Greatest Hits III (Queen album)
| Greatest Hits III | ||||
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| Compilation album by Queen | ||||
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Publication |
November 5, 1999 |
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| Label (s) | Parlophones ; Hollywood Records (USA) | |||
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Format (s) |
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Title (number) |
17th |
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running time |
73:41 |
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| occupation |
Guest musicians:
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Studio (s) |
Various |
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Greatest Hits III is the fifth compilation album by the British rock band Queen , released in 1999 . It contains mostly songs by Queen, but also solo projects by the group members. In addition to original studio recordings, there are remixes and live recordings from the two concerts after Freddie Mercury's death in which the remaining trio performed with guest singers. The album was released under the name "Queen +" , whereby the "plus" appended to the band name can be related to both the guest artists and the solo singles.
The album
Some titles are represented here for the first time on an album. Up until then, only available on video, Queen's live interpretation of The Show Must Go On with lead singer Elton John on the occasion of the premiere of Maurice Béjart's ballet Le Presbytère n'a rien perdu de son charme, ni le jardin de son éclat in Paris. Queen bassist John Deacon performed live for the last time on January 17, 1997 at the Théâtre national de Chaillot .
The recording of Somebody to Love is from Queens and George Michaels common appearance at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert on April 20, 1992 at London's Wembley Stadium . Their EP Five Live (with Somebody to Love as their first track), released the following year, reached number one in the UK singles charts.
From Under Pressure , Queen's hit single with David Bowie from 1981, Brian May and Roger Taylor produced the so-called "Rah Mix" exclusively for Greatest Hits III ; This remix was created with the help of Queens sound engineers Joshua J. Macrae and Justin Shirley-Smith . The Christmas song Thank God It's Christmas , released as a single at the end of 1984, was also heard for the first time on a Queen album (apart from the LP box The Complete Works released the following year ).
Greatest Hits III mistakenly contains a wrong version of Freddie Mercury's Living on My Own . The remix of "No More Brothers", which reached number one in the British singles charts in 1993 and sold more than two million times in total, was inadvertently not taken into account. This remix of Living on My Own , originally released on the 1985 album Mr. Bad Guy , is by far Mercury's biggest solo hit. Contrary to other information in the booklet, Greatest Hits III contains the remix by Julian Raymond, which appeared in 1992 on the compilation The Freddie Mercury Album , instead of the version by "No More Brothers" .
Compared with the first two "Greatest Hits" compilations, which are among the band's best-selling albums worldwide, Greatest Hits III's commercial success was less. The album achieved the highest chart positions with number two in Italy and Austria. It achieved platinum status in Great Britain and gold status in Germany , Austria and Switzerland .
Only one month after the album was released on December 6, 1999, the single release of the "Rah Mix" by Under Pressure . It came in at number 14 in the British charts. One of the two CD editions contains the “Rah Mix (Radio Edit)” two other new remixes of the song - the “Mike Spencer Mix” and the “ Knebworth Mix” - as well as one "Enhanced" video section.
The album cover was designed by Peacock, Queen and Richard Gray; Queen's emblem was designed by Angela Lumley. The liner notes were written by Andy Davis and Phil Symes.
At the end of 1999 the VHS video collection Greatest Flix III compiled by Rudi Dolezal and Hannes Rossacher ( DoRo ) was published with the same look . It contains video clips for all the songs on the album with the exception of Another One Bites the Dust .
In 2000, the three hits compilations Greatest Hits (1981), Greatest Hits II (1991) and Greatest Hits III appeared as a box set entitled "The Platinum Collection". It received triple platinum in Great Britain, platinum in the USA and gold awards in Germany and Switzerland. In 2011 the box set and the three individual albums from it were released as a digitally remastered version.
