Lee Ann Womack: Greatest Hits CD Track Listing

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Lee Ann Womack Greatest Hits (2004)
Greatest Hits (Hybrid SACD)\n\nOriginally Released May 4, 2004\nHybrid SACD Edition Released August 31, 2004\nDualDisc Edition Released May 3, 2005\n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: Released seven years and four albums after Lee Ann Womack began her career with her eponymous 1997 debut, Greatest Hits chronicles her career to date. The 14-track collection contains all of her biggest hits -- "Never Again, Again," "The Fool," "A Little Past Little Rock," "I'll Think of a Reason Later," "I Hope You Dance," "Ashes by Now" -- along with the Grammy-winning Willie Nelson duet "Mendocino County Line" from his The Great Divide album, and two solid new songs, "The Wrong Girl" and "Time for Me to Go." Although there are couple of minor singles missing -- "Buckaroo," "Why They Call It Falling," "Forever Everyday" -- Greatest Hits nevertheless offers a good summary and introduction to the first part of Womack's career, when she grew to be one of the more popular female mainstream country vocalists of the late '90s/early 2000s. -- Stephen Thomas Erlewine \n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nShe Gets Five Stars For Her Actual Country Songs, March 6, 2005\nReviewer: K. Fontenot "Prairie Cajun" (Southwest Louisiana)\nLee Ann Womack came onto the scene with a couple of great Country albums featuring great singles like "The Fool," "Never Again, Again," and "A Little Past Little Rock." Unfortunately, she became a victim of the greedy Nashville machine that decided to bunch her with popsy stars like Martina McBride, Faith Hill, and Shania Twain. Though I have to admit that Womack remained the most traditional sounding of the bunch, her voice sounds so much better on a honky-tonk tune. \n\nThankfully, Womack has found her way back to real Country on her new album that arrived in February. Let's hope she keeps it Country for good. \n\nIncluding the previously stated songs, other highlights include "Why They Call It Falling," the Rodney Crowell penned "Ashes By Now," and "The Wrong Girl." You'll also find the crossover hit, "I Hope You Dance." It is a really good song, but not Country. Other reviewers harp on how this greatest hits collection came out too early in Womack's career. Since every song on this album that's been previously released is a bonafide hit, I don't see where that argument stands. Womack is very deserving of putting out a greatest hits set, and I'm sure there are more to come, based on the positive reception of her new album. \n\nPick this up if you'd like a retrospective of a great, young career. Trust me, long after Martina McBride, Shania Twain and Faith Hill's stars have burned out, Womack will still be a bright COUNTRY star.\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nI liked her when she was country...., July 8, 2004\nReviewer: A music fan\nThe country songs on here are great. Her first two albums were awesome, traditional, country masterpieces.\nThen, she changed her image with "I Hope You Dance", got rid of the twang and the country, and went for a pop sound and a sleazy, Brittany Spears floozy look. Unfortunately, that song was a big hit. But, fortunately, the follow up didn't sell well at all. Give the Dixie Chicks credit, they restored interest in a more-traditional sound, and nobody was interested in a country singer trying to imitate a pop singer anymore. Maybe LeAnn will go back to country now.\n\nAnyway, she looks like a bona fide psycho on the cover. What happened to that cute, country girl on the first two album covers? She looks like she's about to kill someone on this album cover. Yuck. \n\nBottom line: By the first two Womack albums and save your money on this one.\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nSomething NOT Worth Leaving Behind!, July 1, 2004\nReviewer: HUGO (HOUSTON, TEXAS United States)\nI'm NOT one of the biggest Loretta Lynn Fans around, but, I do admire her as an artist and love some of her work, and in 2004, her career is at an all time high - again! A few years ago, possibly around the times LEE ANN WOMACK's 1st or 2nd album was coasting on the charts and radio play lists, there was a Loretta Lynn interview in a national magazine I had to read, outta curiosity about what the Country Queen was up to in the late 1990's...to make a long story short, the author/article interviewer asked her WHO she thought was the hottest and most promising new/recent C&W artist in her opinion...she named LEE ANN WOMACK as that little girl she admired most for maintaining a sense of traditional country music in her artistry. WOW! God knows we all love Country when it rocks, and Lee Ann's music contained that element and a wonderful sense of C&W balladry within her music. LEE ANN's first three albums were a combined collage of traditional sounding ballads and upbeat numbers that successfully hypnotized, enchanted and drew music lovers into her world of tasteful C&W escapades you could drown and wrap your ears, heart and soul in. While most so called Country artists around her were churning out uninspired pop-rock schlock more related to the classic Lynyrd Skynyrd era of the 1970s, LEE ANN WOMACK was becoming the brilliant bejeweled ruby in Country Music's crown. By her third and