The Very Best of... Slade effectively renders every past
Slade hits collection redundant, as remastered sound and a sharp eye for all the band's U.K. chart entries serve up a peerless examination of what remains one of British
rock's most flawless careers. No matter that the hits went so badly off the boil around 1975-1976 -- still, three-quarters of disc one is nonstop solid gold and the remainder of the set isn't far behind, as
Slade's mid-'80s renaissance delivers further smashes
"My Oh My" and
"Run Run Away." Which would be hits enough for anybody, but the fun doesn't end there. A bonus second disc then digs into the darker recesses of the Top 75 to pull out the band's lesser successes, a mixed bag that runs from
"All Join Hands" to
"Ruby Red," the 1980 live version of
"Born to Be Wild," "Gypsy Roadhog," "C'Est la Vie," and more. It's not a complete guide to
Slade on 45 (there's no
"Give Us a Goal," for a start), but it comes close enough. ~ Dave Thompson