The Very Best of Ugly Kid Joe: As Ugly As It Gets (1998)

Artist: Ugly Kid Joe
Type: Compilation album (Greatest Hits)
Released: 1998
Label: Mercury Records
Genre: Hard rock • Alternative metal • Funk metal
Length: Approx. 70 minutes

The Very Best of Ugly Kid Joe: As Ugly As It Gets is a post-breakup compilation released in 1998, collecting the band’s biggest hits and standout tracks from their early-to-mid 1990s career. It serves as a retrospective of their most commercially successful period (1991–1996).

📦 Cover Art & Design

The compilation continues the band’s long-running visual identity built around their cartoon mascot.

🎨 Design Highlights

😈 Mascot Focus: The “Ugly Kid Joe” character is front and center, exaggerated and chaotic, reinforcing the band’s irreverent brand.
🎸 Loud, Bold Typography:** Bright, aggressive fonts match late-’90s hard rock compilation aesthetics.
🔥 Greatest Hits Energy:** The design feels busier and more intense than earlier albums, visually signaling a “best of” collection packed with their biggest tracks.
🎭 Consistent Branding:** By 1998, the cartoon character had become synonymous with the band — appearing on nearly every major release.

The artwork maintains the comic-book feel that defined their early success while updating it slightly for a late-’90s rock audience.

🎵 Tracklist (Common Edition)

Everything About You
Neighbor
Goddamn Devil
Cats in the Cradle
Busy Bee
Milkman’s Son
N.I.B.
God
Tomorrow’s World
Madman
Panhandlin’ Prince
So Damn Cool
It’s a Lie
Whiplash Liquor

(Track listings may vary slightly by region.)

👥 Core Lineup Featured on Compilation

Whitfield Crane – Lead vocals
Klaus Eichstadt – Guitar
Dave Fortman – Guitar
Cordell Crockett – Bass
Mark Davis – Drums (early era)
Shannon Larkin – Drums (later era)

📈 Commercial Context

Released after the band’s 1997 breakup.
Capitalized on their early-’90s multi-platinum success.
Aimed primarily at fans and collectors wanting a single-disc summary of the band’s biggest hits.

While it did not generate major new chart success, it preserved the band’s legacy during their hiatus.

🎶 Signature Tracks Included

⭐ Everything About You

Their signature sarcastic anthem; a major MTV and radio hit.

⭐ Cats in the Cradle

A heavy rock cover of the Harry Chapin classic that became one of their biggest international hits.

⭐ Milkman’s Son

A heavier mid-’90s track that showed the band’s shift toward alternative metal.

🏆 Legacy & Recognition

Features songs from their 2× Platinum album America’s Least Wanted.
Includes material from the multi-platinum EP As Ugly As They Wanna Be.
Captures one of the most commercially successful EP-to-album transitions in early ’90s rock.

🎤 Fun Facts & Trivia

🤘 The band’s name was originally a parody of glam metal excess, yet they ended up becoming mainstream rock stars.
📀 Their debut EP remains one of the highest-selling EPs in rock history.
🎬 “Everything About You” gained a massive boost from the film Wayne’s World.
🎸 Dave Fortman later became a Grammy-nominated producer.

🤯 Did You Know?

Despite their humorous image, Ugly Kid Joe shared stages with major metal acts like Ozzy Osbourne and Def Leppard.
The band reunited in 2010 and later released new studio albums, reviving their career after more than a decade.