On Flame With Rock and Roll

CBS (now Sony) Special Products' second discount-priced Blue Öyster Cult compilation improves upon its first, (Don't Fear) The Reaper, by including not only that album's title track, which was BÖC's biggest hit, but also "Burnin' for You," and its only other Top 40 entry. The other six tracks are good choices from the catalog, among them "Transmaniacon MC" and "Cities on Flame with Rock & Roll" from the debut album, concert favorite "Godzilla," and BÖC's cover of the MC5's "Kick Out the Jams." Add another half-dozen tracks, and you'd have the ideal one-disc compilation of Blue Öyster Cult, but at eight tracks, what you have is a bare-bones collection that nevertheless is one of the best BÖC greatest-hits albums available. Note that Special Products releases tend to turn up more in discount bins in convenience stores than in record stores, so there's no guarantee you'll be able to find this release. -William Ruhlmann