Queen Greatest Hits Is First UK Album To Sell Over 7 Million Copies - Noise11.com
Brian May of Queen performs at Rod Laver Arena on Friday 2 March 2018. Photo by Ros O'Gorman

Brian May of Queen 2018. Photo by Ros O'Gorman

Queen Greatest Hits Is First UK Album To Sell Over 7 Million Copies

by Music-News.com on July 20, 2022

in News

Queen have become the first act in the UK to sell seven million copies of an album.

Queen’s 1981 ‘Greatest Hits’ collection is owned by 1 in 4 households in the UK, the Official Charts Company announced.

Guitarist Brian May said: “No album has done this before in history.

“Thank you, we appreciate it.”

Drummer Roger Taylor said: “The British public and their infinitely-great taste have made this the biggest-selling album in history.

“Thank you very much; we’re humbled and honoured. We salute you!”

The LP beat ABBA’s 1992 compilation ‘Gold’ by a million copies.

Martin Talbot, chief executive of the Official Charts, commented: “When it was released for the first time in 1981, career-spanning packages such as Greatest Hits were relatively rare, the preserve of only the very biggest acts.

“There is no doubt that its massive success has done as much as any other release to turn hits packages into the omnipresent album concept that they are today.”

In 2014, Queen’s collection reached six million copies, but now audio streams are included, with 1,000 streams amounting to a single sale.

Queen have amassed 1.26 billion total UK streams, while ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ has been streamed 240 million times.

The iconic band – which was fronted by the late Freddie Mercury, until his death in 1991, and now performs with Adam Lambert on lead vocals – join the late King of Pop, Michael Jackson, as the only acts to make the top 10 sales list twice.

Queen’s 1991 ‘Greatest Hits II’ sold four million copies, placing 10th, while Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’ and ‘Bad’ albums placed sixth and ninth, respectively.

The Beatles’ ‘Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’, Adele’s ’21’, Oasis’ ‘(What’s The Story) Morning Glory?’, Pink Floyd’s ‘Dark Side Of The Moon’ and Dire Straits’ ‘Brother In Arms’ also made the list of the UK’s best-selling albums of all time.

The UK’s best-selling albums of all time:

1. Queen – ‘Greatest Hits’
2. Abba – ‘Gold’
3. The Beatles – ‘Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’
4. Adele – ’21’
5. Oasis – ‘(What’s The Story) Morning Glory?’
6. Michael Jackson – ‘Thriller’
7. Pink Floyd – ‘Dark Side Of The Moon’
8. Dire Straits – ‘Brothers In Arms’
9. Michael Jackson – ‘Bad’
10. Queen – ‘Greatest Hits II’

music-news.com

Stay updated with your free Noise11.com daily music news email alert. Subscribe to Noise11 Music News here

Be the first to see NOISE.com’s newest interviews and special features on YOUTUBE and updated regularly. See things first SUBSCRIBE here: Noise11 on YouTube SUBSCRIBE

Noise11.com

Follow Noise11 on Social Media

Noise11 on Instagram

You’ll discover music news first following Noise11 on Twitter

Comment on the news of the day, join Noise11 on Facebook

Related Posts

Shirley Strachan Skyhooks (photo from skyhooks-music.com)
Shirley Strachan of Skyhooks Left Us 24 Years Ago Today 29 August

It’s hard to believe it’s been 24 years since Australia lost one of its most iconic musical sons—Graeme “Shirley” Strachan, the charismatic lead singer of Skyhooks. Today, on 29 August 2025, fans, friends, and fellow musicians remember the voice that defined a generation, the performer whose presence lit up stages, and the personality who made Australian rock both fun and unforgettable.

August 29, 2025
Russell Morris at Hamer Hall Melbourne 27 August 2025 photo by Winston Robinson
Russell Morris The Farewell Tour Is A Treasure Trove Of Hits and Rarities

Russell Morris was almost apologetic when he stepped onto the Hamer Hall stage in Melbourne for the first night of The Farewell Tour on Wednesday (27 August 2025). He admitted to his fans that a 60-year career can look confusing from the outside. The truth is, Morris was never one to sit still.

August 28, 2025
Steve Martin and Alison Browne photo from Compass Records
Steve Martin and Alison Brown Unite for Safe, Sensible and Sane Out October 17

Steve Martin has spent decades balancing comedy, acting, writing and music, but his love for the banjo has always been more than a hobby. On October 17, Martin will join forces with banjo trailblazer Alison Brown for their new collaborative album Safe, Sensible and Sane, a star-studded roots music project set to be one of the year’s most intriguing releases.

August 26, 2025
Tom Waits supplied by Anti
Tom Waits To Reissue 1975 Classic Nighthawks at the Diner For 50th Anniversary

Tom Waits’ Nighthawks at the Diner is being reissued for its 50th anniversary on October 24, with ANTI- Records pressing the landmark album onto three limited-edition yellow vinyl variants. More than just a re-release, this marks a celebration of one of the most unusual and defining recordings of Waits’ early career.

August 26, 2025
Queen autographed A Night At The Opera
Why Queen’s Quietest Member John Deacon Chose to Become a Recluse Until This Rare Return

For fans of Queen, John Deacon has long been the enigma of the band, a brilliant musician, masterful songwriter, and humble presence behind the scenes. Since the early 1990s, Deacon has shunned the spotlight, retiring quietly after Freddie Mercury’s death in 1991. But now, years later, he has quietly resurfaced, lending his signature alongside bandmates Roger Taylor and Brian May on a charity auction item, signalling, perhaps, that even the most private of souls can still make their mark in unexpected ways.

August 25, 2025
Patti Smith Horses 50th Anniversary
Patti Smith ‘Horses’ Gets 50th Anniversary Reissue With Unearthed Demos and Live Cuts

In 1975, Patti Smith entered Jimi Hendrix’s Electric Lady Studios in New York City with a vision: to fuse the jagged energy of punk with the fluid imagery of poetry. That vision became Horses, one of the most groundbreaking debut albums in rock history. Now, half a century later, Sony has announced the 50th Anniversary Expanded Edition of Horses, a release that both celebrates the legacy of the record and offers fans newly unearthed material from Smith’s early years.

August 25, 2025
Bruce Springsteen Born To Run
Bruce Springsteen’s Born To Run Album Turns 50

On 25 August 1975, Bruce Springsteen released Born To Run, the album that transformed him from a New Jersey barroom songwriter into one of the most important voices in rock history. Fifty years later, the record still stands as a landmark, both for its ambitious sound and for the way it defined Springsteen’s career.

August 25, 2025