Before They Became Mild Alt-Rockers

Culled from the half-dozen albums the Buffalo, N.Y. trio made on its way from bar band to arena superstar, the 22 tracks on this collection aren’t presented in chronological order, so you can’t exactly trace the evolution of the Goo Goo Dolls’ sound. Still, singer-guitarist John Rzeznik, bassist Robby Takac and drummer Mike Malinin did a good job selecting songs that represent the history of a group whose contributions to the passive-aggressive alt-rock blueprint prepped audiences for such lesser acts as Matchbox Twenty.

Such buzzing rockers as “Fallin’ Down” show that comparisons to the Replacements and Cheap Trick were once justified, but the band’s punk-metal-folk-rock shoots out tendrils going every which way. Certainly the anthemic neurosis and romantic angst of such tunes as 1993’s “We Are the Normal” and “Two Days in February” (a re-recorded take on the 1991 live original) foreshadow the iconic hit “Iris.” But thrashier moments such as 1987’s “I’m Addicted” and 1995’s “Amigone” underscore a thread of comic sensitivity, presaging stuff like Blink-182 without the potty mouth.

After 74 minutes, the casual listener, not to mention the non-fan, may hear nothing but the limitations of the group’s thrash-’n’-drone music and mild-mannered whining. But if you’re a fan of the Goo Goos, or bands like them, this collection should rock your world.

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Albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good) and four stars (excellent). The albums are already released unless otherwise noted.