1982-2000

Swedish hair metal outfit Europe landed itself a monster international hit in 1986 with "The Final Countdown," a song so deliciously cheesy and tailor-made for sporting events that it threatened to replace Queen's "We Will Rock You" as the arena anthem of choice. Now both songs, along with Gary Glitter's "Rock & Roll, Pt.1," are part of the holy trinity of arena rock, but where Queen went on to increase their status as rock gods, Europe never quite recovered from their inevitable post-"Countdown" free-fall. 1982-1992 collects 17 tracks from the immaculately coiffed Swedes, including their signature hit as well as semi-popular radio cuts like "Cherokee," "Rock the Night," and "Carrie," making it the most complete Europe anthology to date. [This collection was reissued in 2003 as 1982-2000 with the addition of the bonus track "The Final Countdown 2000" and a black cover instead of a white one.] ~ James Christopher Monger|