.co/d/3T9zkia). It's basically the GH album plus some of those additional deeper cuts, that I'd never heard but

u/Ambigram237

Keep On Chooglin’. Case closed.

u/BarkedShins

You could make another fantastic compilation from all the great stuff that didn’t get onto the greatest hits album.

u/HyzerFlipDG

Eagles

u/Abbiethedog

If you own The Joker, Fly Like an Eagle and Book of Dreams, you have his greatest hits album.

u/mailmanpaul

Donovan. There are some good deep cuts, but his greatest hits album is a masterpiece. So, greatest hits +3.

u/ReactiveCypress

Absolutely, that's why I'm not ashamed to admit I listen to them when I've seen people complain about them since "you should only listen to the actual albums." Greatest Hits are often what I

u/DNSGeek

Don’t you be dissing Abracadabra

u/Lewd_throwaway_2024

Haha I don’t even know if you need anything beyond their first album 😂

u/ScoopL

The Guess Who!

u/Shnepple

Nope

u/ChaosAndFish

This is the first thing that came to mind.

u/yetigrowl

This. Queen’s first four albums are genuinely pretty awesome, even if there’s some filler on all of them. It’s only once you get to 1976 and beyond that there’s like 2-4 good songs on each al

u/Calvykins

The very best of hall and Oates was a game changer for me.

u/johnboy374

And to me, "A New World Record" is awesome from start to finish.

u/theknyte

Johnny Cash released 97 albums in his lifetime.

u/KeanuIsACat

It's also all the songs needed to activate the powers of 70's super-group Foreigner on my Foreigner Belt.

u/i__hate__stairs

Steve Miller Band's Greatest Hits 1974-1978 was fantastic. Dominated the radio back in the day even.

u/WhoFan

Hard disagree with Supertramp.

u/schuptz

To me, Abracadabra is a perfect example of a 70s superstar who should have sat out the 80s. I also believe with all my heart that ZZTop should have not changed their sound to make Eliminator

u/airmancoop44

Boston

u/No-Conversation1940

Cash's generation really embodied what I wrote above. Haggard, George Jones, Willie Nelson, that's just how things were done back then. Everything was on a tight and rapid schedule. Cash was

u/PutAForkInHim

Al Green

u/yoduh4077

Foo Fighters put out their first Greatest Hits after 6 albums, and it was a pretty good quick history of the band to that point. They've put out 6 more since, so I'm sure Greatest Hits Too wi

u/kevinb9n

The Hollies - careful though, there are a lot of really weird comps out there. The one you want is "20 Golden Greats" (or "The Air I Breathe", which is the same 20 plus another 6 nonessential

u/hhhhhtttttdd

I grew up on this. Just incredible. One of the benefits of him not dramatically changing his sound over the years is that the greatest hits just sounds like an incredible cohesive album. Th

u/avw94

You say that like Breakfast in America isn't already basically a greatest hits album.

u/shadowbastrd

Bruce!

u/gershbec

Absolutely right. Most of their albums (maybe not their first and their last ones) are great from beginning to end.

u/No-Conversation1940

This is a funny one because Seger has intentionally made his early albums difficult to access, and there's a portion of his fan base who swears it's his best stuff. I don't know if I would g

u/Umayummyone

Yeah. No. If you are an ABBA fan the best of collections are not enough.

u/ZzyzxExile

Have to chime in here with the seminal hardcore/punk band Minor Threat. Their 1 CD compilation "Complete Discography" is literally all you'd need. It has their, well, complete discography on

u/KingHenry13th

Its still the same now. If someone suggests a band to you and you want to give them a listen you type in the band and play one of their most listened to songs. Band name, you tube, sort by

u/brightears

Lenny Kravitz Greatest Hits. I don’t feel I’m missing anything or maybe you need to educate me?

u/CrimsonFeetofKali

ABBA Gold is probably enough for most people, including ABBA fans.

u/delifte

Sometimes i find myself diving into a few albums here and there.of Neil Young, but boy his hits are just killer.

u/tausendmalduff

Hard disagree about CCR. John fogerty did not write a single bad song until about pendulum.

u/psychodreamr

I’d rather his two live albums

u/MiddleAgesRoommates

Which is covered nicely in his Anthology album

u/hotpenguinlust

Sinister Purpose is one off Green River that I love...great deep cut.

u/rocktropolis

Bob Marley - Legend

u/shadowbastrd

Bruce!

u/shadowbastrd

I’d say the Eagles fall into this category for me. Also, Supertramp and ELO. Just my opinion, don’t kill me, people.

u/JohnDenver404

Steve Miller Band

u/BildoWarrior

You wasted an opportunity to say don’t bring me down.

u/bass_of_clubs

With one exception: Exodus.

u/redwingsphan19

Yeah, all of Wildflowers.

u/ChaosAndFish

I’d say The Color & The Shape is a pretty good album, but other than that…agree. They were a singles act for the first half of their career and really not even that for the latter half.

u/stereo999

Best of The Doobie Bros 1 & 2 pretty much cover it, though I do quite enjoy their first two albums

u/Lewd_throwaway_2024

Haha I don’t even know if you need anything beyond their first album 😂

u/wowbagger262

I don't think In The City is on either of Eagles' greatest hits. That's an essential track. Also, you'd be missing out on a lot of good ELO songs. Time and Secret Messages are both no skip

u/Heliocentrist

Cat Stevens

u/GripSock

queen. i had their greatest hits album, it was like 4 cds or some shit. its already a bit too much

u/blackreagan

All of them. No one has time to listen to every thing produced by everyone. Greatest hits are good to sample the best and see if the vibes warrant a deeper dive.

