Despite its being credited to , this hour-long compilation may prove to be of equal interest to serious fans of the original (i.e. the quintet that recorded etc.). The first four cuts, at least -- and -- were done by the classic second lineup, featuring and original members , , and , along with on keyboards, and those tracks all sprang from the original ' roots. They also happen to be first-rate recordings and, indeed, are superior to many of the tracks off of the original band's first two LPs. As for the rest, overlooking -- an solo release on which it isn't clear who played, other than drummer -- it's all the work of , the psychedelic outfit that and his management assembled in 1966 around ; and on guitar, bass, violin, and keyboards; on guitar, vibes, keyboards, and saxophone; and on bass, with showing up late in the day on Their material is surprisingly engaging, even if it isn't what anyone really wants to remember for -- in contrast to the typical music of the period, which tended to sound very fey and elegant, the "new " played a hard, ballsy kind of that never lost sight of the rhythm (and, at its best, didn't stray too far from the ) of their roots. The sides represented here are played more than competently and show occasional inspiration in the writing, arrangements, and performance. Though their sound is more of an acquired taste than that of the original , they were a talented band, and perhaps if they could have pulled together one album that was as inspired as the singles or they might have sustained some success. Instead, their albums tended toward the self-consciously heavy, spaced-out noodling that we hear on where sounds as though he's doing a burlesque of . This disc lives up to its name, however, distilling down the best elements of the group's various facets, so you get their most accessible single sides and the best of the album noodling (the sitar and violin on are beautifully played, even if they don't go anywhere). The disc could have been extended to include cuts like by the early transitional lineup, and which would have come close to making it definitive, but those did turn up later on ' budget-priced best-of on the group. The sound is very good for a 1991 CD release, and the notes are reasonably thorough. ~ Bruce Eder