Young Lust: The Aerosmith Anthology

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Aerosmith

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This is not a bad collection by any means. The remastering is excellent as both discs sound terrific, even better than I remember them sounding on the original albums. One reviewer questioned as to whom this collection was intended for? I have to agree. Die-hard fans will likely have most of this material already. The bulk of the collection is taken from the albums, "Permanent Vacation, Pump, Get A Grip, Big ones" and "A Little South of Sanity." If you already have these albums, then you really don't need this collection. There's a couple of B-sides, rarities and the Run-DMC version of Walk this Way, but not enough to warrant getting this set if you have the above-mentioned albums. If you are new to Aerosmith, or on a budget, then you can't go wrong with this collection. For myself, it was perfect as I did not want to spend the money on all the albums that the tracks in this collection come from. So, if economics are a concern for you, this is the best Aerosmith album to get as it's a nice summary of the band's work from the 80's through the 90's.

For whom exactly is this double-disc set intended? Is it a hits compilation for casual fans who don't want to delve into the albums? Well, seeing as Geffen only owned the band during the second stage of their career, it couldn't be definitive, and the single-disc best-of "Big Ones" covered the Geffen years quite nicely already. Is it a rarities collection? There are quite a few b-sides and previously unreleased tunes here, but it's mostly re-packaged material from their Geffen albums. Even the live tunes are straight from their recent live record, A Little South of Sanity. So the hardcore fans will have to have it, even if their paying mostly for material they already own - and a few casual fans might pick it up confusing it for a greatest hits collection. Still, it's little more than another contractual obligation of marginal value.