Album · Compilation · 35 years old this year
Greatest Hits II
Greatest Hits II gathers Queen's biggest singles from 1981 to 1991, picking up where the first Greatest Hits left off. It opens its story with "Under Pressure", the UK chart-topper, and closes with "The Show Must Go On". That puts the band's 1980s and early 1990s on a single disc, from The Game and Hot Space through The Works, A Kind of Magic and The Miracle to the newly released Innuendo. Parlophone issued it on 28 October 1991.
It did very well. The album reached number one on the UK Albums Chart and has sold 3.9 million copies there, making it the country's tenth best-selling album. It also did big business in Germany, France and Finland, and sales worldwide are well over 25 million when the US and Canadian Classic Queen release is counted. Freddie Mercury designed the cover crest, which combines the star signs of all four members: two Leos, a Cancer and a Virgo.
Greatest Hits II: tracklist, credits and charts
17 tracks · 1:15:57Tracklist
- 1A Kind of MagicRoger Taylor4:23
- 2Under PressureBowie, Deacon, May, Mercury, Taylor3:57
- 3Radio Ga GaRoger Taylor5:43
- 4I Want It AllDeacon, May, Mercury, Taylor4:02
- 5I Want to Break FreeJohn Deacon4:19
- 6InnuendoDeacon, May, Mercury, Taylor6:28
- 7It’s a Hard LifeFreddie Mercury4:10
- 8BreakthruDeacon, May, Mercury, Taylor4:09
- 9Who Wants to Live ForeverBrian May4:57
- 10HeadlongDeacon, May, Mercury, Taylor4:33
- 11The MiracleDeacon, May, Mercury, Taylor4:55
- 12I’m Going Slightly MadDeacon, May, Mercury, Taylor4:08
- 13The Invisible ManDeacon, May, Mercury, Taylor3:59
- 14Hammer to FallBrian May3:41
- 15Friends Will Be FriendsJohn Deacon and Freddie Mercury4:09
- 16The Show Must Go OnDeacon, May, Mercury, Taylor4:24
- 17One VisionDeacon, May, Mercury, Taylor4:03
- Produced by
- Queen, David Richards, David Bowie, Brian May, Roger Taylor, Mack
- Recorded at
- Mountain Studios, Musicland Studios, The Town House, The Record Plant, Olympic Studios, Metropolis, Abbey Road Studios, Townhouse Three, Maison Rouge
- Recorded
- 1981–1990 1981–1995 (2011 Japan reissue edition)
- Engineered by
- David Richards, Mack, Mike Beiriger, Kris Fredriksson, Kevin Metcalfe, Gordon Vicary
- Labels
- Parlophone, EMI/Parlophone (Europe), Hollywood (North America)
- Length
- 1:15:57
Line-up
- John Deacon · bass guitar, handclaps, finger snaps, guitar, keyboard, synthesizer, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, background vocals
- Brian May · electric guitar, handclaps, finger snaps, guitar, acoustic guitar, background vocals, lead vocals, synthesizer, keyboard, piano, sampler
- Freddie Mercury · synthesizer, background vocals, lead vocals, piano, handclaps, finger snaps, keyboard, sampler, drum machine
- Roger Taylor · drums (drum set), drum machine, synthesizer, electronic drum set, background vocals, handclaps, finger snaps, sampler, vocoder, percussion, keyboard, electric guitar, lead vocals
- David Bowie · synthesizer, finger snaps, handclaps, lead vocals · guest
- Fred Mandel · sampler, synthesizer, keyboard · guest
- David Richards · keyboard · guest
- Steve Howe · classical guitar · guest
- Spike Edney · keyboard · guest
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| US Hard Rock · 2019–2025 | 16 |
| Belgian Albums (Wallonia) · 2019–2025 | 25 |
| Ireland 3 · 2025 | 49 |
| Poland 2 · 2019–2025 | 94 |
| Belgian Albums (Flanders) · 2019–2025 | 144 |
| Portuguese Albums (AFP) · 2019–2025 | 151 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification |
|---|---|
| Argentina · 1991 | Diamond |
| Australia · 2007 | 8× Platinum |
| Austria | 4× Platinum |
| Brazil · 1997 | 2× Platinum |
| Denmark · 2023 | Gold |
| Finland · 1992 | 2× Platinum |
| France · 1992 | Diamond |
| Germany | 9× Gold |
| Italy · 2018 | Platinum |
| Mexico | Platinum |
| Netherlands · 1997 | 5× Platinum |
| Poland · 2019 | Gold |
| Portugal · 2025 | 4× Platinum |
| Spain · 1992 | 5× Platinum |
| Sweden · 1992 | Platinum |
| Switzerland | 5× Platinum |
| United Kingdom · 2016 | 13× Platinum |
Awards
- SNEP diamond album
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
43.6
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
20
ListenBrainz listeners
67k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
2.0k
Deezer fans (all editions)
Released the same week
Also released on 28 October
Every year →
More from Queen
Full discography →
Queen
1973
Queen II
1974
Sheer Heart Attack
1974
A Night at the Opera
1975
A Day at the Races
1976
Queen’s First E.P.
