Greatest Hits (Bruce Springsteen album)

Greatest Hits
Greatest hits album by
Bruce Springsteen
ReleasedFebruary 27, 1995
Recorded1974–1995
GenreRock
Length76:35
LabelColumbia
Producer
Bruce Springsteen chronology
In Concert/MTV Plugged
(1993) 		Greatest Hits
(1995) 		The Ghost of Tom Joad
(1995)
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band chronology
Chimes of Freedom
(1988) 		Greatest Hits
(1995) 		Blood Brothers
(1996)
Singles from Greatest Hits
  1. "Streets of Philadelphia"
    Released: February 11, 1994
  2. "Murder Incorporated"
    Released: February 24, 1995 (EU)[1]
  3. "Secret Garden"
    Released: April 11, 1995
  4. "Hungry Heart '95"
    Released: October 1995[2]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
Entertainment WeeklyB+[4]
NME6/10[5]
Rolling Stone[6]

Greatest Hits is the first compilation album by the American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released February 27, 1995, on Columbia Records. It is a collection of some of Springsteen's hit singles and popular album tracks through the years along with four new songs at the end, mostly recorded with the E Street Band in 1995. The latter constituted Springsteen's first (albeit very partial) release with his backing band since the late 1980s. Some of the songs are shorter versions of the original album releases.

The incorporation of the "new" tracks was portrayed in the 1996 documentary Blood Brothers. "Murder Incorporated" and "This Hard Land" were, in fact, unused 1982 songs from the Born in the U.S.A. sessions, with the latter being re-recorded here more than a decade later, and both subsequently became Springsteen concert staples.[7][8][9] "Blood Brothers", on the other hand, was played only as the final closing song of both the 1999–2000 Reunion Tour and 2002–2003 Rising Tour, both times with an extra verse added. "Secret Garden" achieved notoriety via the soundtrack of the 1996 film Jerry Maguire. Alternate versions of several of these new tracks were released on the 1996 Blood Brothers EP.

The compilation was commercially successful, hitting number one on the Billboard 200 and UK Albums Chart, and sold six million copies in the U.S.[10]

  1. ^ "Murder Incorporated". Archived from the original on September 6, 2023. Retrieved October 18, 2018 – via Amazon.
  2. ^ "Great Rock Discography". p. 773.
  3. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Review: Greatest Hits by Bruce Springsteen". United States: AllMusic. Archived from the original on September 6, 2023. Retrieved July 21, 2011.
  4. ^ Browne, David (March 10, 1995). "Music Review: Bruce Springsteen: Greatest Hits (1995)". Entertainment Weekly. No. 265. ISSN 1049-0434. Archived from the original on December 3, 2013. Retrieved July 21, 2011.
  5. ^ Fadele, Dele (March 11, 1995). "Long Play". NME. p. 52. Archived from the original on December 17, 2023. Retrieved December 17, 2023.
  6. ^ Puterbaugh, Parke (April 6, 1995). "Album Review: Greatest Hits by Bruce Springsteen". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on November 25, 2017. Retrieved July 21, 2011.
  7. ^ "Bruce Springsteen to re-release landmark box set of rare material – Uncut". August 12, 2013. Archived from the original on October 19, 2018. Retrieved October 18, 2018.
  8. ^ Spiegel, Ben (August 15, 2014). "10 Amazing Songs Springsteen Cut From 'Born in the U.S.A.'". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 24, 2016. Retrieved October 18, 2018.
  9. ^ Collins, Roger. "Springstreet staples". Iomusic. Archived from the original on February 4, 2009. Retrieved December 9, 2008.
  10. ^ Grein, Paul. "Week Ending Oct. 19, 2008: Battle Of The Hat Acts" Archived October 26, 2008, at the Wayback Machine. Yahoo! Music. October 22, 2008.