# Greatest single-LP, one-performer anthology? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [July 24, 2022, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-single-lp-one-performer-anthology/968480 "2022-07-24T16:15:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Akaj](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/akaj/32/145_2.png) [@Akaj](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Akaj)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2022, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-single-lp-one-performer-anthology/968480/1 "2022-07-24T16:15:15Z")
What’s your favorite, single-LP anthology collecting previously-issued music by one performer or band? (No double albums, no box sets.) A CD qualifies, as long as its length doesn’t exceed the 45 minutes or so of a standard LP. My obvious nominee is The Who’s _[Meaty, Beaty, Big and Bouncy](https://www.amazon.com/Meaty-Beaty-Big-Bouncy-Who/dp/B000008MA0)_, the essential collection of 14 pre-_Who’s Next_ tracks – from the chords punching out the opening to “Can’t Explain” to the lingering last syllable of “I’m a Boy.” But I’m also crazy about _[Anthology of Tom Waits](https://www.discogs.com/release/1028843-Tom-Waits-Anthology-Of-Tom-Waits)_, released on Asylum in 1985. There are lots of Waits anthologies, but this one just nails it for me. Stacking “Martha” and “Tom Traubert’s Blues” next to each other at the end of side 1 might be more heartbreak than most listeners can stand, so the producers added the hilarious (yet poignant) “The Piano Has Been Drinking” to close out the side. Side 2 offers a brilliant cover of “Somewhere” (from _West Side Story_) and brings it home with “Jersey Girl,” “San Diego Serenade” and “A Sight for Sore Eyes.” Mrs. Akaj cries every time. What would you nominate? ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2022, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-single-lp-one-performer-anthology/968480/2 "2022-07-24T16:30:36Z")
[Worst of Jefferson Airplane](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Worst_of_Jefferson_Airplane#Track_listing) was most excellent. **Side one** | No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1. | “It’s No Secret” (from _[Jefferson Airplane Takes Off](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jefferson_Airplane_Takes_Off)_) | [Marty Balin](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marty_Balin) | 2:37 | | 2. | “Blues from an Airplane” (from _Jefferson Airplane Takes Off_) | Balin, [Skip Spence](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skip_Spence) | 2:10 | | 3. | “[Somebody to Love](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somebody_to_Love_(Jefferson_Airplane_song))” (from _[Surrealistic Pillow](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surrealistic_Pillow)_) | Darby Slick | 2:54 | | 4. | “[Today](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Today_(Jefferson_Airplane_song))” (from _Surrealistic Pillow_) | Balin, [Paul Kantner](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Kantner) | 2:57 | | 5. | “[White Rabbit](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Rabbit_(song))” (from _Surrealistic Pillow_) | [Grace Slick](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grace_Slick) | 2:27 | | 6. | “[Embryonic Journey](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Embryonic_Journey_(instrumental))” (from _Surrealistic Pillow_) | [Jorma Kaukonen](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jorma_Kaukonen) | 1:51 | | 7. | “Martha” (from _[After Bathing at Baxter’s](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/After_Bathing_at_Baxter%27s)_) | Kantner | 3:21 | | 8. | “The Ballad of You & Me & Pooneil” (from _After Bathing at Baxter’s_) | Kantner | 4:30 | **Side two** | No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1. | “Crown of Creation” (from _[Crown of Creation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crown_of_Creation)_) | Kantner | 2:53 | | 2. | “Chushingura” (from _Crown of Creation_) | [Spencer Dryden](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spencer_Dryden) | 1:17 | | 3. | “[Lather](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lather_(song))” (from _Crown of Creation_) | G. Slick | 2:55 | | 4. | “Plastic Fantastic Lover” (live; from _[Bless Its Pointed Little Head](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bless_Its_Pointed_Little_Head)_) | Balin | 3:39 | | 5. | “[Good Shepherd](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_Shepherd_(song))” (from _[Volunteers](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volunteers_(Jefferson_Airplane_album))_) | traditional, arranged by Kaukonen | 4:22 | | 6. | “We Can Be Together” (from _Volunteers_) | Kantner | 5:50 | | 7. | “[Volunteers](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volunteers_(song))” (from _Volunteers_) | Balin, Kantner | 2:03 | ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2022, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-single-lp-one-performer-anthology/968480/3 "2022-07-24T17:48:16Z")
I was introduced to the Flying Burrito Brothers by the originally only Dutch (the Dutch are known for their love of country rock) compilation “Hot Burrito”. Since then, I’ve owned or at least heard almost all of their other stuff, but I still think it’s one of the best compilations of one band on a single disc. > **[The Flying Burrito Brothers - Hot Burrito](https://www.discogs.com/de/release/2728758-The-Flying-Burrito-Brothers-Hot-Burrito)** > > View credits, reviews, tracks and shop for the 1994 CD release of "Hot Burrito" on Discogs. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2022, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-single-lp-one-performer-anthology/968480/4 "2022-07-24T18:00:39Z")
