NOFX – The Greatest Songs Ever Written (By Us)

Reeko, Franco Un-American, Bob, Stickin’ In My Eye, The Idiots Are Taking Over, Thank God It’s Monday, Don’t Call Me White, Kill All The White Men. What do all of these things have in common? Well, they are all classicNOFX songs; and unless you’ve been living under the rock in the bottom of your closet for the past twenty years, you damn well better know who NOFX are. And if you don’t? Well, here’s a chance to get to know them.

In all honesty, what is there to say about NOFX that hasn’t been said before? Fat Mike, Eric, Eric, and El Hefe (along with some other members over the years) have been a leading force in the punk rock community for the past twenty-one years. They’ve released over a dozen albums of melodic punk music along with a few classic ska songs along the way. All of these CDs have one common feature to them: they have some amazing songs and some not-so amazing songs. The Greatest Songs Ever Written (By Us) is a collection of all of those amazing songs. From 1988’s Shut Up Already to 1992’s Bob to 2003’s The Separation Of Skate And Church, they are all on here along with a brand new track called Wore Out The Soles Of My Party Boots.

The album also comes with a twenty-four page booklet chronicling the band’s career. With never before seen pictures, random commentary from Fat Mike, and the worst reviews of their albums they could find, the booklet will entertain any mildly interested fan.

The Greatest Songs Ever Written (By Us) creates a conundrum in my mind. It is a great compilation of some of the best NOFX songs over the past two decades piled together into one CD. If you were a big NOFX fan, then you’ll love this CD; although, if you were a big NOFX fan, you’ll probably already own all of these songs on other CDs. Is it worth the money for the one new track? I doubt it. I’d say just download it. If you never liked NOFX, then why would you even think of looking at a NOFX “best of” collection? In reality, this CD is ideal for people like myself. The people that like NOFX, but don’t know all their back material, only one or two albums. This CD brings together the best songs from one of the most influential bands and throws it into one rock ride, and I hope to see them last yet another twenty-one years.