International Superhits!

Green Day: Billie Joe (vocals, guitar, mandolin, harmonica); Mike Dirt (vocals, Farfisa organ, bass); Tre Cool (accordion, drums, percussion).

Producers: Green Day, Jerry Finn, Rob Cavallo.

Filling in grunge's fading pop appeal, Green Day and peers Offspring and Rancid kicked off a neo-punk revolution in the mid-90s still reverberating seven years later with bands like Blink-182 and Fenix TX. INTERNATIONAL SUPERHITS is a compact overview of the band's career-making major label run starting with 1994's DOOKIE right up to new songs like the rambunctious "Maria" and choppy charm of "Poprocks And Coke" recorded specifically for this compilation.

D.I.Y. to the core, Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirt and Tre Cool clung to K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple Stupid) best exemplified by the straightforward punk of "Jaded". Basic ingredients include punchy guitar chords, undeniable hooks and tight harmonies that can be heard in their breakthrough rant against ennui ("Longview") and equally strident latter-day anthem for the underdog ("Minority"). Armstrong's constantly improving songwriting found him spitting out gems like the infectious "When I Come Around," inadvertent prom theme "Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life)" and brilliant heavy mass "Brain Stew". Although Green Day missed the original wave of late '70s punks like The Clash and The Jam, INTERNATIONAL SUPERHITS! proves this San Francisco pop-punk trio wouldn't have had much trouble fitting in alongside these legendary names.

What the critics say…

Q (11/01, p.137) - 4 out of 5 stars - "…Proves Green Day merely got better at writing songs…"