The Best of 1980–1990

The Best of 1980–1990
Greatest hits album by
Released2 November 1998 (1998-11-02)
Recorded1980–1989, 1998
GenreRock, post-punk
Length65:35
LabelIsland
ProducerBrian Eno, Daniel Lanois, Steve Lillywhite, Jimmy Iovine, U2, St. Francis Xavier
U2 chronology
Please: PopHeart Live EP
(1997)
The Best of 1980–1990
(1998)
PopMart: Live from Mexico City
(1998)
Singles from The Best of 1980–1990
  1. "Sweetest Thing"
    Released: 19 October 1998

The Best of 1980–1990 is the first greatest hits compilation by Irish rock band U2, released on 2 November 1998. It mostly contains the group's hit singles from the 1980s, but also mixes in some live staples, as well as a re-recording of the 1987 B-side "Sweetest Thing". In April 1999, a companion video (featuring music videos and live footage) was released. The album was followed by another compilation, The Best of 1990–2000, in 2002.

A limited edition version of the album that included a second disc of B-sides was released a week earlier than the standard single-disc version. At the time of release, the official word was that the two-disc album would be available the first week the album went on sale, then pulled from stores. While this edict never materialized, it did result in the two-disc version being in very high demand. Both versions charted in the Billboard 200, with the two-disc version debuting at number two and setting a new first-week sales record in the United States for a greatest hits album by a group, with 237,500 copies sold.

The boy on the album's cover is Peter Rowen, brother of Bono's friend Guggi (real name Derek Rowen) of the Virgin Prunes. Peter also appears on the covers of U2's early EP Three, two of their first three albums (Boy and War), and Early Demos.