Cons: Minimal packaging; stupid selection of biased songs; tracks not remastered.
The Bottom Line: Great collection to buy when you have no other way to listen to Tiffany's music. Otherwise, AVOID IT. Spend the seven cents on Amazon and her full albums.
tjhassecrets's Full Review: Greatest Hits by Tiffany (Pop)
Okay, so, tjhassecrets is officially 100% of now burnt out from a horrendous overdose on the purple cocaine that is Prince. After seven albums and finding nothing but scraps, I've decided to switch gears. Maybe I'll go back to Prince and review his eighth record Parade, but for right now I need a bit of a breather. Thus, I present Tales from the Yard Sale, a new idea where I review the crappy forgotten CDs I buy at yard sales. The last time I loaded up in the family truck at eight in the morning, I scored two 45"s, an LP, and nine aptly priced CDs ranging from only 75 cents to two bucks. One of the weirder purchases was Tiffany's Greatest Hits collection; not weird because it's Tiffany-- I'm actually a huge fan; weird because I hate compilations. Usually they never add up to the records they reflect, and they never concentrate on the greatest music the artist has produced. Tiffany's always had great singles, but this mid-90s collection is a poor representation of her career. With collections like this, it's no wonder she's not known for anything outside of what I dub "mall-pop."
Tiffany released her debut at a very young age, and by the time her third LP New Inside was released, she was a has been without a real career. Her millions were gone, and she was the under the thumb of different labels and managers. When you open up this CD, you are treated to a blue CD with a one page booklet that has album credits, a few pictures of Tiffany, and...well, that's it. No lyrics for you! Greatest Hits only reflects her first three records, and it doesn't do a great job of it. Tiffany didn't become a full-fledged songwriter for a few years, so she was known primarily for her voice, which rivaled Debbie Gibson, who didn't have the strongest pop voice, but could write music. The bad girl to Debbie's good girl, I'm unsure why they play up to her cutesier material. The inclusion of It's the Lover (Not the Love) is an odd choice. Not only did the song tank big time, but it's one of her poorer musical exploits, sounding like a ballad that Debbie would touch with a ten-foot pole. On this twelve-tracked disc, only a few can be constituted as hits, and most of them are ballads. Tiffany had some very fun dance tracks like New Inside and Johnny's Got the Inside Moves, but neither are present; however we do get I Saw Him Standing There, her famed Beatles cover that is still a concert staple at her shows. Unfortunately, though, this compilation focuses on ballads and downtempo tracks: All This Time is a stand-out from her second record, as is Feelings of Forever from her debut, which is definitely a favorite of mine, with that epic Bonnie-Tyler-esque feel to it. Can you believe she was a teenager when she belted this out?
There's an abundance of tracks from her second album Hold An Old Friend's Hand, including the fun but ridiculously stupid Radio Romance, one of the only upbeat songs on this collection. It's not a terrible song, but it's a stupid choice when you have a bunch of other more interesting tracks. The speeding production is hollow and flat, a characteristic that ran rampant on her second release. What really annoys me, though, is the horrendous representation from her third record, which is one of my favorite Tiff albums (if not my favorite). Instead, the theme they chose for her Greatest Hits CD was bubblegum pop, rather than focusing on artistic progression or a change in sound. The two songs from that album included are Here In My Heart and Back in the Groove, a ballad and a slowjam that sound directly out of 1987; in all actuality, this record was an early-90s attempt at doing new jack swing. I know people may find it difficult to believe that Tiffany once tried to act like a Fly Girl (as did Ms. Gibson), but there were so many classic cuts on that record that are forgotten. Instead, they choose two of the most boring tracks the girl has ever recorded. On the bottom of the back inlay, it says, "Compiled by Cary E. Mansfield and Andy McKaie." This makes me wonder how the tracklist would have run had TIFFANY chosen the tracklist.
Some of the better choices include her staple 80s-disco I Think We're Alone Now cover (originally by Tommy James), the urgent rock/mall-pop powertrack Danny, and Mr. Mambo, a ridiculously upbeat 80s campfest originally released on an EP in the eighties. The Casio-keyboard production sounds like something directly from Super Mario Kart for the Super Nintendo; Tiffany sounds great, but this song is just all too ridiculous to take seriously: "Like, it was Mardis Gras Night at the mall, and EVERYONE was there!..." I'm sorry, but I just has to label this song as "L O L." The middle break features a spoken interlude in the voice of a Valley Girl. Considering how there's nobody listed under the credits as a singer outside of Tiffany, I have to assume it's her...and it's absolutely ridiculous, though all too campy to hate. And it's impossible to ignore. This song was paired with Can't Stop a Heartbeat, a song that sounds exactly like Don Henley's Boys of Summer...yeah this song is not included either.
JUDGING There were so many classic Tiffany tracks before this compilation was released-- I mean, her forth LP isn't even represented at all. Musically, there are some great tracks on here, but it's a little biased towards her second release for some reason. If you're someone who has discovered the joy of downloading (/bootlegging), and you only buy CDs to get your music...you're going to be missing out on some classic Tiffany tracks by purchasing this compilation. Was it worth the 75 cents? I guess. But I've also seen this one going for a full retail price of 13.99. Seriously? Poor representation at BEST.
01. I Think We're Alone Now [5 Stars] 02. Danny [5 Stars] 03. All This Time [5 Stars] 04. It's the Lover (Not the Love) [1.5 Stars] 05. I Saw Him Standing There [3 Stars] 06. Hold An Old Friend's Hand [5 Stars] 07. Radio Romance [3 Stars] 08. Feelings of Forever [5 Stars] 09. Back in the Groove [1 Star] 10. Mr. Mambo [4 Stars] 11. Here In My Heart [1 Star] 12. Could've Been [1 Star]
OVERALL SCORE: 3 STARS (3.3-)
OTHER TIFFANY REVIEWS: 1987 - Tiffany 1996 - Greatest Hits
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