Red Eye (2005)

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.

The first collection to present this decade's musical creation and evolution, Whatever includes radio regulars and chart-toppers such as Boyz II Men, Aaliyah, En Vogue, Collective Soul, Spin Doctors, Joan Osborne, Duran Duran, Hanson, Jewel, Kris Kross, Sarah McLachlan and more. Whatever also rocks back to Lollapalooza's early pioneers Primus with 'My Name Is Mud', Babes In Toyland's 'Sweet 69', Luscious Jackson's hit 'Naked Eye', Dinosaur Jr.'s 'Start Choppin', and The Flaming Lips' single 'She Don't Use Jelly'.