Queen Returns To No. 1 — And Soon The Band Will Reach A Massive Milestone

Queen’s Greatest Hits compilation returns to No. 1 and nears 200 weeks running a Billboard chart, standing out as one of the most successful albums of all time. UNSPECIFIED – CIRCA 1970: Photo of Queen Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

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Queen’s catalog is one of the most valuable in the history of the music business. The rock band changed what could be a hit in the genre, both in terms of sound and length, as “Bohemian Rhapsody,” one of the outfit’s most famous tunes, sounds absolutely nothing like anything that was popular at the time of its release – or that has risen to the same heights in the decades since it emerged.

Queen has released dozens of popular tunes, and most of them are gathered together on the aptly titled Greatest Hits compilation. That set is also one of the most successful of all time, and it’s maintained a constant presence on the charts since Billboard began including streaming activity in its methodologies, as plays of even one track — as well as purchases of individual tunes and consumption of the project as a whole — help ensure Queen not only lives on Billboard’s rankings, but typically appears in lofty positions on a handful of rosters.

Greatest Hits returns to No. 1 on one chart in America this frame, and as it does, the set nears an incredible milestone, one which might mark a first across all major rosters.

Queen’s Greatest Hits Returns to No. 1

Queen returns to No. 1 on the Top Hard Rock Albums this frame as Greatest Hits finds its way back to the peak position. Greatest Hits only needs to improve by two spots, as last time around it sat at No. 3.

Last week’s winner, Linkin Park’s Papercuts compilation, descends rapidly as it falls from the summit to No. 20. In its space, the Grammy-winning hard rock act fills two positions within the top five, as Hybrid Theory improves by one spot to No. 3, while Meteora reenters the list at No. 4.

How Many Weeks Has Queen’s Greatest Hits Spent at No. 1?

Queen’s Greatest Hits has now spent an almost-unbelievable 196 weeks at No. 1 on the Top Hard Rock Albums. The Billboard tally ranks the most consumed hard rock full-lengths and EPs throughout the nation, with both sales and streams factoring into where a title lands. In time – perhaps in just a month or so – the set may reach 200 periods running the show.

Which Queen Albums Have Reached No. 1?

Queen has only accrued three No. 1s on the Top Hard Rock Albums throughout the years, and Greatest Hits is far and away its longest-running leader. In fact, the compilation may be the full-length with the most frames spent atop any of Billboard’s rock albums rankings.

Queen’s second-longest-running champion is the Bohemian Rhapsody soundtrack, which is up to 34 turns at No. 1, while Greatest Hits I, II & III: The Platinum Collection reached the top spot in September 2017 and managed just two weeks at No. 1.

Greatest Hits has spent five times as many weeks running the show as both of Queen’s other leaders combined.

The Incredible Truth About Queen’s Greatest Hits Compilation

Queen’s Greatest Hits is so successful on the Top Hard Rock Albums chart that it has spent more time at No. 1 than any other Queen release has managed in any position on the list. Greatest Hits I, II & III: The Platinum Collection is the group’s second-longest-charting title, with 174 weeks anywhere on the roster – more than 20 fewer than Greatest Hits has lived at No. 1. Greatest Hits is up to 464 weeks anywhere on the Top Hard Rock Albums tally – also longer than all of the group’s 11 other appearances combined.

Queen’s Greatest Hits Needed a Decade Before Hitting No. 1

Impressively, Queen’s Greatest Hits needed more than a decade before it finally became a No. 1 for the band on the Top Hard Rock Albums chart. The singles project debuted in September 2007, earning Queen its first placement on the roster. Greatest Hits didn’t soar to the highest rung until June of 2018. By that point, Greatest Hits I, II & III: The Platinum Collection had already earned the group a ruler.

Queen Rocks Into the Top 10 on Several Billboard Charts

Queen’s Greatest Hits lives on four Billboard rankings this frame, and it’s on the rise on all but one of them. The set, which features beloved tracks like “Another One Bites the Dust,” “You’re My Best Friend,” “Don’t Stop Me Now,” “Somebody to Love,” “We Will Rock You,” and of course, “Bohemian Rhapsody,” returns to the top 10 on the Top Rock Albums chart, inching from No. 12 to No. 10. Over on the Top Rock & Alternative Albums list, it also improves by two spaces and now makes a home in twelfth place. Queen’s Greatest Hits does descend slightly on the Billboard 200, dipping to No. 65.