After I published my "best of Hanoi solo and rarities" liner notes, I got a fair amount of emails asking me "what about this song?" or "how could you overlook this one, you sod." That third Hanoi mix was light on the solo stuff, since I decided to include the "best of the new" on that collection also. There was a good aspect to that: paring the tracks down left us with the classic solo stuff and no fluff. But there were a lot of worthy songs unaccounted for. I compiled the best onto one more Hanoi "best of solo and rarities" CD.

This was the toughest collection to make because there isn't going to be a fifth. There were a few tough omissions, as well as a few that surprised me. A good mix always pulls a surprise on you as you are finalizing it. At the end of these liner notes, I go into more detail about some of the songs that got left out and why.

The final mix does reflect my greater regard for Michael's solo work over Andy's. Andy has the greater songwriting talent, but I feel that Michael has pushed himself more, taking on a host of collaborators and styles. Ironically, the "rebirth" of Hanoi Rocks has had an altogether different effect: Michael has assumed creative control and stagnated, while Andy has not fully asserted his talent on the collaboration. The results are not all they could be.

Some will object to the inclusion of four songs from Not Fakin' It, Michael's most commercial '80s collection. But I have my reasons (I'll get into those shortly). Going lighter on Not Fakin' It might have diversified the collection, but at the expense of the best material. It's all in good fun as always, so let the debate begin.

(1) "Always Never Again" - It wouldn’t occur to folks to put this song in a "best of" collection, but every mix needs a good lead off, and this is the one. The chorus is a little over the top, but from the first chords, the energy is where we want it to be. From Michael Monroe's most aggressive solo album, Life Gets You Dirty.

(2) "Disappointed in You" - Both of Michael's brilliant performances from the Johnny Thunders tribute album made this mix. Michael does his damndest to channel the Thunders vibe, and has anybody done it better? "Disappointed in You" has the all the characteristics of Michael's best solo work: choppy and soulful guitar, a no-bullshit production sound, and a vigorous vocal performance dripping with attitude.

(3) "Black and White World" - Before I started this mix, I thought for sure that the Fallen Angel's "Amphetamine Blue" would be on it. But as we got down to the wire, it didn't work. "Black and White World," with its more aggressive stance, snuck in instead. Michael's sax work on the track is another bonus.

(4) "Where's the Fire John?" - If there's one song that stands out on this CD as a cut above, it's this one. The musical flow of the song was never totally nailed, but this Michael Monroe rocker from the Peace of Mind album might be his finest lyrical moment. "Where's the Fire John?" mocks the hypocrisy of a world bent on consuming itself without falling into the whiny "walk a mile in my shoes" stuff Michael's lyrics get bogged down in sometimes these days. Evidently his late wife Jude Wilder (who gets a songwriting credit) was a very worthy collaborator - "Where's the Fire John?" is punk protest with a fine guitar hook and sharp lyrics that contrast the convenience of modern technology with the excesses of consumption: "All we need to know/is how we're going to breathe."

(5) "Mind over Matter" - I owe this one to a reader, who indignantly asked me why I hadn't included "Mind over Matter" on my first "best of solo" liner notes. I hadn't given this song enough thought, but when I came back to it, I realized it was indeed worthy. You gotta love the "ghost of Mental Beat" ooohs that kick it off, and it's one of Andy's finest vocal efforts to boot. There's a compelling energy to this performance - a brightness that's not easy to capture in the studio.

(6) "6 Inch Ditch" - Sami Yaffa's band Mad Juana was not one I ever followed closely, but when I was finalizing this mix, I realized I wanted to break up the Michael and Andy show a little more. So I referred back to the fourth CD in Anssi's excellent Hanoi Box set (the fourth CD, Born Again Electric, is all solo tracks). This Mad Juana song jumped out at me, and while it's not necessarily a classic, is has a fierceness to it.

(7) "While You Were Looking at Me" - And now we get to the most "controversial" aspect of this mix: my decision to include four songs from Michael's Not Fakin' It CD. A lot of folks were turned off by Not Fakin' It because it had an '80s "hope this record is a goddamn hit" polish to it. I get the sense that the record has fallen out of favor with Michael as well. But there were some well-crafted pop songs on Not Fakin' It, and while the sound was pretty conventional, the lyrics were anything but typical pop fare, dealing with the problem of individuality in a corrupt and conformist society. A fine example is "While You Were Looking At Me," another Little Steven lyrical collaboration. One of the harder rocking songs on Not Fakin' It, "While You Were Looking At Me" is Michael's classic "don't fuck with me" message, but with lyrics that ring truer twenty years on: "While you were looking at me/airport security died/and the smugglers and the terrorists/just walked right by."

