Ego, Opinion, Art & Commerce

1	Bullet Proof 4:37
2	All Eyes on Me 4:04
3	Amigone 3:14
4	Acoustic #3 2:24
5	Naked 4:05
6	Ain't That Unusual 3:19
7	Burnin' Up 2:32
8	Flat Top 4:29
9	Eyes Wide Open 3:55
10	Fallin' Down 3:13
11	Another Second Time Around 3:00
12	Cuz You're Gone 3:31
13	We Are the Normal 3:36
14	Girl Right Next to Me 3:43
15	Lucky Star 3:07
16	On the Lie 3:16
17	Just the Way You Are 3:14
18	Two Days in February 3:12
19	Laughing 3:42
20	There You Are 3:10
21	Up Yours 1:39
22	I'm Addicted 5:32

Barnes & Noble

While a fair number of people only know the Goo Goo Dolls from the passel of sensitive-guy rock ballads they've lodged at the top of the charts in recent years, the Buffalo-bred trio has actually spent the better part of a decade and a half working out the kinks in its working-class rock tone. This wide-ranging collection, while not a "greatest hits" per se -- the absence of the ubiquitous "Iris" puts the kibosh on that notion -- most certainly qualifies as a "best of," seeing as it touches on the musical high points from the full spectrum of the Goos' evolution. Embryonic thrashers like "I'm Addicted" and "Up Yours" (which date back to the late '80s) reveal a streak of guttersnipe punk attitude that's never quite been washed away, while some of the blue-collar jangle-rockers reflect the influence of kindred spirits the Replacements -- most notably "We Are the Normal," which was co-written by that band's Paul Westerberg). But as the 22-song compilation rolls along, what really comes into focus is the trio's unique balance of soul-baring and house-rocking, which stems from the yin-yang combination of singer/guitarist John Rzeznik (the band's most public face) and bassist/singer Robbie Takac. The confluence of edgier tracks like "Flat Top" and more wistful tunes like "Name" and "Girl Right Next to Me" works because there's seldom an emotional or sonic segregation: Like most good things in life, the Goos' songs are deceptively nuanced but never complicated enough to make you give up trying to get inside. David Sprague

All Music Guide

It's hard to discern what exactly the purpose of Ego, Opinion, Art & Commerce is. It's a compilation, boasting remixes and remastered tracks, but it misses all of the Goo Goo Dolls' biggest hits. So, the best guess for its reason to be is to provide latter-day fans with a basic idea of what the Goos were about before "Iris" and "Name" -- and, if that's the case, its release in 2001 is a little puzzling, since it's been years since they've broken through into the mainstream. In any case, this isn't a bad disc at all, since it does cherry-pick the Goos' albums rather gracefully, balancing almost-hits like "We Are the Normal" with a good selection of album tracks. Still, the audience for this must be pretty small -- not the hardcore fans, since they already have all this, but fans of the early stuff won't need it, nor will the really casual fans, who just want the hits, since they're not here. So, it's for the listener that either wants an overview of the early years -- and it's good at that -- or for the listener that has "Name" and "Iris" and wants to dig deeper, without getting the actual albums. Small audiences in both respects, but for those that belong to that audience, it's a good bet. Stephen Thomas Erlewine