Best of the Beast
| Best of the Beast | ||||
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| Greatest hits album by Iron Maiden | ||||
| Released | 23 September 1996 | |||
| Recorded | 1978–1996 | |||
| Genre | Heavy metal | |||
| Length | 77:53 (single disc CD) 149:40 (2-disc CD) 189:17 (2-disc LP) |
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| Label | EMI | |||
| Producer | Martin Birch, Nigel Green, Steve Harris, Iron Maiden, Will Malone | |||
| Iron Maiden compilations chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Best of the Beast | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   |
| Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal | 7/10 |
Best of the Beast was Iron Maiden's first "best of" album, released in 1996 in three formats: a 34 track (four disc) vinyl, a 27 track (two disc) CD, a 16 track (single disc) CD and MiniDisc. The vinyl edition is, to date, the band's longest record release, running for over three hours.
The track listings are mainly made up of the band's greatest hits (singles) and most well-known songs from their 1980–1995 albums, but they also include a new single, entitled "Virus", and an unreleased live version of "Afraid to Shoot Strangers". Both songs had promotional music videos, the latter of which was filmed during The X Factour and originally featured the band's previous lead vocalist, Bruce Dickinson.
The two-CD version contains two songs from the band's 1979 demo tape The Soundhouse Tapes ("Iron Maiden" and "Strange World," of which the latter was previously unreleased). The 4-disc vinyl pressing is quite rare and has increased in value steadily over the years in music stores and on online auction sites. The standard edition's value has not changed much although the Japanese pressings continue to rise in value. Best of the Beast has long since been out of print and has been "replaced" by Edward the Great in most countries as a 'best of' for the band.
The cover art was designed by Derek Riggs, known for having created most of Iron Maiden's early album covers. It is an amalgamation of his most famous works with the band, featuring Eddies from the Piece of Mind, Powerslave, Somewhere in Time and No Prayer for the Dying eras, as well as those from "The Trooper", Live After Death and a redesign of the Killers album cover.
^shipments figures based on certification alone
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