Al Green - More Greatest Hits (CD)

All Music Guide

For its 1995 reissue, the Right Stuff revamped Al Green's Greatest Hits, adding five bonus tracks, four of which were featured on the original Greatest Hits, Vol. 2. As a result, when it came time to reissue Greatest Hits, Vol. 2, the Right Stuff decided to replace it with More Greatest Hits, since they would simply be replicating a good portion of their previous collection. However, More Greatest Hits isn't exactly the perfect supplement to Greatest Hits. Combining minor hits, album tracks, and rarities, the collection doesn't have the cohesiveness of its predecessor. Furthermore, tracks like "Back up Train" (his first charting single, previously available only on the box set), the long version of "Let's Stay Together" (exclusive to this compilation), and 1968's "Guilty" are strong, but are mainly here to bait collectors, while his latter-day duets with Al B. Sure ("As Long As We're Together") and Lyle Lovett ("Funny How Time Slips Away") pale next to "Livin' for You" and "Love and Ha...ppiness," two highlights from Vol. 2 that are curiously missing here. Even with these flaws, More Greatest Hits does contain more than its share of great moments -- no Green collection is complete without "Take Me to the River," "For the Good Times," and "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" -- and in that sense, it acts as a nice supplement to the expanded Greatest Hits. Nevertheless, it doesn't act as a substitute for such classic albums as Call Me and I'm Still in Love With You, which is where anyone digging deeper into Green's catalog should start after they've exhausted Greatest Hits. - Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide Read more Less