The Best of Roger Daltrey - Roger Daltrey

An 11-song collection drawn in its entirety from the first seven years of Roger Daltrey's solo career, and a sad indictment of just how unimaginative those years had been. Remove the two cuts from his debut Daltrey ("It's a Hard Life" and "Giving It All Away,") and too much of the album -- like the career it condenses -- is simply unimaginative hard rock-by-numbers, reliant solely on Daltrey's ever-powerful voice for its impact. He does a fair job of Murray Head's "Say It Ain't So, Joe," and "Oceans Away" peels off Ride a Rock Horse to remind us of one of that album's rare highlights. But songs like "Avenging Annie" and "Martyrs and Madmen" are as drab as their titles and if you really want to hear the "best-of" Roger Daltrey, then buy yourself a Who compilation. ~ Dave Thompson, All Music Guide