Here in the New York City area, there’s a radio station that plays nothing but acoustic songs for four straight hours on Sunday mornings. Being an avid fan of all things live and acoustic, I love this show. Nowhere else on the dial will you hear unplugged versions of Fuel’s “Hemorrhage” or Poison’s “Unskinny Bop.”

But by far my favorite songs are the rarely heard covers: John Mayer crooning “Message in a Bottle” to an adoring crowd or Linkin Park’s rendition of “Dust in the Wind.” So imagine my delight when I opened the mail one day to find Staind’s 1996-2006: The Singles staring at me with three acoustic covers rounding off an exhaustive collection of greatest hits.

When I originally requested to review this album, I was expecting the usual: a compilation of songs that climbed the charts over the last 10 years. And yes, this album delivers all of the songs that have made me a Staind fan since the beginning: “It’s Been Awhile;” “So Far Away;” “Epiphany;” even the Family Values tour version of “Outside,” featuring Fred Durst, and a live recording of “Everything Changes.”

For me, what makes this album stand out from the others is the last three songs: live acoustic covers of Alice in Chains’ “Nutshell,” Tool’s “Sober” and Pink Floyd’s “Comfortably Numb.” Three awesome songs in their own rite — fraught with dark, mellow, and tortured music and lyrics — now in the apropos hands of a band that has built its legacy on writing songs that emote just that.

This CD is a great way to relive the last 10 years (it’s been 10 years already!) of Staind’s music. I highly recommend it to get you through until the band’s next new album comes along.

Grade: A