masterpiece album, "I HOPE YOU DANCE", Lee Ann had become the most intriguing, watched, anticipated, and listened to Country artist - thank Loretta Lynn for her enthused stamp of approval - achieving Pop-Rock cross over appeal and mesmerizing the Rock music masses! Even Oprah Winfrey had to feature her and her "I HOPE YOU DANCE" song on her widely acknowledged and beloved talk show - an explanation to an inspired Oprah was due! Lee Ann was elevated to a higher level of acceptance by all people of all walks of life. Pop crossover international success must have elated and inspired this uniquely gifted country artist to record her next album, "Something Worth Leaving Behind" in a mostly bland Pop vein. With all the singles spawned from an album these days, GREATEST HITS is an improper testament to LEE ANN WOMACK's initial run of hit singles and hit albums from the first era of her intriguing recordings. Many essential singles and tracks were omitted here, despite good overall representation. Let's all hope and pray that for the next Greatest Hits collection, the next dozen or so singles representing her next three or four albums will represent a return to her exploration of traditional country styles which display a flair and sense of modern sounds in her music to keep it as refreshing as only she has been able to achieve during the past decade while her peers ahve failed. LEE ANN, get back to your roots, Pop-Rock Top 40 needs your traditionalist music to decorate its gloomy and vastly boring landscape.\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nA Nice Summation Of One Of Current Country's Top Artists, May 22, 2004\nReviewer: James E. Bagley\nWith the honky tonk lament "Never Again, Again," Lee Ann Womack and her adenoidal, Partonesque voice arrived on the country charts in early 1997. Follow-up singles on her first two albums, like the uptempo "(Now You See Me) Now You Don't" and "I'll hink Of A Reason Later," as well as the delicate ballads "The Fool" and "A Little Past Little Rock," then solidified her as a favorite of traditional country listeners.\nWomack's third album I Hope You Dance (2000) was far more eclectic. The Rodney Crowell scorcher "Ashes By Now" infused rock and tropical sounds, while "Does My Ring Burn Your Finger" added bluegrass into her repertoire. "Why They Call It Falling" was a sparse, acoustic gem and the optimistic title track struck a chord with the nation and ultimately became a major pop hit. \n\nIn light of the major crossover success of the "I Hope You Dance" single, it is not surprising that Womack's next album Something Worth Leaving Behind (2002) aimed for the masses again, this time with an overly polished and synth-laden sound. But aside from the title track (an "I Hope You Dance" knockoff), it was lacking in hits. "Mendocino County Line" - a Grammy-winning collaboration with Willie Nelson - followed soon after, its harmonious blend overshadowing the song's ambiguous storyline.\n\nGreatest Hits contains all twelve of Womack's top 25 country hits (including the aforementioned singles), plus two new tracks "The Wrong Girl" and "Time For Me To Go" that thankfully return Womack to her traditional roots. While I would have also included the toe-tapping single "Buckaroo" (which peaked just outside the top 25), Greatest Hits serves as a strong summation of Womack's first eight years as an MCA recording artist.\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nA LITTLE PAST NASHVILLE, May 11, 2004\nReviewer: Crabby Apple Mick Lee (INDIANAPOLIS, IN USA) - See all my reviews \nNot counting her Christmas record, Lee Ann Womack has only released four albums. So it is a little curious that we have a "Greatest Hits" collection so early in her recording career. Still, this is a solid, respectable baker's dozen plus one package. The songs are presented in chronological order with fair weight given to her pre-"I Hope You Dance" catalogue. In doing so, we can observe the attempted transformation of a honky tonk Texan into an international diva.\nOthers have lamented Nashville's attempts to take respectable female country artists and transform them into crossover successes. The question always remains that while reaching for the elusive brass ring of multi-catagory success do "our" stars lose their grounding in anything remotely "country"? A common example is Faith Hill's recent work (2002's Cry) where her focus on glamour and torch songs was seen as turning her back on country audiences for the wider success of American pop radio. A more extreme example is Shania Twain's "Up!!!" album in which the listener is given two CDs with the very same songs on each. The difference between the two CDs is that on one Twain's vocal track is backed up by country instrumentation and the other she is backed up by more customary "pop" instrumentation. This only underlined the suspicions of many that much of what has recently been passed off as "country music" is nothing more than "pop" songs with a steel guitar thrown in to make it sound authentic.