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Greatest Hits (Mariah Carey album)

Greatest Hits is the second greatest hits album by American singer and songwriter Mariah Carey, released on December 4, 2001, by Columbia Records. It contains most of Carey's singles from 1990 to 2000 during her tenure at Columbia, including her then fifteen U.S. number-one singles. The album has been certified two-times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and has sold 4.7 million copies worldwide.

Greatest Hits was re-released as The Essential Mariah Carey on January 10, 2011 internationally, as part of Legacy Recordings's Essential series, and features the same track listing. The U.S. edition, released on April 24, 2012, replaces some tracks with extended mix versions and additional non-single tracks, selected by Carey.

Background and development

The release of Greatest Hits was part of a four-album deal to fulfill Carey's contract with Columbia Records, in exchange for her early departure from Columbia to join Virgin Records in 2001.[3][4] The four-album deal consisted of two greatest hits albums: #1's (1998) and Greatest Hits, a studio album: Rainbow (1999), and a remix album: The Remixes (2003).[3][5] Carey had little involvement in the development of Greatest Hits,[6] and there are no personal messages within its liner notes;[7][2] when asked about the album on its release day by Entertainment Tonight, Carey remarked: "Does it come out today? Oh, ha ha."[8]

The previously released material in Carey's previous compilation album, #1's, only comprised of her then thirteen U.S. Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles, and was not described by Carey as a greatest hits album due to the exclusion of various songs that she felt was her "best work".[9] This disappointment was also expressed in the liner notes for #1's, in an "open letter to [her] fans":

"First of all – this is not a greatest hits album! It's too soon, I haven't been recording long enough for that! This album is a "thank you" and an acknowledgment of my gratitude to all of you out there for making these records #1 on the charts.

One day, I will put out a greatest hits with songs that didn't even go on the charts because they were never commercially released (i.e., "Breakdown",[b] "Underneath the Stars", "Butterfly", etc.) or songs that came out that didn't go to #1 that are, in my opinion, better than some that did (i.e., "Make It Happen", "Anytime You Need a Friend", "Endless Love" with Luther, or "Can't Let Go")."[10]

By contrast, Carey was more positive about the track selection of Greatest Hits, describing the new inclusions as "songs that needed to be really heard".[9] In addition to every track from #1's, except "Whenever You Call" and the international bonus track "Theme from Mahogany (Do You Know Where You're Going To)", the album also includes seven songs released prior to #1's, and five songs released after #1's, including the U.S. number-one hits "Heartbreaker" and "Thank God I Found You".[11]

"Against All Odds", a UK number-one hit, is included in the international editions of the album.[12] The Japanese edition released the following week on December 12, and includes four additional bonus tracks; "All I Want for Christmas Is You" is her best selling single in the country, with 1.1 million copies sold,[13] and "Never Too Far/Hero Medley", a newly recorded song that was released as a standalone single one day earlier in the U.S., was included as Sony Music Japan was the distributor of Carey's Virgin releases in the country.[14][15]

Greatest Hits was re-released as The Essential Mariah Carey by Legacy Recordings internationally in 2011, and in the U.S. in 2012. For the U.S. edition, Carey contributed creative input to its track selection. In a press release, she stated: "I wanted to create a collection of some of my favorite songs, several of them are very big hits and some are more obscure favorites of mine as well as fan faves."[16] Carey selected four additional non-single tracks, "Vanishing" from Mariah Carey (1990), "Close My Eyes" and "The Roof" from Butterfly (1997), and "Bliss" from Rainbow, as well as the extended club remix versions of "Emotions" and "Anytime You Need a Friend", for the album.[16]

Critical reception

Greatest Hits received generally positive reviews from critics. Critics noted the timing of the album's release, in light of the personal and commercial troubles surrounding Carey's Glitter project, which released in September 2001.[2][18][19][20] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic commended the "archival" nature of the album, but criticized its long runtime, recommending the "more concentrated" #1's instead.[2] In an updated review in 2011,[c] Erlewine described the album as a "good and thorough retrospective of Mariah in her prime".[17]

Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine gave the album 3.5 out of 5 stars, praising the inclusion of "Make It Happen", "Without You", and "Underneath the Stars", stating that they "have certainly earned their spots next to hits" such as "Hero" and "One Sweet Day", and declared the album as Carey’s “first proper hits compilation”.[18] However, Cinquemani also negatively described the album as an attempt by Columbia and Carey's ex-husband to "cash in Carey's pre-borderline 'Columbia Years'".[18] Devon Powers of PopMatters also praised the album, describing Carey as a "pop princess, hammering out fast numbers with a zeal and determination" highlight that the album moves "chronologically through [her] remarkable career".[19] In a negative review, Sarah Liss of Now criticized the songs as "bland" and "hard to distinguish from each other".[20]

Commercial performance

Greatest Hits debuted at number 52 on the U.S. Billboard 200, charting for a total of 13 weeks, and remained her lowest peaking album on the chart until 2020, when Mariah Carey's Magical Christmas Special charted at number 100.[21] It also debuted at number 46 on the UK Albums Chart on the week ending December 15, 2001,[22] but later reached a new peak of number seven on the week ending October 29, 2005, following the success of her tenth studio album The Emancipation of Mimi;[23] it has charted for a total of 38 weeks on the chart.[24] On the same week, the album also charted its first of four non-consecutive weeks at number one on the UK Hip Hop and R&B Albums Chart; it is her seventh number one album on the chart.[24]

The RIAA certified the album two-times platinum, denoting shipments of one million in the U.S.; the RIAA counts each disc separately for certification purposes.[25] As of November 2018, Greatest Hits has sold 1,230,000 copies in the U.S.[26] The British Phonographic Industry (BPI) certified the album three-times platinum, signifying over 900,000 copies sold in the UK.[27] Globally, the album has sold an estimated 4.7 million copies.[28][29]

Track listing


Notes

Personnel

Adapted from Greatest Hits liner notes.[30]

Charts

Certifications and sales

Release history

Notes

  1. ^ Citations for all genres: [1][2]
  2. ^ Though not included in Greatest Hits, "Breakdown" was later included in The Remixes (2003).
  3. ^ a b AllMusic also reviewed the international edition of The Essential Mariah Carey in 2011, which shares the same track listing. The rating was lowered to 4/5.[17]
  4. ^ and Life in 1472 (1998)
  5. ^ a b and The Prince of Egypt and My Love Is Your Love (both 1998)
  6. ^ and Coast to Coast (2000)
  7. ^ Combined sales figure from 2001–2002: [72][73][74]

References

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