Track list
- Queen + Elton John : The Show Must Go On [Live 1997] (Queen) - 4:35
- Queen + David Bowie : Under Pressure (Rah Mix) [Remix by Queen, 1999; Orig. 1981] (Queen / Bowie) - 4:08
- Freddie Mercury + Montserrat Caballé : Barcelona [1987] (Mercury / Moran) - 4:25 (single version)
- Queen: Too Much Love Will Kill You [1995] (May / Musker / Lamers) - 4:18
- Queen + George Michael : Somebody to Love [Live 1992] (Mercury) - 5:07
- Queen: You Don't Fool Me [1995] (Queen) - 5:22
- Queen: Heaven for Everyone [1995] ( Taylor ) - 4:37 (single version)
- Queen: Las Palabras de Amor (The Words of Love) [1982] (May) - 4:29
- Brian May : Driven by You [1991] (May) - 4:09
- Freddie Mercury: Living on My Own [Remix by Julian Raymond, 1992; Orig. 1985] (Mercury) - 3:37
- Queen: Let Me Live [1995] (Queen) - 4:45
- Freddie Mercury: The Great Pretender [1987] ( Buck Ram ) - 3:26
- Queen: Princes of the Universe [1986] (Mercury) - 3:31
- Queen + Wyclef Jean : Another One Bites the Dust [remix by Wyclef Jean, 1998; Orig. 1980] ( Deacon ) - 4:20
- Queen: No-One But You (Only the Good Die Young) [1997] (May) - 4:11
- Queen: These Are the Days of Our Lives [1991] (Queen) - 4:22
'Bonus Track':
- Queen: Thank God It's Christmas [1984] (Taylor / May) - 4:19
The Japanese edition contains the 17th track of the Queen song I Was Born to Love You (a single released only in Japan from the album Made in Heaven ). In Israel the album was released without a bonus track .
Details about the pieces
The following table contains the highest placements of the individual singles in the British charts in chronological order. The UK Top 40 results also played a key role in the song selection for Queen's first two Greatest Hits compilations.
| Year (single) | Interpreter | Song title | UK top 40 | From the album |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Queen | Las Palabras de Amor (The Words of Love) | 17th | Hot space |
| 1984 | Queen | Thank God It's Christmas | 21st | single |
| 1986 | Queen | Princes of the Universe | nv | A kind of magic |
| 1987/1993 | Mercury | The great pretender | 4/29 | single |
| 1987/1992 | Mercury & Caballé | Barcelona | 8/2 | Barcelona (1988) |
| 1991 | May | Driven by you | 6th | Back to the Light (1992) |
| 1991 | Queen | These Are the Days of Our Lives | 1 | Innuendo |
| 1993 | Michael & Queen | Somebody to Love (Live '92) | 1 | EP Five Live |
| (1993) | Mercury | Living on My Own (No More Brothers Remix) | (1) | Single (Orig .: Mr. Bad Guy ) |
| 1995 | Queen | Heaven for Everyone | 2 | Made in Heaven |
| 1996 | Queen | Too Much Love Will Kill You | 15th | Made in Heaven |
| 1996 | Queen | Let me live | 9 | Made in Heaven |
| 1996 | Queen | You don't fool me | 17th | Made in Heaven |
| - | Queen & E. John | The Show Must Go On (Live '97) | - | - |
| 1998 | Queen | No-One But You (Only the Good Die Young) | 13 | Queen Rocks |
| 1998 | Queen & W. Jean | Another One Bites the Dust (Wyclef Jean Remix) | 5 | Soundtrack Small Soldiers (Orig .: The Game ) |
| 1999 | Queen & Bowie | Under Pressure ('Rah Mix') | 14th | Greatest Hits III (Orig .: Hot Space ) |
Princes of the Universe was only released as a single in a few non-European countries. This song is also known as the opening song of the film Highlander . The title selection for Greatest Hits III did not include a. Queen's single A Winter's Tale , which reached number 6 in the UK charts in 1995, and Brian May's solo version of Too Much Love Will Kill You , which reached number 5 in 1992.
