As of June 2006, Def Leppard has released 3 compilations: "Vault", "Rock of Ages: The Definitive Collection", and this set, the "Best Of". (If you want to inlcude the hard-to-find "Rock Vault", which includes Vault and a seperate disc of previously released tracks, then it would be 4 compilations). And in my opinion, this one is their best so far, but not by much.

Why? What makes this collection better than "Rock of Ages: The Definitive Collection"?

It's true that both this set and "ROA" have almost the same set of songs, including the usual suspects, like "Photograph", "Bringing On The Heartbreak" and "Pour Some Sugar On Me".

It's the songs that one contains that the other one doesn't, that really makes the difference for me, regardless of the price.

The songs on "Best Of" that are not on "ROA" are:

"Action", "Long, Long Way To Go", "Make Love Like A Man", "Waterloo Sunset"

The songs on "ROA" that are not on "Best Of" are:

"Miss You In A Heartbeat", "Switch 625", "No Matter What", "Mirror, Mirror (In My Eyes)", "Paper Sun"

Also, there are edited versions of "Rocket" and "Pour Some Sugar On Me" on "ROA" as opposed to the album versions that are on "Best Of". But "ROA" has a total of 35 tracks as opposed to "Best Of" which has 34. And "ROA" costs about $10 USD less than "Best Of".

My preference is "Best Of". But, which one should YOU buy? It all depends on which one has the tracks you really want and how much you want to spend? But, hey, you can always buy both, right?

Def Leppard is my favorite band ever. I love pretty much everything these guys do. I loved these guys since I got a copy of 1995's greatest hits "Vault". That 15 song collection was a very good starting point for Leppard fans like myself, but when I finished listening to it, I immediately knew I was missing out on a lot of other great stuff.

Well, now there are two single disc Def Leppard collections out on the market. One is the American release "Rock Of Ages: The Definitive Collection" and the other in is simply titles "Best Of". Now, I only have the American release of this album, which save for a few tracks, the sequencing on disc two and a much better cover, is identical to the import version. Which one should you by? Here's my review.

If you're a beginning Leppard fan, than either of these collections should suit you fine. Either way you slice it, you're going to get all time rock classics like "Pour Some Sugar On Me", "Armageddon It" and "Photograph". You're also going to get a second disc of lesser known gems like "Let It Go", "Die Hard The Hunter" and "Billy's Got A Gun", plus one new song (The Kinks' "Waterloo Sunset" on this version, Badfinger's "No Matter What" on the other.

However, while both are excellent, "Rock Of Ages" has the advantage. Here are a few reasons why:

1)This cd does not include the unedited version of "Bringin' On The Heartbreak" that leads into "Switch 625", and "ROA" does. These two songs belon together. Plain and simple.

2)"ROA" has "Mirror Mirror" and "Miss You In A Heartbeat" on it. These songs are amongst their most underrated work, and they belong on any Lep collection

3) Better cover art! The one on here looks like dull, but "ROA's" screamd Def Leppard!

So in conclusion, this is good, but I'd recommend "Rock Of Ages" instead.

Reworking "Vault" and adding songs from "Slang," "Euphoria," and "X," Def Leppard have created "Best of." This 2 disc set includes songs from every album Def Leppard have made. As such, it's a great career retrospective for a band that is still going strong more than 25 years after forming. Leppard fans from the beginning can welcome this album as it mixes well all the varied songs of their career. New fans can appreciate where Def Leppard came from and where the band is going.

Having the songs in a non-chronological order allows the listener to hear one of the newest, "Now" from "X," right before "Rock Brigade" from the very first Leppard album "On Through the Night." What strikes the listener then is how the band has changed and also how it hasn't changed in the 25 years between those songs. The set also mixes well the real rocking tunes with the signature power ballads. Despite Phil Collen's note in the liner that he really doesn't like ballads, one can argue no hard rock band was better at these than Def Leppard.

The North American release has been held up as the record company wasn't sure "Waterloo Sunset" was a good enough song for a new one on our side of the pond. I must disagree as I find it an awesome version and if released here, it should be a hit. This is a teaser for an album of covers, and if all the songs on that album are as good, I can't wait.

True fans will argue the merits of the song list, but one thing they can't deny, is that this set truly showcases "The Best of" Def Leppard.

I finally got a hold of this the other day and was impressed. New fans will love this, and the boys did a good job of representing the entire career with a solid selection that doesn't lean too heavily on one album or another. The order is a bit odd, perhaps chronological might have worked better, but that's nitpicking.

I'm curious to see how the US version will differ from this one.

As one other reveiwer mentioned though, a box set would truely be the best way to present a career overview. Having the Getcha Rocks Off EP along with remastered albums and a b-sides/covers collection with Ring of Fire, Elected, etc. would be the ultimate for fans and hopefully will come out before too long.

Pros:

- finally some remastered Def Leppard! The older material has been long overdue for some updating and this is a nice taste of what those cds will sound like.

- new song - Waterloo Sunset isn't half bad

- it's nice to see less well known songs like Wasted, Action, and Die Hard the Hunter on this compliation. Many casual fans might not have heard these songs in awhile...

Cons:

- There are always going to be "hits" left off due to cd restrictions, some I'm not going to dwell on that too much, however having Love and Affection, Miss You in a Heartbeat, Ride into the Sun, Me and My Wine, Tonight and Hello America would have been nice.

- The album versions of Pour Some Sugar on Me and especially Rocket might have been a better choice than the single versions.

So, even if you're a hardcore Lep fan, this is a good addition to your collection even if only for the awesome sound quality and the new song. It's still worth picking up. It's also a solid starting point for new fans as well. Buy it, crank it up and pretend like it's 1988 again!

This double disc best of is like having a Def Lep super hits jukebox. Thirty four tracks, rather neatly divided into two discs, packed to the gills and a nifty liner book with band members commenting on the songs (personal favorite, "Slang" was about phone sex!). This twin CD renders the old "Vault" superfluous.

I have no problems with the songs being nonsequentially listed. I don't want a history lesson, I want to rock. By opening the first disc with the still amazing "Pour Some Sugar On Me," you're put on notice that the music is out to party you hearty. What KIND of Leppard party depends on the disc you load into your player.

Disc One seems to lean more to the pop hit sound that was exemplified by "Pyromania" and "Hysteria." It also leans heavily on those titles; since songs from two albums comprise half of CD 1. But you also get "Bringing On The Heartbreak," the power ballad that put "High and Dry" over the top, and their killer cover of Sweet's "Action" from the odds and ends "Retro-Active." The harder rock and less known material comes forth on disc two. "On Through The Night," which was ignored on "Vault," gets two choice cuts on the second CD, and "High and Dry" rates three. Def Leppard's experimental side also shows here, with "Slang" and "Now" from their underrated 90's albums. "Die Hard The Hunter" was probably the closest The Leps ever came to copping to the Zeps, and it is a pleasant surprise to find that song as the closer to the set.

Disc Two is also the source of this collection's sole new song, a rather subdued but still distinctly Def cover of The Kinks' "Waterloo Sunset." The liner notes promise a covers album in 2005, and given their choice of influences (Kinks and Sweet...strange roots, guys!) I am very interested to see how Def Leppard enters middle age.