The Velvet Underground

Polydor's Rock Legends collects 15 tracks from proto-punk icons the Velvet Underground, touching on each of the band's four classic albums. A single-disc VU anthology such as this has been attempted before, most notably in 2006 on the 18-track Very Best of the Velvet Underground. Both collections are nearly identical, with the latter winning out simply for sheer volume, but pale in comparison to the reissued versions of the four original studio recordings. Listeners looking to bypass that route and stick with a "one-off" compilation should check out 2005's Chronicles and Gold, both of which rely on two discs to tell their stories. ~ James Christopher Monger, All Music Guide