Are The White Stripes reuniting? Band announces 'Greatest Hits' anthology, fans say 'the world needs you'
Big news for The White Stripes fans, the legendary alternative rock band are set to release their first official Greatest Hits collection. It’s scheduled for a release on December 4 via Columbia and Jack White's Third Man Records.
Does this signal a reunion for The White Stripes? If their recent online activity is anything to go by, there is a likely chance of that happening. Jack White and Meg White have started their first and only Instagram account for the band. Since its opening on October 6, the account already has four posts.
"Hello from The White Stripes! The first-ever official anthology of recordings from Jack and Meg White, 'The White Stripes Greatest Hits', is set to release on December 4th. #thewhitestripes #twsgreatesthits," the band wrote in the caption for their first post, which included a cute photo of Jack and Meg in their early band days.
'The Greatest Hits' will include a generous total of 26 songs that span their discography. In the follow-up post, The White Stripes added further details about the collection, saying it is "available for pre-order on CD, double LP, & digital now," adding, "A deluxe limited edition is also available as part of #ThirdManRecords Vault Package #46."
Additionally, the band noted, "To reveal one of the 26 songs on the tracklist today, the band has dug into the archives to share a never-before-seen live performance video of 'Ball and Biscuit' from a 2003 show in Tokyo." You can watch the clip by clicking here.
Third Man’s Vault Package subscription will give access to new artwork from The White Stripes’ collaborator Rob Jones, silk-screen prints,and The White Stripes-themed magnetic poetry. More special versions, benefitting independent record stores, will be revealed later, according to Pitchfork.
Their recent activity certainly means the band has been busy in 2020. Furthermore, according to reports, the announcements also come with news that Jack White and Third Man have signed a new agreement with Sony Music Entertainment to cover the distribution of most of his career recordings.
The band's Instagram posts have also left fans begging for a reunion. "Jack. Meg. C’mon. It’s time. We need you. The world needs you," said a fan while another wrote, "Please come back!!!!! We need White stripes to come back!"
One fan said, "Now reunite haphazardly and one of you grow an unfortunate mustache like Simon and Garfunkel did when they put out their Greatest Hits." Another fan asked, "Please bring back the white stripes everyone misses their simplicity of rock ‘n’ roll and blues music." For the band's 'Greatest Hits', a fan shared, "Wow fantastic gift for this crazy year to end. Thanks you. Love you both!"
If the duo intend to reunite this year through new music or performances, it will mark their first activity as a band in 13 years. While on tour in support of the White Stripes' 2007 album 'Icky Thump', Meg suffered a bout of acute anxiety and the remaining dates of the tour were canceled. After a few public appearances and a hiatus from recording, it was later announced in 2011 that The White Stripes would be disbanding and Meg has not been active in the music industry since.
After The White Stripes split, Jack has been busy with his other bands, The Raconteurs and The Dead Weather. The latest project to come out of Jack is The Raconteurs 2019 album 'Help Us Stranger'.