Her Greatest Hits: Songs Of Long Ago Review

08/05/2007 6:30 AM, AMG


This album was always sort of a joke among King's serious fans, containing 12 songs drawn from six albums, and liner notes that fail even to acknowledge the existence of Writer, her one pre-Tapestry solo LP. A Natural Woman supplanted it a few years ago, and the addition of two live cuts, "Eventually" and "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" from the Carnegie Hall concert on the 1999 reissue (Ode/Epic/Legacy 65846) doesn't extended the range or depth of the selection sufficiently. On the other hand, the 1999 remastering does improve the listening pleasure inherent in what is here -- the material off of Tapestry, Music, Rhymes & Reasons and others is now very robust, with vivid instrumentation and a close, rich profile of King's voice. The selection of King's work is still only an inch deep, but it's a more rewarding inch. ~ Bruce Eder, All Music Guide