Just as the title implies, 1991's
25 Years of Greatness is a career-spanning 32-track compilation covering most of the highlights of
the Wolfe Tones' first quarter of a century. There is the important caveat, however, that like many folk groups,
the Wolfe Tones have recorded many of their most popular songs several times, and this collection tends to favor more recent and/or more arranged versions of the Spartan originals that graced early albums like
Let the People Sing. That's not as much of a problem as it would be with some groups, however, as
the Wolfe Tones have wisely resisted any temptation to "update," "modernize," or otherwise ruin a traditional Irish folk style that has worked for them for so long; even the
Fairport Convention-like electric track of the new "Rock On Rockall" has a bracingly traditional feel to it. This is the
Wolfe Tones set to have if you're having just one, but there's plenty more where this came from. ~ Stewart Mason