On some level, Trisha Yearwood's Greatest Hits could easily have been a double disc, but it's better to be left wanting than overfed. Yearwood ruled the 1990s; she rose to stardom as the queen of contemporary country almost immediately upon release of her self-titled debut in 1991. The evidence is right here: there are three cuts from that set including the still-played, up-tempo pop tune "She's in Love with the Boy," a song that could have, and perhaps was, written to be enhanced by a music video and is a fine template for the blueprint that contemporary country has followed since. It's followed a pair of ballads, "Like We Never Had a Broken Heart," and "The Woman Before Me," both of which resonated big at the time, and still hold up. "Wrong Side of Memphis," off Hearts in Armor, is the quintessential roots country rocker in the new incarnation of the country idiom. Other memorable tracks here include "Xxx's and Ooo's (An American Girl)," which sounds like it's being sung into a mirror. The title cut from Thinkin' About You is here, as is "Believe Me Baby (I Lied)" written by the dynamite songwriting team of Kim Richey and Larry Gottlieb (a team that no longer exists, unfortunately). It's a heartbreak anthem like few others in the last 15 years. The other cut from that set is the title track, "Everybody Knows." These latter two songs, if country "critics" and fans had looked deeper, might have begged questions or personal speculation as to how a singer with a voice as powerful as this one could delivered not one but two burning rock & roll broken-hearted love songs on a single album without being in that position herself.And of course, UMG Nash Vegas couldn't resist two cuts from Songbook, an earlier hits collection with "How Do I Live" from the soundtrack to the film Con Air, which is a complete waste of Yearwood's more than considerable talents as a singer. The song is insipid, and Tony Brown's production feels as if he's trying to get a Whitney Houston or Mariah Carey performance from his star. Thankfully, "Perfect Love" from the same collection fares far better. Brown compresses the hell out of the steel and acoustic guitars to the point where they almost sound tinny they're so big, but her vocal on this acoustic-based rocker more than rescues the instrumental edge. In keeping with the Songbook tradition, there are two new songs here, as well (though they may have been recorded over a decade ago and already in the can since Yearwood is no longer with MCA). There's a gorgeous ballad by Stephanie Davis called "Just a Cup of Coffee," produced by the man who understood her true strength from the jump and guided her first four records: Garth Fundis. It's a natural sounding roots country song with fiddles, piano, acoustic guitars, a shuffling snare and bass drum beat, and Yearwood's throaty, soul deep instrument bringing the real grain in Davis' lyric to the fore. The closer is a new tune written by Kimberly Fox called "Nothin' to Lose," This is pure, road song swagger with burning, bluesy acoustic guitar, hand percussion, snare and hit hat, a standup bass, and a smoking mandolin solo. This is tough, lean and mean, and Yearwood's got the sass in her low and falsetto ranges to make it utterly believable. Indeed, she proves all over the place on this disc that she could sing anything she wanted to: soul, blues, and yeah, rock & roll too. Hopefully she will, now that she's on her own. After all, she did tape a CMT Crossroads with Babyface! Her own independent single, "Heaven, Heartache, and the Power of Love" on Big Machine Records (an independent that also lists her husband, Jack Ingram, Taylor Swift, and a slew of other Nash Vegas rebels) was released on the same day as the MCA hits collection (hmmm...there's something that smells fishy about that).
Babyface, Babyface - A Collection Of His Greatest Hits Full Album Zip
Twenty years ago, a teenaged Tevin Campbell was just coming off the success of his debut album T.E.V.I.N. and readying the release of his next, I'm Ready. Older and wiser than the 14-year-old who'd sang his way into the hearts of pop and R&B fans across the world, Tevin's next album would definitely show the world just how much he'd grown in the less than two years between the two albums' releases. While I'm Ready was full of the balladry that had won him favor with preteen girls everywhere, Tevin also explored a bit of his wild side on the disc with a little help from songwriter of the moment Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds and Prince, who he'd worked with previously on Graffiti Bridge and Tevin's single "Round and Round." With Tevin addressing more...ahem...adult topics and dealings, the collection was not only named I'm Ready, but was a declaration that 16-year-old Tevin was, in fact, ready for the world.CenterAfter the bounce
Though he was only 16, I'm Ready was the coming of age for Tevin Campbell. Dealing with things personal, political and sexual showed that the then-teenager wasn't afraid to take on things that most people would consider beyond his grasp. It's double-platinum success earned him three GRAMMY nominations and also showed that Tevin's was a talent that couldn't be denied. Sadly, I'm Ready was also the pinnacle of Tevin's career. The two studio albums that followed, Back to the World and Tevin Campbell, charted lower and lower and, after the release of his greatest hits compilation, much wasn't heard from Tevin in the music realm. Still, the success of I'm Ready should be a guiding beacon for Tevin, who is rumored to be attempting a return to music with mega-producer Teddy Riley at the helm. I'm sure that whatever Tevin decides to do in his musical future, his adoring fans will be waiting for it and most definitely ready. 2ff7e9595c
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