What started out as a legitimate adjunct of L.A.'s post-punk Paisley Underground (their name was originally the Bangs!) became just another victim of Hollywood's vision of rock & roll as a commodity. The Bangles' talent and potential was formidable, but, alas, their lust for fame was greater. The first album, All Over The Place, got things off to a great start. "Hero Takes A Fall" is everything great pop should be, and the rest of the record - including the definitive take on "Going Down To Liverpool" - is almost as good. The band was already pretty polished, so the prefab Different Light didn't sound like a betrayal; in fact, it sounded pretty cool. "Walk Like An Egyptian" was cute, and I'll never complain about anyone covering Jules Shear ("If She Knew What She Wants"); even the Prince collaboration, "Manic Monday," somehow made sense.

The overall effect of the record, however, somehow robbed the girls of their identity. The anticlimactic final album, Everything, was a chaotic mishmash of styles and hired guns. In the end, the Bangles became a sensation because Susanna Hoffs could make every guy in the room think she was making eyes at him. They had the chops to rock but not the backbone to deliver. They fell so far so fast that I'd either pick up all three albums (gee whiz, look at her eyes!) or settle for the Greatest Hits - it's kind of a wash. Hits has two non-LP tracks, but it gives short shrift to the first album.