Chronicle, or fully Chronicle: The 20 Greatest Hits, is a greatest hits album by the American rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival. It was released in January 1976 by Fantasy Records. The edited version of "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" featured on the album was simultaneously released as a single.
Chronicle is a singles collection with 13 A-sides and seven B-sides. Unlike the two previously released Creedence Gold compilations, Chronicle includes all of the group's charted hits. Chronicle: Volume Two was released in 1986, and features non-charting "classics" collected from the same albums as the songs on Chronicle.
Certified 12× Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), it is the best-selling album in the band's catalog. The compilation was ranked number 59 on Rolling Stone'''s list of the 500 greatest albums of all time in 2012, but disappeared from the list altogether when it was published again in 2020. The album has sold at least 6 million copies in the US since 1991 (data from 2013), when Nielsen SoundScan began tracking sales for Billboard. It has remained on the Billboard 200 chart for 12 years, reaching the 600 week-mark (non-consecutive) in August 2022. In June 2025 it broke the 750-week mark. The album was re-released on vinyl in 2014 as a limited edition.
Critical reception
For his review of Chronicle for AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine said that the album was suitably compiled, but he did not like how the Compact Disc reissue had the full-length version of "I Heard It Through the Grapevine," saying it does not fit with the other songs on the collection. Blender magazine's review called Chronicle'' the group's best compilation. Robert Christgau called the album a good starting-point for Creedence fans.
Track listing
These times are for the CD version. The vinyl LP version has the single version of "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" instead of the longer album version.
Personnel Per liner notes. John Fogerty vocals, lead guitar, production, arrangements Stu Cook bass Doug Clifford drums Tom Fogerty rhythm guitar (except “Sweet Hitch-Hiker” and “Someday Never Comes”)
Charts
Weekly charts +Weekly chart performance for Chronicle: The 20 Greatest Hits Chart (1976–2024) Peakposition Australian Albums (ARIA) 16
Year-end charts +Year-end chart performance for Chronicle: The 20 Greatest Hits Chart (2009) Position Australian Albums (ARIA) 72 Chart (2010) Position US Billboard 200 157 Chart (2011) Position US Billboard 200 151 Chart (2012) Position US Billboard 200 142 Chart (2013) Position US Billboard 200 184 Chart (2015) Position US Billboard 200 163 Chart (2016) Position US Billboard 200 156 Chart (2017) Position US Billboard 200 133 US Top Rock Albums (Billboard) 19 Chart (2018) Position US Billboard 200 93 US Top Rock Albums (Billboard) 10 Chart (2019) Position US Billboard 200 65 US Top Rock Albums (Billboard) 8 Chart (2020) Position Canadian Albums (Billboard) 49 US Billboard 200 63 US Top Rock Albums (Billboard) 4 Chart (2021) Position Canadian Albums (Billboard) 29 US Billboard 200 47 US Top Rock Albums (Billboard) 5 Chart (2022) Position Canadian Albums (Billboard) 33 US Billboard 200 55 US Top Rock Albums (Billboard) 5 Chart (2023) Position Canadian Albums (Billboard) 21 US Billboard 200 39 US Independent Albums (Billboard) 7 US Top Rock Albums (Billboard) 5 Chart (2024) Position Australian Albums (ARIA) 70 Canadian Albums (Billboard) 21 US Billboard 200 40 Chart (2025) Position Canadian Albums (Billboard) 36 US Billboard 200 58
Certifications
References