The Stranglers - All the Best (2012)

Tracklist

CD1
01. Peaches (Radio Edit)
02. (Get A) Grip [on Yourself] (1996 Remaster)
03. Golden Brown
04. Strange Little Girl
05. Duchess
06. 5 Minutes (1996 Remaster)
07. Nuclear Device (The Wizard of Aus)
08. Bear Cage
09. Something Better Change (1996 Remaster)
10. Tomorrow Was the Hereafter (Early Demo)
11. The Man They Love to Hate
12. Let Me Introduce You to the Family
13. Sometimes (1996 Remaster)
14. Bring on the Nubiles (1996 Remaster)
15. Choosey Susie (1996 Remaster)
16. Sweden (All Quiet on the Eastern Front)
17. Do You Wanna?
18. Thrown Away
19. Outside Tokyo
20. La Folie (Radio Edit)

CD2
01. No More Heroes (Radio Edit)
02. Hanging Around (1996 Remaster)
03. Straighten Out (1996 Remaster)
04. Go Buddy Go (1996 Remaster)
05. Bitching (1996 Remaster)
06. You Hold the Key to My Love in Your Hands (Early Demo)
07. Peasant in the Big Shitty
08. Nice 'N' Sleazy
09. In the Shadows
10. N'Emmenes Pas Harry
11. Just Like Nothing on Earth
12. Top Secret
13. Tramp
14. Waiting for the Meninblack
15. I Feel Like a Wog (1996 Remaster)
16. Dagenham Dave (1996 Remaster)
17. Rok It to the Moon (1996 Remaster)
18. The Raven
19. Shah Shah a Go Go
20. Waltzinblack

There are plenty of Stranglers compilations to choose from, but All the Best places in the upper half and maybe even the upper ten percent, although it still has its drawbacks. It opens with a killer trifecta of hits -- the lascivious "Peaches," the stomping punk rocker "Get a Grip (On Yourself)," and the beautiful harpsichord-led ballad "Golden Brown" -- before rolling through a set of punk and new wave standards for the remainder of disc one, with snotty numbers like "Something Better Change" and "5 Minutes" providing the perfect soundtracks for brawls or blows against the empire. Disc two has big ballsy hits like "Hangin' Around" and "No Heroes," and while there's a strong second line of tunes to enjoy, odd choices like "N'Emmenes Pas Harry" (the French version of "Don't Tell Harry") and "You Hold the Key to My Love in Your Hands" (an early demo) come right from the world of rarities and make the set's title entirely arguable. Still, this beats any of those "best-ofs" that replace the original recordings with live performances from the later band, but missing big numbers like "Skin Deep" and "Always the Sun" also came from these years when Hugh Cornwell was frontman, so All the Best is up for debate. Get it at the right price and you're in for a jackbooted, melodic, and wry time, or think of it as "Plenty of the Best, and Some Really Interesting Stuff Too."

DOWNLOAD ALBUM [flac]