The World of... series

[2][4] The World of... series was formulated after Decca head Sir Edward Lewis was shown Germany's Phase 4 Stereo sampler albums on a business trip to the country.

[5] The series marked Decca's entry into the budget market, with the cut-price albums intended to entice consumers who didn’t usually buy LPs.

[9] Among the early entries in the series was The World of Johann Strauss (1969), the first of several releases that "treated classical music much like pop: compiling the most popular pieces and presenting them across two sides".

[10] Further releases were dedicated to Tom Jones, Lulu, Cat Stevens, Lynsey de Paul, the Zombies, Amen Corner, Alan Price, the Flirtations, Them and Billy Fury, among others.

[11] Comedy releases featuring the Goons, Tony Hancock, Peter Cook and Dudley Moore, Benny Hill, Marty Feldman, the Goodies and Bernard Manning among others were also issued.

[11] In classical music, several The World of Your Hundred Best Tunes compilations were among the best-selling releases in the series, leading to the publication of a companion book by Alan Keith in 1975 "for the millions who have shown their needs by buying the discs".