N.W.A - Greatest Hits (1996)

N.W.A's career isn't necessarily one that lends itself well to anthologies. Though the group had important singles, especially in the underground hip-hop community in the late '80s, it never received any support from radio or MTV, which meant it never had any official "hits." Instead, N.W.A's albums were more important, popular, and influential than singles, even if individual tracks -- "Fuck tha Police," "Straight Outta Compton," "Gangsta Gangsta," "Express Yourself" -- became the focus of attention. And, if you notice, all those songs were from Straight Outta Compton, the only good album the group ever made. Greatest Hits does include all of the high points from that album (the title track is present in a previously unavailable remix), plus a scattershot sampling of raw early singles and the highlights from 100 Miles and Runnin' and Niggaz4Life. It's nice to have the good tracks isolated from the group's latter-day efforts, but Greatest Hits is unnecessary -- all you need is Straight Outta Compton.~ Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine