This came out in 1999 – or at least that’s when I got it. Here’s what I said about it back then (with some minor editing):
At first blush, it seems bass-ackward: Months before their upcoming box set, Seattle proto-grungers Alice In Chains are issuing this 15-track set of hits, garnished with a few rarities.
Turns out to be a savvy marketing ploy; rather than pre-empt the box, it will whetted your appetite for it. If you’ve forgotten how good these guys were, but album tracks from Dirt, Jar Of Flies and Facelift will remind you. And the unreleased goodies — a 1989 demo, some live cuts and the brooding, crunchy new track Get Born Again — will pique your curiousity about what other gems the box will hold. Oh, and if you still aren’t sold, here’s something else: You have to buy Nothing Safe to get a special computer key to access some of the box set’s CD-ROM content. Speaking of marketing ploys …
