The 18 tracks included here do a very good job of rounding up the life and times of the second incarnation of Spear of Destiny, which accompanied frontman Kirk Brandon over to Virgin Records and proceeded to score the group's biggest hits ever. All of the hits are here, of course -- "Miami Vice," "Strangers in Our Time," "Never Take Me Alive," "Time of Our Lives," "Land of Shame"; where this set becomes interesting is in its eye for the rarity. Live and extended (12") versions replace a handful of the familiar album cuts and, while they are not necessarily superior, still they bring some fresh energies to the collection. Sad to say, 18 songs may be just a few too many; this version of the band blazed fast but perished quickly, and not every recorded song was as great as it ought to have been. But this still is one best-of that really does do its best, and its highlights are sky-high indeed. ~ Dave Thompson|
Rovi