Reviews in the media
Album Greatest Hits III
Chester Chronicle (Great Britain), 1999: “It is eight years since the release of Queen's previous hits II, and eight years since Freddie Mercury's death, yet still this new, and inevitably final, collection of 17 tracks is able to justify the 'hits 'title - all, with the exception of the new The Show Must Go On, have continued Queen's unbroken run in the charts, four of them reaching number one. "
Classic Rock (Great Britain), 2000: “[…] perhaps the most remarkable thing about 'Greatest Hits III' is that 15 of its 16 tracks were, in fact, hits. Four of them […] actually went to Number One. That said, padded out as it is by second-division material like Freddie's embarrassingly cod versions of 'Barcelona' and 'The Great Pretender' [...], this is hardly the most prolific period of Queen we're talking about. Nevertheless, there are some gems. The reworked 'Another One Bites The Dust' with Wyclef Jean of the Fugees is ace, demonstrating once again just how far the band could stretch their sound. And the live version of 'The Show Must Go On' with Elton John on vocals is even more poignant than Freddie's original. If you can imagine such a thing. "
All Music Guide (USA), by Stephen Thomas Erlewine: “But Greatest Hits, Vol. 3 isn't a hits collection, it's a hodgepodge of rarities. The only real hit here is George Michael's live duet with Queen on 'Somebody to Love.' The rest are remixes, solo cuts, and tracks completed after Freddie Mercury's death. It's nice to get some of these items on one disc, but such a collection could barely be called 'hits.' It wouldn't be a problem if it was billed as such, but it's a sporadic collection of loose ends, a few of which are pretty good, most of which are unnecessary. If casual fans are expecting a true Greatest Hits, Vol. 3, they will be sorely disappointed. "
Single Under Pressure (Rah Mix)
NME (Great Britain), 1999, from Johnny Cigarettes: “[…] yet another remixed, reissued, re-promoted, revamped version of an old single, now with enhanced CD-ROM. I looked for the special offer to buy Queen's own grandmothers on the B-side, but it was strangely absent. Maybe next Christmas, eh? "
Chart positions and sales figures
Greatest Hits III achieved the following positions in the charts and sales awards:
| AT | CH | DE | UK | US | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Highest rankings (weeks in charts) |
2 (15) |
4 (14) |
5 | 5 (12) |
- |
| Awards | gold | gold | gold | platinum | - |
References and comments
- ↑ Release and charts
- ↑ Under the title Ballet for Life appeared David Mallet video recording of the play "Le Presbytère ..." in the VHS format.
- ^ "The version included here features fresh recording work by Brian and Roger and has been especially remixed for this album." "Remixed by Queen with additional work by Joshua J. Macrae and Justin Shirley-Smith" (Liner Notes, album).
- ^ Greg Brooks, Liner Notes in Freddie Mercury - The Solo Collection , 2000; P. 14.
- ↑ a b c d everyhit.com - UK Top 40 Hit Database
- ↑ Greatest Hits III in the Official UK Charts (English)
- ^ "Mixed by Justin Shirley-Smith from the live recording at Knebworth on 9th August 1986" (Liner Notes, single).
- ↑ Greatest Flix III . ultimatequeen.co.uk
- ^ RIAA: Gold & Platinum .
- ↑ a b charts surfer ; www.ifpi.de .
- ↑ a b hitparade.ch: Greatest Hits III ; Precious metal 1999 ( Greatest Hits III ); Edelmetall 2003 ( The Platinum Collection ).
- ^ A b Artist name on the single: "Queen / Wyclef Jean featuring Pras & Free".
- ↑ There are contradicting statements about the highest ranking in 1987: Rank "8" according to Andrew Young: Queen International Singles Chart Positions and www.ultimatequeen.co.uk ; however, place "2" according to everyhit.com - UK Top 40 Hit Database .
- ^ Double A-side of the single " Bohemian Rhapsody / These Are the Days of Our Lives" .
- ^ "George Michael & Queen with Lisa Stansfield : Five Live ".
- ↑ Chester Chronicle , November 5, 1999. ( December 11, 2007 memento on the Internet Archive )
- ↑ Greatest Hits III Classic Rock , 1/2000 ( Memento November 11, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ Stephen Thomas Erlewine: Queen - Greatest Hits, Vol. 3. Review . In: All Music Guide .
- ^ Johnny Cigarettes: 'Under Pressure (Rah Mix)' in NME , December 20, 1999 ( Memento of November 11, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ Queen Online Discography Greatest Hits III ( Memento from August 30, 2010 in the Internet Archive )