The Beatles - 1 (CD 2000)

In my opinion the greatest band of all time but is this their greatest compilation? Yes it is for a single CD Best Of though the Red (1962-66) and Blue (1967-70) double LPs steal its thunder overall. 1 contains 27 songs, all of which made it to the top spot in either the UK or US.
For the Fab Four’s early period, 1 pretty much includes their best songs though, from Revolver onwards, The Beatles' singles represent a somewhat sanitised version of their best output. By all means buy 1 as an introduction though there’s no real substitute for their last four major LPs – Revolver, Sgt Pepper, The White Album and Abbey Road (Let It Be and other latter Beatles ' LPs are less essential).

Particular highlights of 1 for me include the early ebullience of I Want to Hold Your Hand, A Hard Day’s Night with its classic opening chord and closing arpeggios and the beautiful melancholy of Eleanor Rigby and Penny Lane. These are just personal choices as nearly every track on this LP is a classic and, on another day, I may have picked out four others.

1 is a very good first Beatles purchase though like many singles compilations, barely tells half the band’s story. Buy it but don’t stop there in exploring the music of the most influential and significant band of all time. Probably the best band ever as well…