Foreigner's most lucrative years came during their first four albums, with their guitar-driven arena rock flair settling in nicely with the rest of the late-'70s music scene. Twelve of
Foreigner's 16 Top 40 singles are from a six year span, between 1977 and 1982, which is why
Records makes for such an entertaining collection of the band's early work. With cuts stemming from
Foreigner,
Double Vision,
Head Games, and
4,
Records lines up ten of their first 11 hit singles, somehow leaving out 1979's "Blue Morning, Blue Day." But even with this minor deletion, the album is agreeably brief, and it's the most opportune route in exploring
Foreigner's best material. Both "Cold As Ice" and "Double Vision" are stellar examples of
Lou Gramm's vocal gusto and
Mick Jones' bang-on guitar playing, while favorites like "Urgent" (with
Junior Walker on sax ), "Head Games," and "Feels Like the First Time," with its shiny keyboard segments, are unblemished radio-rock standards. The live cut of "Hot Blooded" is a nice addition as well, as is the band's second-best ballad in "Waiting for a Girl Like You," outdone only by 1984's "I Want to Know What Love Is." While
Records fits the bill as a compact summation of all of
Foreigner's pre-
Agent Provocateur hits, it also makes for one great driving album. ~ Mike DeGagne