The Best of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds is a compilation album by Australian rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, released on 11 May 1998.

Cave asked each of the Bad Seeds members, past and present, to choose their favourite tracks from the ten albums—their lists would then be discussed until a final list was produced. Only guitarist and founding Bad Seed Mick Harvey responded, and it is his listing, unchanged, that makes up The Best of.

As of 2001, the album has sold 500,000 copies worldwide.

Track listing

Note: Tracks 2, 4, 10, 11, 13 and 14 are the edited single versions, but are not listed as edits in the liner notes.

Special edition

The album was also released as a special edition with a live bonus disc, titled Live at the Royal Albert Hall, recorded on 19 and 20 May 1997. This bonus CD was later released in 2008 as a regular album, with four additional tracks and without "The Weeping Song".

Musicians

  • Nick Cave – Vocals, Hammond, Organ, Oscillator, Piano, Harmonica, Backing Vocals, String Arrangement
  • Blixa Bargeld – Guitar, "Boss Bellini", Backing Vocals, Slide Guitar, "Father" Vocal (on "The Weeping Song")
  • Mick Harvey – Drums, Bass, Acoustic Guitar, Guitar, Shaker, Bell, Rhythm Guitar, Extra Piano, Hammond, Bass Guitar, Bass Organ, Backing Vocals, Piano, Xylophone, Glockenspiel, Loops, Vibraphone, Percussion, String Arrangement
  • Kid Congo Powers – Guitar
  • Martyn P. Casey – Bass, Backing Vocals
  • Thomas Wydler – Drums, Timpani, Fish, Backing Vocals, Percussion
  • Conway Savage – Piano, Backing Vocals
  • Barry Adamson – Drums, Hammond, Backing Vocals, Bass
  • Jim Sclavunos – Drums, Bells
  • Tex Perkins – Backing Vocals
  • Rowland S. Howard – Backing Vocals
  • Roland Wolf – Guitar
  • Gini Ball – Strings
  • Audrey Riley – Strings
  • Chris Tombling – Strings
  • PJ Harvey – Vocals
  • Kylie Minogue – Vocals
  • Jen Anderson – Strings
  • Sue Simpson – Strings
  • Kerran Coulter – Strings
  • Helen Mountfort – Strings
  • Hugo Race – Guitar

Charts

Weekly charts

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! scope="col" | Chart (1998)

! scope="col" | Peak<br />position

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! scope="row"| European Albums (Eurotipsheet)

| style="text-align:center;"|16

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Certifications