by Greg Prato

Back in the early '70s, the New York Dolls were easily the sleaziest and most rockingest bunch of cross-dressers around. And while they never were able to translate it all into commercial success, they left quite an impression on the West Coast. After all, by the mid- to late '80s, the Sunset Strip was crawling with groups that attempted to look and sound like the Dolls. A case in point is Faster Pussycat. With mile-high hair and songs that came straight out of the pages of Hustler magazine, the group seemed like a sure-fire hit for the times. And while they did score a moderate-sized hit or two, they never matched the lofty heights obtained by local rivals Guns N' Roses. At only ten tracks in length, the budget-priced Greatest Hits manages to collect most of the group's best-known tracks. Included are such glam-slam anthems as "Cathouse" (titled after a club that singer Taime Downe and one-time MTV VJ Riki Rachtman briefly co-owned), "Don't Change That Song," "Bathroom Wall," and a power ballad about child abuse, "House of Pain." If you're not an '80s glam aficionado and just want a taster, then this set is all the Faster Pussycat you'll need.