Misfits is a 1986 compilation album by the American punk rock band Misfits. Officially titled Misfits, but also known as Collection,[1][2]Collection 1,[3] or Collection I,[4][5] the album features twenty songs by the band. The tracks include some of the group's early singles, as well as songs from their 1982 album Walk Among Us, their 1983 album Earth A.D./Wolfs Blood, and the 1985 compilation album Legacy of Brutality, which was curated exclusively by vocalist Glenn Danzig after the band had dissolved in 1983.
Collection I was first released on July 1, 1986 by Plan 9 and Caroline Records, and was followed by Collection II in 1995. Both Collection albums were included in the boxed set The Misfits, which was released in 1996.
In 1995, an agreement regarding the royalties for Misfits releases by Caroline Records was reached, wherein all future royalties would be pro-rated by instrument and track depending on the performer.[8] As a result, Only received a full third of royalties for Collection I; another third was split between guitarists Franché Coma, Doyle, and Bobby Steele, and the remaining third was split between drummers Mr. Jim, Joey Image, Arthur Googy, and Robo.[8]
John Dougan of AllMusic gave Collection I a rating of four out of five stars, writing: "Purists may disagree, but for the benighted, [Collection I] is the best place to start -- a 20-track anthology that gives you the most Misfits for your money. Everything that made the Misfits great is here, including the odd remix, alternate take, and re-edited version."[10] In his book The Complete Misfits Discography, author Robert Michael "Bobb" Cotter wrote that "True Fiends already had about at least a dozen versions of the songs on this compilation, but if you are indeed one, well, you'd have to get it anyway. At least there are some previously-unreleased versions of stuff with better sound quality than if you previously heard it on a boot."[12]
Javier Van Huss, former bass guitarist for the band Eighteen Visions, noted that the album was instrumental in his early "love of the Misfits", stating that "Collection 1 on cassette was the first of Danzig's musical endeavors that I purchased with my own money."[13]
Cotter, Robert Michael "Bobb" (2019). The Complete Misfits Discography: Authorized Releases and Bootlegs, Including Recordings by Danzig, Samhain and the Undead. McFarland. ISBN978-1476675619.