Billy Squier

Capitol's 2005 release of the Billy Squier collection Best of: 10 Best Series is a reissue of EMI's 1998 The Best of Billy Squier (which, to make matters more confusing, was also re-released by Collectables in 2004). Annoying bookkeeping matters aside, the disc is actually a very good collection of Squier's work. The first six songs ("Rock Me Tonite," "In the Dark," "My Kinda Lover," "Don't Say You Love Me," "The Stroke" and "Everybody Wants You") compare favorably to the best six songs of just about any other '80s pop-rocker, and the remaining four are fine choices also (especially the pounding rocker "All Night Long"). Considering that the disc is a budget release, you don't expect it to be a comprehensive picture of Squier's career, but that being said, it seems wrong that the disc doesn't include "Lonely Is the Night," which just might be his best song, or the excellent rocker (and precursor to "The Stroke") "The Big Beat" from his unjustly underrated debut Tale of the Tape. For some reason just about every Squier collection overlooks these two Squier classics. In fact, when you get right down to it, there really isn't a completely successful single-disc collection on the market. The Best of Billy Squier (in whatever version you find it) is about as good as any other, and may well be all the casual fan really needs. ~ Tim Sendra, All Music Guide