''The Yardbirds Greatest Hits'' is the first compilation album of songs recorded by

the Yardbirds The Yardbirds are an English rock band, formed in London in 1963. The band's core lineup featured vocalist and harmonica player Keith Relf, drummer Jim McCarty, rhythm guitarist and later bassist Chris Dreja and bassist/producer Paul Samwell ...

. It was released in the United States in March 1967 by Epic Records and included all six of the Yardbirds' American A-side singles up to that time, plus three B-sides and the live "

Smokestack Lightning "Smokestack Lightning" (also "Smoke Stack Lightning" or "Smokestack Lightnin'") is a blues song recorded by Howlin' Wolf in 1956. It became one of his most popular and influential songs. It is based on earlier blues songs, and numerous artists ...

" from '' Having a Rave Up'' and ''

Five Live Yardbirds ''Five Live Yardbirds'' is the live debut album by English rock band the Yardbirds. It features the group's interpretations of ten American blues and rhythm and blues songs, including their most popular live number, Howlin' Wolf's "Smokestack ...

''. The album was the group's highest charting LP record in the US, peaking at number 28 on the ''Billboard'' 200 album chart. Despite the modest peak, it ranked number 73 on the magazine's year-end "Top LP's – 1967" chart because of its longevity.

Critical reception

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

critic Bruce Eder gave the album four and a half out of five stars, who comments "the whole platter summed up, just about as neatly as it was possible to do across just ten songs, what made the Yardbirds a great band." He notes that since the focus is on "hits", most of the selections feature guitarist Jeff Beck, although Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page are represented with one song each. Eder adds:

Track listing

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yardbirds Greatest Hits, The The Yardbirds compilation albums 1967 greatest hits albums Albums produced by Giorgio Gomelsky Epic Records compilation albums