The Best of Me (Rick Astley album)

The Best of Me
Greatest hits album by
Rick Astley
Released25 October 2019
Label
Producer
Rick Astley chronology
Beautiful Life
(2018) 		The Best of Me
(2019) 		Are We There Yet?
(2023)
Singles from The Best of Me
  1. "Every One of Us"
    Released: 12 September 2019

The Best of Me is a greatest hits album by English singer-songwriter Rick Astley. It was released on 25 October 2019 by RCA Records and BMG.[1][2][3] The album includes the single "Every One of Us", which was released in September 2019. The Best of Me reached number 4 on the UK Albums Chart and number 1 on the UK Independent Albums chart.

The album has two discs, a disc of old recordings, and a second disc that consists of new recordings of "reimagined" old songs with new interpretation. It includes a stripped-back, slowed-down version of "Never Gonna Give You Up" accompanied by pianoforte.[4] It also includes a new song, "Every One of Us",[5] which was released on 12 September 2019 as the first single from the album with a post on Twitter from Astley, who also confirmed the title of the album and its release date.[6][7]

Track listing

All tracks written and produced by Rick Astley, except where noted.

Disc 1

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Every One of Us"  3:06
2."Never Gonna Give You Up"Stock Aitken Waterman
3:33
3."Whenever You Need Somebody"Stock Aitken Waterman
  • Aitken
  • Stock
  • Waterman
3:52
4."When I Fall in Love"
  • Aitken
  • Stock
  • Waterman
2:59
5."Together Forever"Stock Aitken Waterman
  • Aitken
  • Stock
  • Waterman
3:24
6."It Would Take a Strong Strong Man"Stock Aitken Waterman
  • Aitken
  • Stock
  • Waterman
3:39
7."She Wants to Dance with Me" 
3:14
8."Take Me to Your Heart"Stock Aitken Waterman
  • Aitken
  • Stock
  • Waterman
3:27
9."Hold Me in Your Arms" 
  • Harding
  • Curnow
4:32
10."Cry for Help" (Single Edit)
  • Gary Stevenson
  • Astley
4:03
11."Sleeping" (Edit)
  • Braide
  • Astley
3:43
12."Lights Out"
  • Astley
  • Andrew Frampton
Frampton3:12
13."Keep Singing"  3:58
14."Angels on My Side"  3:35
15."God Says / Dance"  3:15
16."This Old House"  4:30
17."Beautiful Life"  3:43
18."Try"  3:55
19."She Makes Me"  3:34
20."Never Gonna Give You Up" (Pianoforte)Stock Aitken Waterman 3:33

Disc 2 – Reimagined Classics

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Together Forever" (Reimagined)Stock Aitken Waterman4:01
2."Whenever You Need Somebody" (Reimagined)Stock Aitken Waterman4:00
3."When I Fall in Love" (Reimagined)
  • Heyman
  • Young
3:37
4."Beautiful Life" (Reimagined) 3:30
5."She Wants to Dance with Me" (Reimagined) 3:20
6."Hold Me in Your Arms" (Reimagined) 3:43
7."Cry for Help" (Reimagined)
  • Astley
  • Fisher
3:49
8."Keep Singing" (Reimagined) 3:41
9."Angels on My Side" (Reimagined) 3:49
10."Try" (Reimagined) 3:46

Personnel

Musicians

  • Rob Taggart – piano
  • Simon Merry – drums
  • Julian Cox – bass
  • Adam Evans – guitar
  • Dawn Joseph, Lauren Johnson, Stephanie Sounds, Annabel Williams – backing vocals
  • Rick Astley – all instruments on track 6, 8, 9, 10

Technical

  • Recording engineers: Rick Astley, Bob Macfarlane & Mathieu Lejeune
  • Recorded at Grey Room, Chicago Recording Company & Dean Street Studios
  • All tracks mixed by Daniel Frampton
  • All tracks mastered by Dick Beetham at 360 Mastering
  • Photography by Peter Niell

Charts

Chart performance for The Best of Me
Chart (2019) Peak
position
Australian Digital Albums (ARIA)[8] 50
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[9] 76
Irish Albums (IRMA)[10] 91
Scottish Albums (OCC)[11] 3
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[12] 25
UK Albums (OCC)[13] 4
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[14] 1

Certifications

Certifications for The Best of Me
Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[15] Gold 100,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ^ "The Best of Me by Rick Astley on iTunes". Apple Music. Retrieved 14 September 2019.
  2. ^ Sinclair, Paul (11 September 2019). "Rick Astley / New greatest hits 'The Best of Me' / pre-order a signed CD". Super Deluxe Edition. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
  3. ^ "Rick Astley Releases New Career-Spanning Compilation The Best Of Me On October 25th". Shore Fire Media. 12 September 2019. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
  4. ^ Garner, George (6 November 2019). "'It's important not to lose the song': Rick Astley on remaking his hits for his new Best Of collection". Music Week.
  5. ^ Savage, Mark (24 October 2019). "Rick Astley: Inside the home studio where he masterminded his comeback". BBC.
  6. ^ Astley, Rick [@rickastley] (13 September 2019). "My new single 'Every One of Us' is out now! Pre-order the new album 'The Best of Me' here" (Tweet). Retrieved 14 September 2019 – via Twitter.
  7. ^ Wass, Mike (12 September 2019). "Rick Astley Announces Greatest Hits LP & New Single "Every One Of Us"". Idolator. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
  8. ^ "ARIA Australian Top 50 Digital Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. 4 November 2019. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
  9. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Rick Astley – The Best of Me" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 31 October 2019.
  10. ^ "Irish Albums Chart: 1 November 2019". Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
  11. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
  12. ^ "Top 100 Albumes – Semana 44: del 25.10.2019 al 31.10.2019" (in Spanish). Productores de Música de España. Retrieved 6 November 2019.
  13. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
  14. ^ "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
  15. ^ "British album certifications – Rick Astley – The Best Of Me". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 14 October 2024.