1977
News of the World
1977
Jazz
1978
Live Killers
1979
The Game
1980
Flash Gordon
1980
Greatest Hits
1981
Hot Space
1982
The Works
1984
A Kind of Magic
1986
Live Magic
1986
Hungarian Rhapsody: Live in Budapest
1987
The Miracle
1989
At the Beeb
1989
Innuendo
1991
Box of Tricks
1992
Classic Queen
1992
The 12″ Collection
1992
Live at Wembley ’86
1992
Five Live
1993
The Greatest 3
1995
Made in Heaven
1995
Queen Rocks
1997
The Crown Jewels: A 25th Anniversary Celebration
1998
Greatest Hits III
1999
Highlander
2000
Greatest Hits I, II & III: The Platinum Collection
2000
We Will Rock You
2002
Jewels
2004
We Are the Champions: Final Live in Japan
2004
Queen on Fire: Live at the Bowl
2004
Stone Cold Classics
2006
The A–Z of Queen, Volume 1
2007
Rock Montreal
2007
The Singles Collection, Volume 1
2008
The Singles Collection, Volume 2
2009
Absolute Greatest
2009
The Singles Collection, Volume 3
2010
The Singles Collection, Volume 4
2010
Deep Cuts, Volume 1 (1973–1976)
2011
Deep Cuts, Volume 2 (1977–1982)
2011
Deep Cuts, Volume 3 (1984–1995)
2011
Icon
2013
Live at the Rainbow ’74
2014
Queen Forever
2014
A Night at the Odeon
2015
Bohemian Rhapsody: The Original Soundtrack
2018
Riffs
2025
Pop
2025
Anthems
2025
Ballads
2025
The best of 1991
All of 1991 →
Nevermind
Nirvana · 1991
Metallica
Metallica · 1991
Use Your Illusion I
Guns N’ Roses · 1991
Ten
Pearl Jam · 1991
Use Your Illusion II
Guns N’ Roses · 1991
No More Tears
Ozzy Osbourne · 1991
On Tour Now!
Guns N’ Roses · 1991
Innuendo
Queen · 1991
Kerplunk!
Green Day · 1991
Badmotorfinger
Soundgarden · 1991
Gish
The Smashing Pumpkins · 1991
Arise
Sepultura · 1991
More on Parlophone
The label →
OK Computer
Radiohead · 1997
The Bends
Radiohead · 1995
Pablo Honey
Radiohead · 1993
The Endless River
Pink Floyd · 2014
Innuendo
Queen · 1991
Brave New World
Iron Maiden · 2000
The Miracle
Queen · 1989
Creep
Radiohead · 1992
Live at Wembley ’86
Queen · 1992
Album Box Set
Radiohead · 2007
The 12″ Collection
Queen · 1992
Drill
Radiohead · 1992
Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia + musicbrainz + wikidata
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 28 October 1991 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 28 October 1991 | |
| Wikidata | 28 October 1991 | |
| UK / Europe release | 28 October 1991 | earliest UK or European date |
36 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | AR | Parlophone | 0077779797127 | other |
| — | XE | Virgin EMI Records | 602527583655 | remaster |
| — | IT | Parlophone | 0077779797127 | other |
| — | GB | Parlophone | 0077779797127 | other |
| — | CA | Hollywood Records | 00050087240141 | other |
| — | XE | Parlophone | 0077779797127 | other |
| 1991 | XE | Parlophone | 0077779797127 | other |
| 1991 | DE | Parlophone | 0077779797110 | other |
| 1991 | XE | Parlophone | other | |
| 1991 | — | Parlophone | 0077779797127 | other |
| 1991 | ZA | Parlophone | 0077779797127 | other |
| 1991 | XE | Parlophone | 0077779797127 | other |
| 1991 | AU | EMI | 0077779797127 | other |
| 1991 | XE | Parlophone | 0077779797127 | other |
| October 1991 | FR | Parlophone | 077779797127 | other |
| 28 October 1991 | XE | Parlophone | 0077779797127 | original |
| 28 October 1991 | GB | Parlophone | 0077779797127 | original |
| 28 October 1991 | GB | Parlophone | original | |
| 28 October 1991 | XE | Parlophone | 0077779797110 | original |
| 28 October 1991 | XE | Parlophone | 077779797127 | original |
| 6 November 1991 | JP | — | 4988006665293 | other |
| 1994 | US | — | other | |
| 2011 | — | — | 602527615059 | other |
| 3 January 2011 | GB | Island | 602527583655 | remaster |
| 12 January 2011 | JP | Island | 4988005643339 | other |
| 19 April 2011 | US | Hollywood Records | 050087240141 | other |
| 19 April 2011 | US | Hollywood Records | 050087240141 | other |
| 6 March 2013 | JP | Island | 4988005752666 | remaster |
| 2014 | XW | — | 602547025883 | other |
| 4 November 2014 | US | Hollywood Records | 050087319182 | other |
| 18 November 2016 | XE | Virgin EMI Records | 602557048445 | other |
| 10 February 2017 | US | Hollywood Records | 050087350673 | other |
| 10 February 2017 | US | Hollywood Records | 602557048445 | other |
| 20 March 2019 | JP | Island | 4988031321898 | other |
| 5 August 2026 | US | Columbia | other | |
| — | — | — | other |
Cover art sources
coverartarchive · upscaled: major: best source 1395x1393, upscaled to 1500 (x1.08)
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| coverartarchive ✓ | 1395×1393 | upscaled: major: best source 1395x1393, upscaled to 1500 (x1.08) |
| deezer | 1200×1200 | upscaled |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |