Seeking to monetize its Aerosmith back catalog in the wake of their renewed popularity, Aerosmith's original label, Columbia, compiled this follow-up to their original 1980 Greatest Hits set. It's the kind of compilation I've rarely seen, where few if any of the tracks were hits, and many of them weren't released as singles, but all represent the strength of the band's deep cuts - the "hidden gems" as it were. While songs like "Walk This Way," "Sweet Emotion" and "Dream On" built the band's legend up, the tracks on this album are what solidified them. Every Columbia album, including Rock in a Hard Place, is represented here, as is the non-album single "Chip Away at the Stone" on LP in its studio form for the first time. It's incredibly hard to argue with the quality or consistency of these songs, although perhaps they should be in chronological order... going from "No Surprize" to "Mama Kin" is a bit jarring.
Still, this is 100% pure Aerosmith brand rock & roll, between the thunder of "Nobody's Fault" and "Round and Round," the raunch of "Lick and a Promise" and "Critical Mass," or the inimitable grooves of "Mama Kin" and "Train Kept a-Rollin." It manages to represent what Aerosmith is to a large portion of its fanbase, to create a thorough narrative about what they do. It's still available as a budget disc under the name "Collections," usually for $8-$10, but stymieing many potential buyers who are put off by the lack of name brand recognition.
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