Greatest Hits Vol.3: Limited Edition

QUEEN Greatest Hits III (1999 UK 17-track compilation CD album including the bonus track: Thank God Its Christmas picture sleeve)

Despite the fact that Queen effectively ceased to exist way back in 1991 with the tragically premature demise of their peerlessly flamboyant frontman, Freddie Mercury, public interest in the band's awesome musical legacy shows absolutely no sign of abating. This third collection of the astonishingly baroque rockers' singles chart successes is augmented with a contemporarily re-jigged dance mix of their iconic collaboration with David Bowie as well as a choice selection of solo outings. Mercury's kitsch take on 1950's favourite "The Great Pretender" and the heroically operatic "Barcelona" rub shoulders with Brian May's strident "Driven By You" and histrionic "Too Much Love Will Kill You". Greatest Hits III, rather than being a barrel-scraping hotchpotch of leftover odds and sods, collates some of Queen's finest recorded moments; witness "The Show Must Go On" and "These Are The Days Of Our Lives", and ultimately serves to complete the band's perfect sonic circle. --Ian Fortnam

Though at first glance a third Queen hits collection might seem to stretch the bounds of credibility, upon reflection this collection may well be the most revealing and compelling of the lot. Gathered from disparate late-career band and solo projects as well as Freddie Mercury tributes with guest vocalists filling the shoes of the band's late singer (Elton John dramatically on "The Show Must Go On," George Michael playfully over-the-top on "Somebody to Love"), it's a collection that coalesces into a thematically and musically satisfying whole. Though oft criticized for their unapologetic excesses, Queen's brash infusion of rock and blues with operatic drama and scale (deliciously exemplified here by "Barcelona," Mercury's duet with diva Montserrat Caballe) was unique. III isn't so much a collection of hits as a well-paced, lovingly compiled homage to Freddie Mercury and his distinctly arch artistic vision. --Jerry McCulley