'Greatest Hits' collections can be dodgy affairs at the best of times. Future rehab victims like Westlife and the Backstreet Boys barely release 3 studio albums and they then have the hide to bring out a 'Best Of'. No such dramas for Aussie rockers You Am I. The Cream & The Crock is 15 certified classics from a band that have been doing the retro thing since back when the boys from the Kings of Leon and The Strokes were still in short pants.

Playing by the 'Compilation Rules' of chronological order (for the most part anyway), The Cream & The Crock is a great introduction for those who are unfamiliar with the band (that would be all of you who don't live in Australia). What sets You Am I from many of the 'The' bands is the strong songwriting talents of front man Tim Rogers. The always enigmatic Rogers is a man of the suburbs who can change roles from the broken hearted fool to resident lad at the drop of a hat.

All of the studio albums are represented with the bulk coming from their second and third records. Their sophomore effort Hi Fi Way was a throwback to the late 60s era of the Easybeats and The Who which gained many fans such as Evan Dando. Tight three minute singles such as 'Cathy's Clown' and 'Jewels and Bullets' ensured heavy rotation on alternative radio stations throughout 1995. The follow up Hourly Daily was a love letter to the suburbs and scored many plaudits with the songs 'Soldiers' and 'Good Mornin'.

Other highlights include their early hit 'Berlin Chair' (A song which helped to inspire Daniel Johns to name his band silverchair), 'Heavy Heart' from the #4 Record, and the brilliant 'Damage' from 2001s Dress Me Slowly. The latter becoming their highest selling single ever.

You Am I will continue to make music that is out of step with the times, but at this stage it is time to pull up a bar seat and toast a round to a great career thus far. Here's to many hits to come.