15 Artists With More Hits Compilations Than Studio Albums

There are a few near-universal truths in rock ‘n’ roll, one of them being: Where there is a band with hits, there will be a band with a lot of hits compilations.

Decades ago, when hits compilations started to become more prevalent, they were a no-brainer from a business perspective. If an artist was dominating the charts, a greatest-hits album was an easy way to rack up more sales and buy time between proper releases. If an artist had fallen into commercial decline, a compilation album could juice their sales and potentially revitalize their career, reminding audiences why they fell in love with them in the first place.

A textbook example of the latter is the Beach Boys’ Endless Summer, released in 1974 as the band’s album sales were plummeting and Brian Wilson was caught in the throes of addiction and mental illness. Endless Summer became a smash hit, topping the Billboard 200 and selling 3 million copies, and it helped resuscitate the Beach Boys’ flatlining career (even if it also had the adverse side effect of turning them into a fun-in-the-sun nostalgia act).

Other groups, such as Foreigner and Eagles, released their first greatest-hits compilations in the midst of their chart-topping imperial phases. The former’s Records, released in 1982, sold a robust 7 million copies. But those blockbuster figures pale in comparison to the latter’s Their Greatest Hits (1971–1975), which soared to 38 million sales in the U.S., making it the highest-certified album in RIAA history.

Of course, for every successful or historically significant greatest-hits compilation, there are numerous lazy, bald-faced cash grabs from labels just trying to make a quick buck and warm the shelves of your local Walmart. That’s how you wind up with the following list of 15 Artists With More Hits Compilations Than Studio Albums.