The Singles Collection, Volume 1 is a collection of non-album tracks by Dropkick Murphys. It is the American version of The Early Years which was released in Europe, although with some track changes. This album contains everything the band recorded before their first album, Do or Die, except for the Boys on the DocksEP and compilation tracks from I've Got My Friends and Runt of the Litter Volume 2, as well as exclusive live tracks.
The album includes six covers: The Clash's "Career Opportunities", "Guns of Brixton" and "White Riot"; The Pogues' "Billy Bones"; and Slapshot's "I've Had Enough" are standalone tracks, while the band also covers AC/DC's "T.N.T." during the song "Skinhead on the MBTA (Live)."