Thin Lizzy already had a fine collection on the market that went a long way toward presenting them as perhaps the best
guitar rock band of the '70s.
Dedication: The Very Best of Thin Lizzy is an 18-track call to arms packed with
Phil Lynott's magical songs, lyrics, and voice as well as the twin guitar gods
Scott Gorham and
Brian Robertson (with a little
Gary Moore here and there).
The Definitive Collection aims to replace it and stumbles just a bit. Just as on
Dedication, all the big hits (
"The Boys Are Back in Town," "Whiskey in the Jar," "Jailbreak"), key album tracks (
"Showdown," "Wild One," "The Cowboy Song"), statements of intent (
"The Rocker"), and moments of
hard rock genius (
"Don't Believe a Word," "Dancing in the Moonlight [It's Caught Me in the Spotlight]") are here. What's different on
The Definitive Collection is the omission of two worthy songs (
"She Knows" and
"Fighting My Way Back") and the replacement of the studio version of
"Rosalie" with an exciting live version from 1978's
Live and Dangerous album that splices in a couple measures of
"Cowgirl's Song" much to the audience's delight. The omissions and changes make this less definitive than
Dedication. A track or two probably could have been added instead. If
Dedication is no longer available though, anyone looking for a fine single-disc collection of
Lizzy's finest moments should turn to
The Definitive Collection first. ~ Tim Sendra