(8) "Smoke Screen" - One of the obvious singles on Not Fakin' It, "Smoke Screen" scores with a perfectly-timed vocal delivery and more smart lyrics. It's one of those songs you wouldn't admit to liking around your friends, but it has a nice rhythm and more sharp words ("The world is fine/if you don't mind a touch of hell from time to time.") "Smoke Screen" is just a good pop song with a lyrical bite and that's enough for me.

(9) "All Night With the Lights On" - Another fine effort from Not Fakin' It, I can't argue this song's lyrical importance, but "All Night With the Lights On" has that seductive feel to it, like you're chilling in the glow of a cool night club, thinking about the one that got away, sensing that the page is about to turn.

(10) "Man With No Eyes" - The Not Fakin' It series ends with "Man With No Eyes." I guess Michael might even wince thinking back to this song and the way it grasps for radio play, but "Man With No Eyes" is another well-constructed pop song. Some people are opposed to pop on principle; I've always felt that there was room on most records for a catchy pop song. The chorus might be a little silly, and I'm glad Michael didn't stick with this poppier style, but in retrospect, there's nothing to apologize for on Not Fakin' It.

(11) "Magic Carpet Ride" - Some fans swear by this quirky B side. I like it but don't consider it an all-time great. "Magic Carpet Ride" is a bit too repetitive to aspire to classic status, but it's got a catchy sway to it. It was recorded during a time when Hanoi could do almost no wrong. Even when the songs were a little light, the spontaneity of the moment often pulled them through. In rock 'n' roll, fun beats perfectionism nine times out of ten. This song is one of the nine.

(12) "Willing to Cross the Ocean" - Most Hanoi fans swear by the magic of Two Steps, Hanoi's last true record and only major studio release. Dave Dickson, a Hanoi fan I respect as much as any, credits Bob Ezrin for bringing out the best in the boys on that record. I agree to a point, but I don't happen to think that Bob always knew best. He did wonders transforming "Quit the High School" into "High School," but he didn't really nail "Don't You Ever Leave Me." The Two Steps version is better than the Saigon Shakes version, but not by much. What Bob missed was Andy's brilliant lead-in solo, which he still plays to this day when Hanoi does the song live. Another example of Ezrin hit-or-miss: "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" was strikingly good - perhaps the best Hanoi moment on vinyl - but "Boiler" was not a good use of space. I guess by using an afterthought like "Boiler," Ezrin was trying to capture the "kitchen sink" vibe of records like Self-Destruction Blues, where some of the best songs, like "Nothing New" and "Problem Child," were probably recorded in one frenzied, half-assed take. But "Boiler" sounded forced and clunky, and with only ten songs on the record, it was a costly inclusion. I felt that way the first time I heard Two Steps, and I felt that way even more after I heard "Willing to Cross the Ocean," an alternate use of the "Boiler" riff on an altogether different tune from the Tracks from a Broken Dream rarities collection. The version of "Willing to Cross the Ocean" on Tracks is a muddy work in progress, but even in that state, you can hear its raw emotional potential. How Ezrin missed that is beyond me. With a more aggressive beat and a lighter mix, "Willing to Cross the Ocean" would have been one of the best songs on Two Steps. Instead, we make do with a listenable version from Tracks. It makes the cut on this mix because of the curiosity factor and "coulda/shoulda" potential.

(13) "Gotta Let it Go" - This is not the most famous rocker from Andy's Building on Tradition collection, but it's the best. "Gotta Let it Go" shows off Andy's knack for a groove, something that came so easily to him during his furiously productive Hanoi period.

(14) "House of Ecstasy" - I almost forgot how much fun the Cherry Bombz were. When "House of Ectasy" came out, my first thought was that Andy still had "it." I fully expected him to find more popular success either through Cherry Bombz or other projects. The Cherry Bombz were not exactly brilliant, but they had that Hanoi Rocks swagger to them. The underlying songs weren't as good, but the rock 'n' roll life buzzed through from the heart of the mix. More than a decade later, "House of Ecstasy" is the Cherry Bombz song that's still standing.

