Album · Compilation · 25 years old this year
The Very Best of Testament
The Very Best of Testament is a compilation from the Bay Area thrash band, released on 4 September 2001 through Atlantic. It draws on their years with that label, the same ground covered by two earlier collections, The Best of Testament and Signs of Chaos. Souls of Black is the one album from that stretch that goes unrepresented here.
The extra draw for fans is a live version of "Over the Wall", taken from the Return to the Apocalyptic City EP. It makes a handy, compact way into the band's Atlantic period, which began with The Legacy in 1987 and ran through to the end of the 1990s, and it sits alongside First Strike Still Deadly, the studio album that arrived in the same year.
The Very Best of Testament: tracklist and credits
15 tracks · 1:11:03Tracklist
- 1The HauntingPeterson, Skolnick, Souza4:17
- 2Burnt OfferingsPeterson, Skolnick, Souza5:08
- 3First Strike Is DeadlyPeterson, Skolnick, Christian, Souza3:44
- 4The New OrderEric Peterson and Alex Skolnick4:28
- 5Into the PitPeterson, Skolnick, Billy2:47
- 6Disciples of the WatchPeterson, Skolnick, Billy5:07
- 7Practice What You PreachTestament, Billy, Peterson, Skolnick4:57
- 8Greenhouse EffectTestament and Alex Skolnick4:55
- 9Signs of ChaosAlex Skolnick0:30
- 10Electric CrownPeterson, Skolnick, Billy5:30
- 11So Many LiesPeterson, Skolnick, Billy, James6:06
- 12The RitualPeterson, Skolnick, Billy, James7:29
- 13Return to SerenityPeterson, Billy, James6:31
- 14Over the Wall (Live)Christian, Peterson, Skolnick, Souza5:29
- 15Dog Faced GodsPeterson, Billy, James4:03
- Produced by
- Alex Perialas, David Pigg, Roy Rowland, Tony Platt, Michael Rosen, Testament, Garth Richardson
- Executive producer
- Jon Zazula, Marsha Zazula
- Recorded at
- Pyramid Sound Recording Studios, Fantasy Studios, One on One Studios, Hollywood Palladium, A&M Recording Studios, Studio D Recording
- Recorded
- 1986–1994
- Mixed by
- Alex Perialas, Nigel Green, Michael Rosen, Testament, Michael Wagener
- Mixed at
- Pyramid Sound Recording Studios, Fantasy Studios, Battery Studios, Scream Studios
- Engineered by
- Alex Perialas, Tony Platt, Bill Kennedy
- Artwork
- Bob Defrin
- Labels
- Atlantic, Rhino
- Length
- 1:11:03
Line-up
- Greg Christian · bass, bass guitar, electric bass guitar
- Louie Clemente · drums (drum set)
- Eric Peterson · guitar, electric guitar, background vocals
- Alex Skolnick · guitar
- Chuck Billy · lead vocals
- Elliot “Gino” Cahn · vocals · guest
- Bodgan Jablonski · vocals · guest
- Willy Langs · vocals · guest
- Mark Walters · vocals · guest
- James Murphy · electric guitar · guest
- John Tempesta · drums (drum set) · guest
From MusicBrainz and Wikipedia. Only what the sources record is shown.
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Released the same week
Also released on 4 September
Every year →
More from Testament
Full discography →
The Legacy
1987
Trial by Fire
1988
The New Order
1988
Practice What You Preach
1989
Souls of Black
1990
The Ritual
1992
Return to the Apocalyptic City
1993
Low
1994
Live at the Fillmore
1995
The Best of Testament
1996
Demonic
1997
Signs of Chaos: The Best of Testament
1997
The Gathering
1999
First Strike Still Deadly
2001
Days of Darkness
2004
Live in London
2005
The Spitfire Collection
2007
The Formation of Damnation
2008
Live at Eindhoven ’87
2009
Dark Roots of Earth
2012
Dark Roots of Thrash
2013
Brotherhood of the Snake
2016
Titans of Creation
2020
Para Bellum
2025
The best of 2001
All of 2001 →
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Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia + musicbrainz
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 4 September 2001 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 4 September 2001 | |
| Wikidata | 2001 | |
| US release | 2001 | earliest US date |
| UK / Europe release | 4 September 2001 | earliest UK or European date |
5 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | XW | Rhino Atlantic | 081227435967 | other |
| 2001 | CA | Atlantic | 777497514876 | other |
| 2001 | US | Atlantic | 081227435929 | other |
| 4 September 2001 | XE | Atlantic | 081227435929 | original |
| 2015 | JP | — | other |
Cover art sources
deezer · native: native 1800x1800
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| deezer ✓ | 1800×1800 | native: native 1800x1800 |
| coverartarchive | 1203×1200 | upscaled |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |