Cockney Rejects

Icons of Oi!, the Cockney Rejects took the piss with Greatest Hits, Vol. 3, a live-in-the-studio recording of the band's best to date as of 1981, the year in which it was originally released. Coming off the heels of Greatest Hits, Vol. 1 and Greatest Hits, Vol. 2, two deceptively titled studio albums that surfaced in 1980, the band's third offering reached a respectable number 27 in the U.K. album survey when it appeared in its original form. Versions of chart hits like "Bad Man" and "I'm Not a Fool" differ minimally from their originals, but it's good to hear these anarchy proponents at the top of their professional game. While "Oi, Oi, Oi" -- the song that coined the U.K. movement of the same name -- is still mysteriously absent, this reissue appends two bonus numbers, "Hang 'Em High" and "In the Underworld." Finding the Rejects stomping along with reckless glee in the face of their most ardent fans -- who were present in the studio to provide both moral support and boisterous backing vocals -- Greatest Hits, Vol. 3 is fabulous look at one of punk's most undervalued outfits. ~ John D. Luerssen, All Music Guide