(15) "Same Shit Different Day" - Demolition 23's self-titled record was more of an album of attitude than a collection of standout songs. But as I was finalizing this mix, I was looking for a couple more short, punchy songs and "Same Shit, Different Day" fit the bill. Nothing legendary here, just some vintage Monroe punk with a fun sing along vibe.

(16) "So Alone" - Michael Monroe's second contribution to the Johnny Thunders tribute disc, "So Alone" is as advertised. From the opening riff, Michael is literally channeling Johnny, using a hauntingly spare mix and a powerful vocal delivery to deliver one of his best (and hardest to find) solo efforts. "So Alone" peaks with a burst of sax and guitar, capturing the urgency and despair of being Johnny Thunders in a vanilla world. On this song, one of the most unrepentant people in the world paid homage to another, and the result was a classic.

(17) "Motorvatin'/Fallen Star" - Of all the Hanoi Rocks covers to date, I give the nod to Sebastian Bach's "Motorvatin'/Fallen Star" combo on the rare Bloody Knuckles and Lipstick tribute CD. The two couldn't be more different: "Motorvatin'" is a faithful rendition, whereas "Fallen Star" is a massive departure, replacing the subtlety of Michael's original performance with Bach's operatic histrionics. I'm more partial to the original - Bach may be the better singer, but Michael got much closer to the song's soul. Neither of Bach's covers is life-changing, but his affection for the band shines through, and it's nice to see one of the big '80s guys pay tribute.

(18) "What a Price to Pay" - One of the Suicide Twins' most important songs, "What a Price to Pay" is Andy's disarming tribute to the glory and bitterness of the Hanoi brush with fame. With Nasty and Andy trading lines, "What a Price to Pay" may not be one of the best post-Hanoi songs, but it's surely one of the most memorable.

(19) "Black Sabbath" - One of the great rarities on the Hanoi bootleg circuit is the classic "Black Sabbath" sound check with Razzle on vocals. This track is pure Razzle, and it's a lasting testament to the way he kept the pretentious side of Hanoi in check and kept the band laughing. Moments like this make it easy to see how the band gelled when Razzle came on board and blew apart when he died.

(20) "Don't You Ever Leave Me (Spanish)" - It was a great day when I finally found the "Spanish" version of "Don't You Ever Leave Me." In fact, this rare version is not entirely in Spanish - only the spoken word sections are. But it's the spoken word sections I always thought were clunky and overrated - they sounded more like the blatherings of a drunken fool than a yearning expression of devotion. In Spanish, the same sections have the simple romance they were always intended to have. To me, this is the best version of "Don't You Ever Leave Me" on record, and a fine way to close out the second "best of rarities" CD.

JR's final comments on the fourth disc: As I wrapped up this mix, one of the big surprises was the lack of Demolition 23 songs. At the last minute, "Same Shit, Different Day" snuck in, but it's odd that the solo project I respect most had only two songs make it - one on this disc and "Hammersmith Palais" on the first solo collection. I guess in the end, Demolition 23 is more of a great album than a collection of great singles. "You Crucified Me" almost made it, but it came down to a choice between that and "So Alone," and "So Alone" was the choice.

Other surprises: I came dangerously close to putting some Briard songs on this mix. I considered "Sexy Girl" and "London Town," and even thought about "Let's Play Home," which has a bizarre appeal I've never been able to put a finger on. Andy is pretty well represented anyway - one of my final tweaks was to put "Gotta Let it Go" onto the mix in place of Michael's "Little Troublemaker." That helped to balance the collection, but I still think Michael's Life Gets You Dirty album, which includes the omitted "Troublemaker," is worth owning. It's loud and brash rather than melodic and pretty, but it's a vintage display of Monroe attitude without the "Talk to the Hand" clichés.

I've said it before, but I think it's a shame that the Mike and Andy downplay their solo careers when they play live as Hanoi Rocks now. I'd love to see Andy riffing on "Relationshipwrecked," and it would be great to hear Michael take a crack at Andy's "River of Dreams" or even "House of Ecstasy."
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