AMG Review of Favourites and Rarities: The Very Best of Don McLean

Stephen Thomas Erlewine
All Music Guide

Spanning two discs and 42 tracks, Favorites & Rarities really is directed toward diehards, not casual fans looking for a thorough overview. Although all his biggest hits are here, they're surrounded by material that will delight only the dedicated, including alternate versions and no less than 18 previously unreleased tracks. This material, while interesting to the converted (there is a question to just how interesting it actually is, though), makes this a rather tedious listen for anybody that's just looking for "American Pie" and "Vincent," plus a couple other tunes in the same vein. Not an unnecessary compilation, since it's filled with rarities, but not definitive, either.