Greatest Hits: Back to the Start

Greatest Hits: Back to the Start
Greatest hits album by Megadeth
Released	June 28, 2005
Recorded	1984-2000
Genre	Heavy metal, thrash metal, hard rock, speed metal
Length	78:04
Label	Capitol, EMI
Megadeth chronology
The System Has Failed (2004) Greatest Hits: Back to the Start (2005) Gigantour (2006)

Greatest Hits: Back to the Start is the second greatest hits album by Megadeth. It was released on June 28, 2005 by Capitol Records.^[1] The title "Back to the Start" is a reference to lyrics in "Rust in Peace...Polaris" from Megadeth's 1990 album Rust in Peace: "The day of final conflict/All pay the price/The third World War rapes peace/Takes life back to the start"

Background and release

The selection of tracks for the album was largely determined by fans, who voted on songs in polls on the band's website.^[2] However, the inclusion of "Kill the King", a track originally released on Capitol Punishment: The Megadeth Years, was insisted upon by Mustaine.^[3] To help promote the release, a new video was made for "Kill the King."^[1]

Commercial performance

Greatest Hits: Back to the Start reached No. 65 on the U.S. Billboard 200,^[4] selling 17,441 copies according to Nielsen SoundScan.^[5] By December 16, 2005, the album had sold about 133,000 copies in the U.S.^[6] The album was also certified gold in Canada (for 40,000 copies) in July 2011.^[7] On July 23, 2011 in Toronto, Ontario, the band was presented with gold plaques by EMI in recognition of the achievement.^[8]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Blender	[9]
Allmusic	[10]

Jason Birchmeier of Allmusic critiqued the album for being more of a sampler and having a more "balanced" approach to the band's Capitol Records material, rather than focusing on Megadeth's first few records.^[10]

Track listing

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Original album	Length
1.	"Holy Wars... The Punishment Due"	Dave Mustaine	Mustaine	Rust in Peace (1990)	6:32
2.	"In My Darkest Hour"	Mustaine, David Ellefson	Mustaine	So Far, So Good... So What! (1988)	6:26
3.	"Peace Sells"	Mustaine	Mustaine	Peace Sells... but Who's Buying? (1986)	4:02
4.	"Sweating Bullets"	Mustaine	Mustaine	Countdown to Extinction (1992)	5:26
5.	"Angry Again"	Mustaine	Mustaine	Hidden Treasures EP (1995)	3:47
6.	"À Tout le Monde"	Mustaine	Mustaine	Youthanasia (1994)	4:25
7.	"Trust"	Mustaine	Mustaine, Marty Friedman	Cryptic Writings (1997)	5:12
8.	"Kill the King"	Mustaine	Mustaine	Capitol Punishment: The Megadeth Years (2000)	3:42
9.	"Symphony of Destruction"	Mustaine	Mustaine	Countdown to Extinction	4:06
10.	"Mechanix" (2002 remix)	Mustaine	Mustaine	Killing Is My Business... and Business Is Good! (1985)	4:21
11.	"Train of Consequences"	Mustaine	Mustaine	Youthanasia	3:30
12.	"Wake Up Dead"	Mustaine	Mustaine	Peace Sells... but Who's Buying?	3:38
13.	"Hangar 18"	Mustaine	Mustaine	Rust in Peace	5:12
14.	"Dread and the Fugitive Mind"	Mustaine	Mustaine	Capitol Punishment: The Megadeth Years/The World Needs a Hero (2001)	4:23
15.	"Skin o' My Teeth"	Mustaine	Mustaine	Countdown to Extinction	3:15
16.	"She-Wolf"	Mustaine	Mustaine	Cryptic Sounds: No Voices in Your Head EP (1997)	3:39
17.	"Prince of Darkness"	Mustaine	Mustaine, Friedman	Risk (1999)	6:28
Total length:					78:04

^[2]

Limited edition DVD

• "Kill the King" music video
• "Live at the Fillmore Auditorium December 27, 1999"
  • "Prince of Darkness"
  • "Holy Wars... The Punishment Due"
  • "In My Darkest Hour"
  • "Hangar 18"
  • "Sweating Bullets"
  • "Symphony of Destruction"
  • "Peace Sells"
• Arsenal of Megadeth trailer

^[11]

Personnel

• Dave Mustaine - lead vocals and lead and rhythm guitar on all tracks
• Marty Friedman - guitar on tracks 1, 4-7, 9, 11, 13, and 15-17
• Chris Poland - guitar on tracks 3, 10 and 12
• Al Pitrelli - guitar on tracks 8 and 14
• Jeff Young - guitar on "In My Darkest Hour"
• David Ellefson - bass on all tracks
• Nick Menza - drums on tracks 1, 4-7, 9, 11, 13, and 15-16
• Gar Samuelson - drums on tracks 3, 10 and 12
• Jimmy Degrasso - drums on tracks 8, 14, and 17
• Chuck Behler - drums on "In My Darkest Hour"

^[2]

Charts

Album

Year	Chart	Position
2005	US Billboard 200	65[5]
	Finnish Album Charts	21
	UK Album Charts	47

Certifications

Country	Certification
Canada	Gold[12]

References

1. "Megadeth: New 'Kill The King' Video Posted Online - June 6, 2005". Blabbermouth.net. Roadrunner Records. Retrieved 3 February 2013.
2. Greatest Hits: Back to the Start liner notes. Capitol Records. 2005. pp. 6, 8–9.
3. Begrand, Adrien (July 28, 2005). "Megadeth: Greatest Hits: Back to the Start". Popmatters. Retrieved December 3, 2013.
4. "Greatest Hits: Back to the Start - Megadeth | Awards". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 19 June 2014.
5. "Soundscan Report: CKY, Megadeth, Devildriver, Darkest Hour, Throwdown". Blabbermouth.net. Roadrunner Records. 6 July 2005. Retrieved 6 July 2014.
6. "Megadeth: Album Sales Update". Blabbermouth.net. Roadrunner Records. 16 December 2005. Retrieved 6 July 2014.
7. "Gold and Platinum search results for "Greatest Hits: Back to the Start"". MusicCanada. MusicCanada. Retrieved 3 August 2011.
8. "Megadeth Presented With Canadian Gold Plaques For 'Back To The Start'". Blabbermouth.net. Roadrunner Records. 24 July 2011. Retrieved 3 August 2011.
9. Blender Review Archived May 4, 2006, at the Wayback Machine.
10. Birchmeier, Jason Allmusic Review Retrieved September 28, 2013
11. Greatest Hits: Back to the Start limited edition back panel. Capitol Records. 2005.
12. "Music Canada Database Search for Megadeth". Music Canada.