Image by Gareth Owens
Interview by Nathan Jones
Video edit by Tayler Deighton

Blending 70's groove, sunshine pop, and neo-psych, with lyrical sarcasm, Australian/English band Greatest Hits is the project of artist, Ryan Cooper, and a collective of friends from around the globe - From the North of England to the South of France, LA to Nashville, coming together somewhat “accidentally”, on the east coast of Australia. 

We recently caught up with the gang from Greatest Hits for a big old chin wag about music, inspo and more...
 

The Greatest Hits story begins on a cold night in Leeds when Ryan, who was walking home from a favourite bar, “had an overwhelming urge to just create something that grooved!” With fellow musician Josh Macyntire (Marmozets/Dream Ceremony) crashing on his couch, the pair jokingly decided to release music under the moniker “Greatest Hits”. 

With nothing but a handful of half-baked demo’s to their name, Ryan, with a handful of English musicians agreed to play their debut live show and, within a matter of months, were playing support slots throughout the North of England including with Halfnoise (Zac Farro from Paramore’s project for which Ryan also played bass) The Mauskovic Dance Band, Holy Wave, The Districts, Childcare and at festivals including Live at Leeds, This Must Be the Place, Leeds Emerging - all the while garnering a reputation for their engaging and danceable live shows.


Forced to leave the UK due to visa issues, half the band departed for Australia via the US - temporarily setting up in Nashville and New York, in what would become a significant time of writing and recording, as well as the release of their debut single, ‘Mortals’. After returning back to Australia and with a bit of a following bubbling away in the UK, ‘Mortals’ received its first prominent radio play with BBC Radio 1ʼs Huw Stephens taking it for a well-earned spin.


Fast forwarding just a few months sees new band members joining the Greatest Hits family, curiously all with a similar story - Aussie travellers forced to return home from extended time away. Today, Greatest Hits are Ryan Cooper, Chelsea Foley and Henry Chatham. The culmination of events that surrounds the band’s development has produced a sound and culture that is full of both energy and vulnerability, timeless groove and modern sensibilities.