David answers Bob..

When it comes to the Replacements, pop-friendliest does not necessarily mean
best. You would likely want to stay away from the earliest records, they
are pretty punky and kind of ragged. As they evolved, they developed a more
rootsy sound. I would try out any of the following three; Let It Be, Tim,
or Pleased To Meet Me.


I Agree!  "Don't tell a soul" may be the most pop-friendly but it's probably
one of the last to pick up.   Plus, those are the "big 3". 
Well, being a Minneapolis guy and Mat's fan..this is like tossing a hungry
dog a bone

 "Sorry Ma":. Garage punk, but some really fun stuff. Plus is has the first
jaw drop moment from Paul, the  wonderful "Johnny's gonna die".  Not the
disc to start with though.

"Hootenany": retains some of the goofy, adolescent, fun punk...with lyrics
like "red light, red light RUN IT!!!".  However, it shows Westerberg getting
more diverse and serious with a few great tracks "Color Me Impressed" and
"Within your Reach".

"Let it Be":  Ah, what's their best disc? This has been discussed here
before.  I say hands down this is the one (I think as many people on the
list would argue the "Tim" is the one). "Let it be" has many moments of
brilliance: Including "I will dare", "Unsatisfied" (probably my fav mats
tune) and "Answering Machine".  One duff throw away track "Gary's got a
boner" but still a masterpiece to my ears. 

"Tim": Very solid, holds together very well. Great stuff, nearly an equal to
"Let it be" but isn't (IMHO). Probably the second one I'd pick up. They
include a KISS cover.  Buzz-saw guitarist Bob Stinson was kicked out of the
band somewhere after this disc. While they are still very good after "Tim"
the sound was never quite the same.

"Please to meet me". In my book, it has a few songs ("Alex Chilton" and the
should have been a hit: "Can't hardly wait" that are stronger then anything
on "Tim". But it also has some tracks that just are not very good and sound
like the fun is forced...such as "Shooting Dirty Pool" (IMO).  

I already mentioned "Don't tell a soul".  

All Shook Down: has some very nice moments. I believe this was more or less
Paul's first solo disc.

Anyway, like Dave said. All the albums have some gems.  Plus, some have
lyrics that few can pen.

Best, Steve D.