Hard to believe, but
Capitol
's 2008 collection
Idolize Yourself: The Very Best of Billy Idol
is only the second
Billy Idol
hits album to be released in America, following the first -- 2001's
Greatest Hits
-- by just seven years.
weighed in at 16 tracks and
Idolize Yourself
spans 18, adding two OK new songs to the mix (the moody
"John Wayne"
and the ham-fisted
"New Future Weapon"
), swapping out a live acoustic
"Rebel Yell"
and a cover of
Simple Minds
'
"Don't You (Forget About Me)"
for the latter-day cuts
"Speed"
and
"World Comin' Down,"
but otherwise this is built upon the same core 14 hits as
. This means that either compilation would serve the needs of most
Idol
fans well, but
gets the edge, as the latter-day songs are just a bit better and it's also available in a deluxe edition with a DVD containing almost all of
's music videos (two,
"Hot in the City"
"Cradle of Love,"
are present in previously unreleased alternate cuts), which are essential to truly appreciating an artist whose fame was built in large part on his videos. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine