Playlist: The Very Best of Cheap Trick

Playlist: The Very Best of Cheap Trick collects 14 tracks defined on the back jacket as "the life-changing songs, the out of print tracks, the hits, the fan favorites everyone loves, and the songs that make the artists who they are." With so many adequate Cheap Trick collections available (2000's Authorized Greatest Hits, 2004's Essential Cheap Trick, 2005's Very Best of Cheap Trick) it's hard to get that excited over another 14 tracks of the same, but there's no denying the sheer, infectious rock & roll joy that emanates from songs like "Surrender," "Southern Girls," "I Want You to Want Me," "Way of the World," and "Dream Police." That said, a more fitting name for the collection would be "Bereft of "Mandocello," a fact that ultimately renders this Playlist incomplete. ~ James Christopher Monger