Yer Favourites

Seemingly nonexistent in the eyes of American pop culture -- yet continually boasting some of the nation's highest grossing concerts -- Canadian rockers the Tragically Hip have managed to secure themselves legendary status both above and underground while remaining almost complete anonymous. Like any good band of the people, the Hip know that their fans are their lifeblood, so in compiling their first ever "greatest hits" collection, they left it up to the listeners. Chosen online at their website, the 34 remastered tracks that make up Yer Favorites -- two of which, the ballsy "No Threat" and the wistful "New Maybe," are brand new -- may not go deep enough for longtime followers, but for anyone who has spent the better part of their musical life wondering what all of the fuss was about, this is their chance to get schooled. Poetic yet accessible, raw yet grandiose, the Tragically Hip have often been lumped unfairly into the jam band circuit, when in reality they have far more in common with an act like Pearl Jam than they do Phish. They're an arena bar band maintaining the rawness of a juke joint amid the thunderous applause of 150,000 pairs of hands, and while their brand of heartland rock may be steeped in the Great White North, it's appeal is universal. ~ James Christopher Monger