40 Greatest Hits | ||||
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Greatest hits album by | ||||
Released | 1978 | |||
Recorded | 1947–1952 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 106:59 | |||
Label | Mercury | |||
Producer | ||||
Hank Williams chronology | ||||
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40 Greatest Hits is a two-record greatest hits compilation by American singer-songwriter Hank Williams. It was released in 1978 by Mercury Records – who under PolyGram became responsible for the MGM tape vault – on the 25th anniversary of Williams' death. Significantly, it was the first anthology in quite some time that did not subject Williams' recordings to either rechanneled stereo, posthumous overdubs, artificial duets with family members (like his son Hank Jr.), or most or all of the above. Because of both this, and the value-for-money attraction of having a deeper song selection than single-disc compilations issued previously by MGM Records, many reviewers consider this anthology to be the perfect starting point for newcomers to Williams' recorded legacy. The album remains, to this day, the best-selling record of Williams' career.
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [1] |
The album was included in Robert Christgau's "basic record library", published in Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies (1981).[2] In 2003, Rolling Stone magazine ranked it at number 94 on a list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time,[3] maintaining the rating in a 2012 revised list.[4] In the 2020 reboot of the list, the album's rank dropped to number 132.[5]
Except where otherwise indicated, all tracks composed by Hank Williams.