Eagles Once Again Boast Best-Selling Album of All Time
Well, just when you think records can't be broken, history repeats itself. For quite some time there in the late 90's and early 2000s, the Eagles had the #1 best-selling album of all time with their "Greatest Hits 1971-1975" compilation. That album truly defined the term "Greatest Hits". I mean, if you wanted the best songs by the Eagles pre-"Hotel California" and you could not afford to buy all the records, that album served as a pretty good overview of their career up to that point.
However(as most lovers of music trivia know), after Michael Jackson's death in 2009, sales of the "Thriller" album surged enough to surpass the Eagles and claim the top spot which it has firmly held onto since Michael's untimely passing....Until now.
Yesterday, the Recording Industry Association of America announced that the Eagles' "Greatest Hits 1971-1975" was certified 38-times platinum(that's 38 MILLION in sales to you and me) and has retaken the top spot to be loudly trumpeted as THE BEST-SELLING ALBUM OF ALL TIME!
What is it about the Eagles and their music that propels huge sales year after year? Maybe it's because at any given time during their tenure they had at least three and sometimes FOUR vocalists. That might also account for their fantastic harmonies. Maybe it was the great songwriting. Again, EVERY member of the band contributed in that department. Different genres? Rock, country, southern rock, ballads, even some rhythm and blues on occasion. They covered a lot.
Whatever the reason, it works. Sales figures don't lie. 38 million is a lot of albums sold. Michael Jackson's "Thriller" album is now #2 on that best-seller list with 33 million copies sold. Still a very respectable number. Nothing to be ashamed of.
By the way, #3 on that best-selling album chart? We go back to the group at #1. The Eagles with...."Hotel California". 26-times platinum. Perhaps it's ALL the reasons listed previously. Something's working.