The Greatest Hits

iTunes Review

Before you skip straight to the power pop anthems “Surrender,” “Dream Police,” or “I Want You To Want Me,” try less obvious Cheap Trick hits like the stadium serenade “If You Want My Love” or the Devo-esque “She’s Tight.” The soaring chorus on “Tonight It’s You” has one of those infectious melodies that can lay eggs in your brain, and its pre-chorus harks back to the late ‘60s when guitar enigma Rick Nielson and bassist Tom Peterson played in the hard rock band Fuse. Aside from their own tunes, Cheap Trick confidently stamp their trademark sound on any cover — dig their sultry take on Antoine Domino and Dave Bartholomew’s “Ain’t That A Shame.” They try to keep Otis Blackwell and Elvis Presley’s “Don’t Be Cruel” true to form with vintage guitars, vocal “slap-back” reverb and flawless doo-wop harmonies, but it ends up playing like the cream of the short-lived crop of new wave acts that flirted with rockabilly. The previously unreleased version of The Beatles’ “Magical Mystery Tour” was an outtake from 1988’s Lap Of Luxury and “Clock Strikes Ten” is a standout bonus cut for this 2003 re-release.