text: 10 ( mercyme album ) 10 is a greatest hits album by american christian rock band mercyme . released on april 7 , 2009 in commemoration of the tenth anniversary of the band 's single " i can only imagine " . the album contains twelve of the band 's number - one singles from five studio albums ( almost there , spoken for , undone , coming up to breathe , and all that is within me ) as well as a re - recording of " i can only imagine " featuring the london sessions orchestra , in addition to two other bonus tracks . additional content , which varies depending on the version of the album , includes music videos , featurettes , and live recordings . 10 received mostly positive reviews from music critics , and the amount of content as well as the videos included with the album received particular praise . it debuted at number 18 on the billboard 200 and number one on the billboard christian albums chart , selling 30 , 000 copies in its first week . billboard ranked the album as the 13th best - selling christian album of 2009 and the 40th best - selling christian album of 2010 in the united states . background 10 was released to commemorate the tenth anniversary of mercyme 's single " i can only imagine " . in 1999 , the band was working on an independent record , the worship project , and needed one more song to fill out the project . lead singer bart millard wrote the song while reminiscing about his father 's death . although the band was aiming to produce a worship record of easy - to - sing songs , they included it because it was important to millard . it was later included on the band 's major - label debut , 2001 's almost there , where it became a hit on christian radio before crossing over and becoming successful on mainstream radio in 2003 . around eight months before the release of 10 , the band had been approached by their label about producing a greatest - hits record . the band was initially against the idea , and according to millard , they felt it had always meant a band was near the end of their career . however , millard later remembered he had written the song in 1999 , and the idea shifted from a greatest - hits record to a celebration of the song 's ten - year anniversary , a concept the band was more comfortable with . content music 10 includes fifteen songs : twelve of the band 's number - one christian radio singles ( three each from undone , coming up to breathe , and all that is within me , two from spoken for , and one from almost there ) , as well as three bonus tracks . live versions of ten of the band 's songs were also included on some versions of the album " i can only imagine ( symphony edition ) " was recorded at abbey road studios in london with the london session orchestra . " ten simple rules " , described as having a " fifties twist " sound , was originally included as music video on hoop , a children 's video dvd . lyrically , it relates the ten commandments . the band had begun playing it in concerts and , according to millard , it developed a following of fans who wanted it to be put on cd . " only temporary " , a rock song with a " distinct southern influence " , was a new track , which the band had not included on any other album or project . videos physical versions of 10 were released with a ' sight ' dvd containing video content . in addition to music videos for " i can only imagine " , " so long self " , " god with us " , " you reign " , and " finally home " , it includes live videos for " word of god speak " , " bring the rain " , and " hold fast " that were recorded live throughout the band 's fall 2008 tour by one camera . " spoken for " and " homesick " were taken from the band 's 2004 live dvd mercyme live , while " in the blink of an eye " was taken from the collector 's edition of their 2007 album all that is within me . two featurettes were also included : " the making of ' i can only imagine ' " , which had previously appeared on mercyme live , and " gospel music channel 's faith & fame : mercyme " , which recounts the band 's career from their early years on . the itunes version of 10 only includes the two featurettes . release and commercial performance 10 was released on april 7 , 2009 . several different versions of the album were released . physically , the album received a release in a two - disc collection , featuring the ' sound ' cd and ' sight ' dvd , as well as in a three - disc " deluxe edition " including an additional cd of 10 live songs . digitally , 10 was released to itunes on october 7 , 2009 , including the sound cd content and live recordings , as well as the two documentaries . 10 sold 30 , 000 copies in its first week , debuting at number 18 on the billboard 200 and number one on the billboard christian albums chart . it spent two weeks atop the christian albums chart and 73 weeks on the chart in total . it ranked as the 13th best - selling christian album of 2009 in the united states and the 40th best - selling christian album of 2010 in the united states . critical reception 10 received mostly positive reviews from music critics . jared johnson of allmusic gave the album 4 . 5 out of 5 stars and noted it as an ' album pick ' , calling it " one of the best and most long - awaited greatest - hits albums in recent memory " . johnson praised the amount of content , saying " for fans , the videos alone make this worth picking up " . jenna dewitt of the baylor lariat gave it an a- , praising " i can only imagine ( symphony edition ) " as " awe - inspiring " as well as the dvd content , and saying " the only mistake in buying this album is if you are really tired of the extensive radio airplay that these hits have gotten " . dave derbyshire of cross rhythms gave the album nine out of ten squares , calling it a " brilliant introduction " to the band . his only criticism on the album was that he considered a few of the songs as being overly sentimental . matt johnson of jesus freak hideout gave the album three out of five stars . johnson noted the dvd content as being " what really makes this worth your money " , but was critical of the interface ; he also felt the cd content , while solid , did not include enough songs and that the new recordings weren 't particularly impressive . he noted the orchestra and millard 's vocals as conflicting on the re - recording of " i can only imagine " , but also said that it " takes the song to new heights than previously conceived " . justin michael of sight magazine gave the album a positive review , calling it " a must for all mercyme fans , for those who need a hooky melody with a message and for people who love getting a free dvd with their albums ! " ; he also praised the one - camera tour videos , but noted " ten simple rules " is " not their brightest musical moment " . track listing personnel credits from the album liner notes charts