> [@Akaj](#): > > I’m also crazy about _[Anthology of Tom Waits](https://www.discogs.com/release/1028843-Tom-Waits-Anthology-Of-Tom-Waits)_, released on Asylum in 1985. Yes!!! 👍 ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2022, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-single-lp-one-performer-anthology/968480/5 "2022-07-24T18:51:29Z")
For the longest time that was my only Jefferson Airplane album and it is still the best. The Beatles Red and Blue albums were the same for me. A nice collection of distinct periods of their careers. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2022, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-single-lp-one-performer-anthology/968480/6 "2022-07-24T19:04:34Z")
I didn’t go with the Blue Album as it was 2 LPs. I love that one. ---
**Author:** ![Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/marvin_the_martian/32/2898_2.png) [@Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marvin_the_Martian)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2022, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-single-lp-one-performer-anthology/968480/7 "2022-07-24T19:11:23Z")
For a single album I need to go with > **[Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Dylan%27s_Greatest_Hits)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits is a 1967 compilation album of songs by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan. Released on March 27, 1967, by Columbia Records, it was a stopgap between Dylan's studio albums Blonde on Blonde and John Wesley Harding, during which time he had retreated from the public eye to recover from a motorcycle accident. It was Dylan's first compilation, containing every Top 40 single Dylan had up to 1967, plus additional album tracks ... (For a multi-disc album I’d go with Neil Young’s _Decade_) ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2022, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-single-lp-one-performer-anthology/968480/8 "2022-07-24T19:38:57Z")
Lots and lots of 60s greatest hits albums come into play, since they collect all the good singles from albums that weren’t yet thought of as “albums”. _Big Hits (High Tide and Green Grass)_ by the Stones came out in 1966. Their early singles hadn’t been in the U.S. the gigantic hit that “Satisfaction” was and this followed by _Aftermath_ solidified their position as the #1 competitors to the Beatles. _The Kinks Greatest Hits!_ gave them a similar boost later that year. _Donovan’s Greatest Hits_ was the summing up of his career everyone was waiting for. In America _Best of the Beach Boys_ was a must, followed by _The Byrds’ Greatest Hits_ and _Retrospective: The Best of Buffalo Springfield_. You have to remember that a stereo album cost as much as a concert ticket in those days. Music snobs spent money on every release; the rest of us poor folk bought our favorites until the 70s made albums mandatory. In the same vein, I bet R.E.M.'s _Eponymous_ introduced the non-indie crowd to the one of the greats two decades later. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2022, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-single-lp-one-performer-anthology/968480/9 "2022-07-24T20:20:47Z")
_Smash Hits_ - Jimi Hendrix _Best of The Doors_ _So Far_ - CSNY _The Best of ZZ Top_ ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2022, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-single-lp-one-performer-anthology/968480/10 "2022-07-24T20:51:11Z")
> [@Si\_Amigo](#): > > The Beatles Red and Blue albums were the same for me. A nice collection of distinct periods of their careers. > [@What\_Exit](#): > > I didn’t go with the Blue Album as it was 2 LPs. I love that one. Yes, the Red and Blue Albums don’t count, because they don’t meet the OP’s single-LP criterion. [20 Greatest Hits](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/20_Greatest_Hits_(Beatles_album)) does, apparently, but IMHO it doessn’t do the Beatles justice: I had this album on cassette back in the day, but I only really appreciated the Beatles once I started listening to their actual (non-compilation) albums. > [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > _The Kinks Greatest Hits!_ gave them a similar boost later that year. My introduction to the Kinks’ classic period was a 24-song cassette compilation called [Spotlight on The Kinks](https://www.kindakinks.net/discography/showrelease.php?release=285), which might have been my answer to this thread’s question if it had been released as a single LP, but it was not. However, I did find this [single-LP Greatest Hits](https://www.kindakinks.net/discography/showrelease.php?release=341) collection, which includes 18 of its 24 tracks—still a very impressive collection, though it omits some great songs like “Death of a Clown,” “David Watts,” and “A Well-Respected Man,” and much superior to what I think you were referring to as [“The Kinks Greatest Hits!”](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Kinks_Greatest_Hits) > [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > In America _Best of the Beach Boys_ was a must 1974 saw the release of the Beach Boys’ [_Endless Summer_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Endless_Summer_(The_Beach_Boys_album)), apparently in both single- and double-LP formats (at 46:21, it could easily fit on a single LP). It’s a great collection of their early material, though it stops right before they reached their arguable creative peak, with “Good Vibrations” and _Pet Sounds_. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2022, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-single-lp-one-performer-anthology/968480/11 "2022-07-24T21:02:08Z")
