DOKKEN
The Definitive Rock Collection
Rhino Records 2006
www.dokken.net

Read the Jeff Pilson interview

What’s the 4-1-1?
The 80’s rockers get another greatest hits compilation. This one features 30 digitally remastered tracks on a 2-disc set.

Genre
Rock / 80’s Metal / Hard Rock

The Good
The people responsible for what songs made the cut for this compilation did a really good job at hitting almost all of the band’s high points. There’s only 1 or 2 glaring omissions. I’m thankful they didn’t include any material from the horrifically bad Shadowlife album. The album is simply atrocious and the less those songs appear anywhere else, the better for all of us with the ability to hear. The band biography is well done inside the CD booklet. The 2 discs are arranged in order of album release and it gives the listener a good idea of how the band progressed over the course of their career.

George Lynch was a phenomenal guitarist then and remains that way to this day. He really just outclassed most guitarists without even trying. The instrumental “Mr. Scary” is a master class on guitar playing. I like the earliest Dokken albums, but my two favorites from their first incarnation has to be Under Lock and Key and Back For The Attack. Both albums feature some great ballad work (“Alone Again” and “Heaven Sent”) and some highly polished and kick ass rockers (“It’s Not Love”, “So Many Tears”, “Burning Like A Flame”).

The Bad
While the tracks on the disc were chose pretty decently to cover almost every era of Dokken, I was very disappointed they didn’t include any material from the Long Way Home CD. (The song “Long Way Home” was on the Dysfunctional disc.

Though the live version of “Kiss Of Death” was only released on the vinyl version of Beast From The East, the album could’ve used a couple more rare or previously unreleased tracks to make it a little more attractive to Dokken fans that already have this material on a variety of other releases.
I hate the fact they didn’t include the ballad “Slippin’ Away” on this disc. Other than “Alone Again”, it’s the best ballad the band ever wrote.

The Verdict
The compilation isn’t entirely perfect but it does a great job of getting a large portion of the Dokken songbook together in one place for long time fans. It also lets a possible new audience experience and learn about the band, warts and all. In some alternate universe, vocalist Don Dokken and guitarist George Lynch were able to put aside whatever battle of wills was going on between them. All that aside, Dokken is one of the great 80’s metal bands and this collection will prove that to any and all who listen.

Did You Know?
Peter Baltes and Juan Croucier were on bass for Dokken before they landed Jeff Pilson who would be with the band during their 80’s greatness. Baltes is best known now for his work with Accept and Croucier for his work with Ratt.

Rating: out of 5

-- Jay Roberts