u/confetti_shrapnel

Hijacking this comment to say that BOB SEGER DESERVES MORE RESPECT.

u/daybreaker

ELO is the best. They gave me the user name I’ve used on the internet for 25 years now

u/little-larry-sellers

I’m not sure it’s all you need, but Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers Greatest Hits is awesome

u/AnalogWalrus

It doesn't even cover the best Bob Seger era (1970-74). Now Live Bullet might be the only Seger someone truly needs. That's where it's at.

u/mailmanpaul

Donovan. There are some good deep cuts, but his greatest hits album is a masterpiece. So, greatest hits +3.

u/BildoWarrior

You wasted an opportunity to say don’t bring me down.

u/PutinBoomedMe

ELO hate pisses me off. How can you hate them!?

u/AxelShoes

I got all of CCR's albums a few months ago on CD, and while I've loved their music for years, all I'd ever heard were the hits. Every single one of their albums is fantastic from beginning to

u/GimmeSweetTime

Greatest hits albums are a great introduction to bands. They're gateway albums.

u/invaderdan

Bad religion. All ages

u/shadowbastrd

I’d say the Eagles fall into this category for me. Also, Supertramp and ELO. Just my opinion, don’t kill me, people.

u/SixString1981

Lies… 40 oz to Freedom is where it’s at. You

u/Same_Ad_9284

Agree, the platinum collection does a pretty poor job showing off the range of Queen and especially the prog, heavy metal, hard rock and experimental stuff they did

u/ChorizoYumYum

ELO. But one of these days I'm gonna do a deep dive. I swear.

u/WhoFan

I would also suggest "More ABBA Gold" for those that need an extra kick. There are some on there that equal the might of the original album, and there are some deeper cuts too that still show

u/Bearded_scouser

This is one of my most played albums!

u/menacethemenace

Keep on Chooglin

u/GripSock

thank you for saying disagree instead of "wrong" my opinion isnt much about their first 5 albums or so but more based on their other ***TEN*** ALBUMS of the 15 studio albums, the other 10 li

u/kiki2k

A lot of punk bands benefit from this method. Or at least I benefit by not having to piece together 15 7”’s.

u/burgonies

Bob Marley and the Wailers

u/NastySassyStuff

This is what I said lol… their album Pendulum is my favorite of theirs and it only has one track that would be on a greatest hits album in Have You Ever Seen the Rain. Pagan Baby, Sailor’s La

u/PeteLX

Disagree about CCR, they have brilliant album tracks and you hear the singles from best ofs on the radio all the time

u/erk2112

Billy Joel

u/rosco2155

You evidently have not gotten down to swingtown

u/dance_armstrong

this is a perfect answer. they’ve got a solid handful of recognizable hits that you could listen through in probably 30-35 minutes, and then that’s all the Foreigner anyone could ever need. o

u/airmancoop44

Boston

u/JohnDenver404

Steve Miller Band

u/Queef-Supreme

Agreed. Steely Dan’s Definitive Collection is a perfect example imo. Enough of a mix to give you a feel of the band but not enough to leave you satiated.

u/kevinb9n

Wild one forever Woman in love Louisiana rain Casa dega Stop draggin Southern accents Apartment song Kings highway Walls Room at the top Free girl now Square one Shoul

u/Fragrant_Security_77

Hall & Oates. The greatest hits collection they put out in the 80’s had everything I needed and I played it incessantly

u/stereo999

There's some good early albums before the hits

u/OpabiniaGlasses

Neither of their two greatest hits albums have Ramble Tamble on them, which is easily one of their best songs. They were doing post rock/prog crescendos before it was cool.

u/AAlwaysopen

I saw John on his 80th birthday in May…. He killed it!

u/defransdim

Disagree. Even if the Greatest Hits is bloated with filler, it's still doesn't cover Queen adequately. Why? Because Sheer Heart Attack is one of the greatest hard rock albums of the 1970

u/Fragrant_Security_77

Hall & Oates. The greatest hits collection they put out in the 80’s had everything I needed and I played it incessantly

u/jg242302

It’s not.

u/Bears_On_Stilts

The popular answer: Linda Ronstadt Greatest Hits (which was two records in the vinyl days but now comes together). The niche one: Oingo Boingo Anthology. It’s so inclusive and well sequenced

u/CrimsonFeetofKali

ABBA Gold is probably enough for most people, including ABBA fans.

u/Zoratth

It’s not as good as their first album, but Don’t Look Back still has some great tracks on it.

u/non_clever_username

The one released in the 90s is definitely missing some stuff, though it’s great and has the first appearance of Mary Jane’s Last Dance. The double album greatest hits released in 2019 is pr

u/NastySassyStuff

The greatest American band ever

u/decadent-dragon

A big hell no from me. It barely has any of his political songs which are the best the band has to offer. Assuming you’re talking about Legend. Legend doesn’t even have War which is just insa

u/MastusAR

"Effigy" is probably their best track, and it isn't usually on compilations.

u/SixString1981

I need to explore him deeper but Neil Young is one. The man’s released something along the lines of 70 albums between all his protects. You can’t accuse him of not trying everything that will

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Bands whose greatest hits album is all you really need?

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