\n\nLee Ann Womack began her recording career with two excellent country albums. This period is presented here as the first six cuts. This is the Lee Ann Womack I enjoy the most. "A Little Past Little Rock" and "I'll Think Of A Reason Later" are a part of country music at its best with the first expressing romantic sorrow and the second has the singer poking fun at herself. \n\nThis is followed by her more recent catalogue beginning with "I Hope You Dance". "I Hope You Dance" was wildly popular on both the country and pop charts but it marked a change. Gone was the twangy Texan for a smoother, almost "little girl" voice. We also note the presence of heavy orchestration behind Womack. Worst of all is the most "un-country" like indulgence in saccharine sweet preachiness that tries to pass itself off as "older but wiser" wisdom. "Ashes By Now" returns the old Rodney Crowell well; but again Womack's vocal doesn't seem to marry well with the music.\n\n"Something Worth Leaving Behind" attempts another "I Hope You Dance" success but in retrospect was another reach for the proverbial pop music brass ring in which Womack only ends up falling off the horse. Much better is "Does My Ring Burn Your Finger". Here we come to a return to more solid ground as Womack confronts a philandering husband.\n\nWomack does a very nice turn with Willie Nelson in "Mendocino County Line" and the two new songs may signal that Womack is coming back to her real strengths as a country artist. "The Wrong Girl" and "Time For Me To Go" are two little gems that I like better than most of Womack's recent releases.\n\nIn my tastes I am not so much as a "purest" as I am a "realist". By that I mean that historically all the different styles of American music borrow and steal from each other with impunity. I am not bothered by the fact that "rock" influences have been seeping into country music for years. Unlike Alan Jackson, I see nothing wrong with "rockin' the jukebox". But some things work and others do not. Country music does not need its best female stars try to emulate Celine Dion. And all signs indicate that this realization has dawned on Nashville.\n\nThis collection is a good sample of Lee Ann Womack's music. Even with misgivings about her "middle" period, Womack is one of the best female country stars we have. If you are so inclined, you might also pick up her first two albums-of which "Some Things I Know" is an absolute treasure.\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nPretty Solid Throughout, May 5, 2004\nReviewer: Chris S. "cscotts" (atlanta, ga United States) \nOne of the better singers, male or female, to emerge from country music in the last decade, Lee Ann Womack's first compilation justifies her steady climb to the frontranks of the genre, even if she did let herself get slightly derailed by the success of the massive "I Hope You Dance". She produced plenty of strong material before that breakthrough, though, represented here by the set's first six tracks, with special mention going to the flat-out stunning "The Fool"(which I still think ranks right next to "..Dance" as her finest moment) and the cleverly biting "I'll Think Of A Reason Later". While there isn't anything quite as thrilling as the stuff from her first two sets, her later, more pop-oriented material had its' moments(the previusly mentioned derailment referring to the highly maligned crossover attempt SOMETHING WORTH LEAVING BEHIND, probably wisely represented here by only the title track). Of the two new tracks, first single "The Wrong Girl" seems to be an attempt to win back some of the goodwill she lost with that last set--granted, it may have fiddles and pedal steel, but in the hands of producer Byron Gallimore is still more on the pop side of "country-pop", ultimately making one long for the days of those first three albums. Minor complaints aside, this is a more than solid collection.\n\nHalf.com Details \nContributing artists: Aubrey Haynie, Jackie King, Randy Scruggs \n\nAlbum Notes\nPersonnel: Lee Ann Womack; Randy Scruggs, B. James Lowry (acoustic guitar); Pat Buchanan, Brent Mason (electric guitar); Paul Franklin, Rusty Danmyer (steel guitar); Larry Franklin, Aubrey Haynie (fiddle); Steve Nathan, Jimmy Nichols (keyboards); Glenn Worf (bass guitar); Lonnie Wilson, Chad Cromwell (drums); Buddy Miller (background vocals).\n\nProducers include: Mark Wright, Lee Ann Womack, Matt Serletic, Frank Liddell, Byron Gallimore.\n\nRecorded at Ocean Way, Essential Sound Studios, Nashville, Tennessee.\n\nThis is a hybrid Super Audio CD playable on both regular and Super Audio CD players.\n\nRecording information: 1997 - 2004.\n\nTo earn a greatest-hits compilation after only four albums (not counting a Christmas record that's unrepresented here), you have to make one hell of a splash on the music scene. That's exactly what Lee Ann Womack did between 1997 and this disc's '04 release. Hearing this sampler of Womack's albums, the sweet, angelic voice and solid songcraft jump out in equal measure. Perhaps of more historic importance, though, is the context. If Womack had appeared 10 or 15 years earlier, she would have seemed like a foreshadowing of country's pop-friendly future. After years of being inundated by Faith Hill and Shania Twain's disciples, however, Womack's amiable, relatively modest approach seems downright rootsy, with more ache and twang per bar than any Nashville assembly-line kewpie doll has in her entire catalog. From the lovelorn "The Fool" to the lighthearted romp "I'll Think of a Reason Later," GREATEST HITS shows Womack in her best light. YEAR: 2004
This country cd contains 14 tracks and runs 52min 9sec.
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