Reviews at the time were conflicted. Musically, critics agreed that Grandes Éxitos was flawless—every track is a five-star song. Lyrically, songs like "Crimen" (" No es un crimen / lo que hiciste con mi vida " – "It’s not a crime / what you did with my life") and "Adiós" (" Adiós, pero no me digas nada " – "Goodbye, but don’t tell me anything") became unbearable to listen to for some fans.
★★★★☆ (Essential for new listeners; heartbreaking for veterans) Gustavo Cerati - -Grandes Exitos- -2011-
By Lucas Artuso Special to Rock en las Américas Reviews at the time were conflicted
On a long drive at sunset, with the windows down, singing “Adiós” at the top of your lungs—not as a goodbye, but as a thank you. Gustavo Cerati remains alive in every riff, every synth pad, and every echo of his voice. Grandes Éxitos is just the beginning. Released on August 30, 2011, this album arrived
Released on August 30, 2011, this album arrived during one of the most painful and surreal periods in the history of Argentine music. Just over a year earlier, on May 15, 2010, Cerati suffered a massive ischemic stroke and subarachnoid hemorrhage following a concert in Caracas, Venezuela. He would remain in a coma until his death in 2014. Thus, Grandes Éxitos was not a victory lap nor a celebratory retrospective. It was, in many ways, a musical eulogy—a frozen testament to a genius who could no longer speak. Unlike the sprawling, fan-centric Fuerza Natural tour or the conceptual ambition of Bocanada , this compilation is precisely what its title promises: a direct, radio-friendly collection of Cerati’s most accessible solo work. Spanning from his 1999 electronic debut Bocanada to the lush rock of Fuerza Natural (2009), the album strips away the experimental B-sides and focuses on the hits.
Rolling Stone Argentina wrote in September 2011: “ Grandes Éxitos is the saddest party album ever made. You want to dance to ‘Cosas Imposibles,’ but you end up crying during ‘Tu Medicina.’ It is a perfect record for an imperfect tragedy.” As with any “Greatest Hits,” there are notable absences. Hardcore fans immediately pointed out the lack of "Bocanada" (the title track) and "Raíz" from the Fuerza Natural sessions. More glaringly, the compilation ignores the experimental electronic ambient of Siempre Es Hoy almost entirely, except for the single “Deja Vu.” This suggests the compilation was designed for mainstream radio and streaming—targeting the massive audience that filled stadiums during the Ahí Vamos tour, not the avant-garde followers. Legacy: A Snapshot, Not the Whole Picture Today, fifteen years after its release, Grandes Éxitos (2011) occupies a unique place in Cerati’s catalog. It is not the definitive compilation—that honor arguably goes to Siempre Es Hoy (2002, live/unplugged) or the posthumous Fuerza Natural tour DVD. However, it is the most efficient compilation.