Album of Century? The Eagles

The Eagles are soaring into the new millennium with the best-selling album of the century in the United States.

The Eagles, Their Greatest Hits 1971-1975, released in 1976, was honored Tuesday by the Recording Industry Association of America as the top-selling album, reports CBS station KCBS-TV.

Hillary Rosen, RIAA president, presented a plaque to band members Glenn Frey, Don Henley, Don Felder, Joe Walsh and Timothy B. Schmit.

Frey said they 26.6 million copies of the album have been sold in the United States, while Michael Jackson's Thriller" has sold 25.2 million.

"I think when Michael Jackson sees this on television, he's going to go out and buy a million-and-a-half copies of Thriller," Frey joked.

The band, which hadn't performed live together in more than four years, surprised reporters by performing - in '90s harmony - the '70s classic Tequila Sunrise. The ceremony took place before a small audience at The Complex Rehearsal Studio in West Los Angeles.