Actually, I think my answer to this thread’s question is [Queen’s Greatest Hits](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greatest_Hits_(Queen_album)) (though I can’t guarantee I won’t change my mind). “My” version is the 1981 U.S. version, though I understand there are different versions with different track listings. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2022, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-single-lp-one-performer-anthology/968480/12 "2022-07-24T21:39:23Z")
I’ll go with **Bob Marley’s Legend** : 1. Is This Love 2. No Woman, No Cry 3. Could You Be Loved 4. Three Little Birds 5. Buffalo Soldier 6. Get Up, Stand Up 7. Stir It Up 8. One Love / People Get Ready 9. I Shot the Sheriff 10. Waiting in Vain 11. Redemption Song 12. Satisfy My Soul 13. Exodus 14. Jamming But I am also fond of **Creedence Clearwater Revival Gold** : 1. Proud Mary 2. Down on the Corner 3. Bad Moon Rising 4. I Heard It Through the Grapevine 5. The Midnight Special 6. Have You Ever Seen the Rain? 7. Born on the Bayou 8. Suzie Q ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2022, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-single-lp-one-performer-anthology/968480/13 "2022-07-24T21:45:55Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > Actually, I think my answer to this thread’s question is [Queen’s Greatest Hits](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greatest_Hits_(Queen_album)) (though I can’t guarantee I won’t change my mind). “My” version is the 1981 U.S. version, though I understand there are different versions with different track listings. That’s my choice, as well. My CD is actually the U.K. version (the only version available on CD for a time in the US in the late '80s, due to a label dispute). ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2022, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-single-lp-one-performer-anthology/968480/14 "2022-07-24T22:13:13Z")
Yeah, every older group has had seemingly dozens of greatest hits compilations over the decades. I have bunches in a variety of formats. But I went with the originals because I’m old and nostalgia and all that. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2022, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-single-lp-one-performer-anthology/968480/15 "2022-07-24T22:58:59Z")
I’d nominate a record I have never owned, but all of the songs are beyond familiar to me, and that’s Carole King’s “Tapestry.” ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2022, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-single-lp-one-performer-anthology/968480/16 "2022-07-24T23:05:10Z")
That wasn’t a best of, just great. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2022, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-single-lp-one-performer-anthology/968480/17 "2022-07-24T23:20:09Z")
**Complete ‘B’ Sides** by **The Pixies** Besides original songs like the superior UK Surf version of “Wave of Mutilation” and other oddities, there are cuts where the Pixies demonstrate their chops as a first rate cover band with a couple Neil Young songs and a Spanish version of the Yardbirds’ “Evil Hearted You”. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2022, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-single-lp-one-performer-anthology/968480/18 "2022-07-24T23:36:11Z")
There was a German album by Procol Harum titled _A Whiter Shade of Pale_ that was a compilation of the best songs from their first four albums. It looks like it was also titled _The Best of Procol Harum._ > **[Procol Harum - The Best Of Procol Harum](https://www.discogs.com/release/4005009-Procol-Harum-The-Best-Of-Procol-Harum)** > > View credits, reviews, tracks and shop for the 1976 Vinyl release of "The Best Of Procol Harum" on Discogs. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2022, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-single-lp-one-performer-anthology/968480/19 "2022-07-24T23:37:03Z")
Pink Floyd’s _A Collection Of Great Dance Songs_ isn’t too shabby: - One Of These Days - Money - Sheep - Shine On You Crazy Diamond - Wish You Were Here - Another Brick In The Wall (Part 2) ---
**Author:** ![Galactus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/galactus/32/3581_2.png) [@Galactus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Galactus)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2022, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-single-lp-one-performer-anthology/968480/20 "2022-07-24T23:37:14Z")
Alice in Chains Greatest Hits | 1 | Man in the Box | | --- | --- | | 2 | Them Bones | | 3 | Rooster | | 4 | Angry Chair | | 5 | Would? | | 6 | No Excuses | | 7 | I Stay Away | | 8 | Grind | | 9 | Heaven Beside You | | 10 | Again | [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-single-lp-one-performer-anthology/968480.md?page=2)