Mandy Moore - Best of Mandy Moore (CD)

All Music Guide

Of all the major teenpop stars that ran wild at the turn of the millennium, Mandy Moore was perhaps the least successful, if she's judged merely on terms of chart success. Britney and Christina certainly racked up more hits and headlines than Mandy, and she never had a single as undeniably catchy and irresistible as Jessica Simpson's "I Think I'm In Love" (which Jessica never managed to top after she became a household name, either). So it would seem that The Best of Mandy Moore released in November of 2004, at the end of her contract with Epic would be little bit more than footnote to the teenpop phenomenon of the early 2000s, and that may be true if success is only calculated on those aforementioned charts or cultural impact. So why is The Best of so much more satisfying a listening experience than Britney Spears' Greatest Hits: My Prerogative, released just a few weeks before this collection? Well, part of is due to the fact that Mandy is simply a better singer than Britney. Maybe... she doesn't have quite as much charisma as Spears, but she can carry a tune and her voice doesn't grate over the course of a 14track album, the way that Britney's can. Then, there's the fact that these songs, since they weren't as widelyheard as "Oops...I Did It Again" or "Genie in a Bottle," just sound fresher. And while there are no knockout singles here although her biggest hit "Crush" comes close there's a greater musical variety, and the chronological running order emphasizes that Mandy Moore is growing as a singer and recording artist, getting better with each subsequent album instead of stagnating like many of her peers. As a result, this turns out to be one of the better artifacts of the teenpop boom as an album, it's stronger and more enjoyable than almost any other teenpop record from its time, and by the time it's over, you're curious about where Mandy Moore will go next. [The Best of also includes a bonus DVD, containing all of her music videos, plus selections from her SessionsAOL live performance.] - Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide Read more Less