Customer Reviews

I Am Woman: Essential Helen Reddy Collection

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Helen Reddy was one of the most successful - and talented - female pop singers of the '70s. This 23 track set is easily the best retrospective of her peak recording years, covering 1971 - 1981.

The set leads off with her biggest hit (and signature song), the feminist anthem "I Am Woman" from 1972. This self-penned classic brought Reddy a Grammy for best pop female vocalist and stardom. It was actually her third hit single, and for the rest of the set, this collection goes in chronological order. Her first hit "I Don't Know How To Love Him" from the musical Jesus Christ Superstar was the first hit single from an Andrew Lloyd Webber musical. Other early hits found Reddy championing the songwriting talents of Van Morrison ("Crazy Love") and Kenny Rankin ("Peaceful").

With "Delta Dawn" in 1973, Reddy began a string of hits detailing some colorful female characters, the others being "Ruby Red Dress" and "Angie Baby" (okay Angie was more than colorful, she was outright CREEPY!). Fortunately, these sagas were balanced by some lovely ballads like "You And Me Against The World" and "Emotion." Beginning with "Emotion" in 1975, Reddy's biggest hits for the next couple of years were predominantly ballads, be they tender ("Ain't No Way To Treat A Lady") or bombastic ("Somewhere In The Night," "You're My World"). The more uptempo fare during this time (Leon Russell's "Blue Bird," Carole King's "I Can't Hear You No More") while less successful, certainly have their charm as well. But by 1978, there were no more hits of any kind for Reddy.

Unlike other Reddy collections (such as the fifteen track GREATEST HITS AND MORE) that stick to the hits, this set also includes some of her best album tracks from her peak years. Among those included here are her breezy composition "Think I'll Write A Song" and the dramatic tour de force "The West Wind Circus" (my favorite Reddy performance). There's also some excellent soundtrack contributions: "Candle On The Water" from Disney's Pete's Dragon, her stunning take on the Beatles' "Fool On The Hill" for the documentary All This And World War II, as well as "Never Say Goodbye" from the John Belushi film Continental Divide.

It's a hit-filled set that nicely showcases Reddy's diversity.

This is the most complete Helen Reddy greatest hits collection you are likely to find. All of the well known top ten 70's hits are here, as well as some of her lesser known songs ( which happen to be my personal favorites on the CD). These include songs such as "West Wind Circus", "Emotion", "Bluebird", and "Candle on the Water." For some reason the technical quality of "Fool on the Hill" seems a little below the rest, but I still liked it. This is easy listening in the best sense.

I've been a Helen Reddy fan for many years. As a teenager in the
'70's, I started buying her albums (which I still want ALL of on
CD...how about it, Capitol?) and my 1977 high school graduation gift: two tickets to her concert that week- I was thrilled! If we
could only have one CD, though, this would be it. Helen showed an
amazing ability, along with her producers, to pick great songs to release. My favorite is "You're My World," which she just soars on! I wish there would have been room for "The Last Blues Song," etc., but I'll keep hoping for more on CD. BUY this one!

Finally the collection Helen Reddy always deserved of almost all her notable singles and a few rarities. Much more complete and savvy than Capitol's cursory survey we had to make do with so many years. Helen Reddy was one of the best spotters of hit material in the music biz and one of the best developers of raw material into hit material. With a great voice, a distinctive approach and always on key and assured, she surrounded herself with the best arrangers, musicians, producer and production values, giving Capitol hit after hit after hit after hit. You'll listen to this one over and over.

Throughout the 70s I enjoyed most of Helen Reddy's ever-present work on pop radio. But it was a guilty pleasure because Helen was simply not considered "cool," then or now. Enough guilt, I'm coming out...hear me roar...Helen Reddy is one of the finest pop singers of recent decades. That voice, brassy and bold, soft and soothing, never fails to engage me. Yes, some of the songs (Angie Baby, for example) seem silly and dated, but whatever, it's the singer I'm drawn to. Outstanding tracks on this collection: Peaceful (exquisite), West Wind Circus (classic) and Emotion (high drama). Disappointingly left out: This Masquerade and Gladiola, two minor radio hits meriting inclusion. Helen, I'm in your camp...at last.

This is one of the very few cds I can listen to, continously, without skipping a song. Helen tells numerous sentimental stories and tells thorough and honest testimonials of love, loss, regret, redemption, and aspirations. "Candle on the Water" sure could have fooled me; I would have never known it was a Disney song. "Peaceful" and "Best Friend" have to be two of the most optimistic songs on the list. Helen shows Tanya Tucker up on "Delta Dawn". She evokes the listeners empathy more effectively and demands a profound understanding of Delta. My most favorite song is "Keep on Singing". You would think Helen really grew up in one-room shanty that her daddy tried to make a home. I'm 18 years old and it's amazing I even know who she is, but I think this music would still sound good on the radio today! No one has ever made a point so deliciously crisp or evoked half the things in me that Helen can do with just one song.

Sure, I loved "Angie Baby" when I was a kid. It ranked on my hit parade right up there with "The Night Chicago Died" and "Band On The Run". But until recently I never played my "Greatest Hits" CD all that much. I just kept it because I'm a fan of 70s oldies and thought I should have "Angie Baby", "Delta Dawn" and "I Am Woman" in my collection. I liked all three of those songs but didn't care for the rest. After recently seeing "Pete's Dragon" though, I became enthralled by Reddy's beautiful voice (I didn't care for the film) and pulled out the hits disc for another listen. Surprisingly, the songs that became my favorites were ones that I never cared for before..."You and Me Against the World", "I Don't Know How to Love Him" and the tour de force performance on "Emotion". Her voice is mesmerizing. So I decided to upgrade to this 23 track Razor & Tie collection and am glad I did. First of all, the remastering on this disc is so much better than on the Capitol disc. I never noticed the cymbal during the first verse of "Emotion" before, even though I probably played that track from the Capitol disc a hundred times in the last couple of months. And I also didn't know that the version of "Emotion" on the Capitol disc was a single edit! The track is a minute and a half longer on the Razor & Tie disc. There's a whole 'nother verse! And as much as I love "Emotion", I have to admit that "The West Wind Circus" is close to being my favorite song on this whole disc. It's a great song and an immaculate performance by Reddy. Other reasons to get this disc is for "Crazy Love", "Bluebird", "I Can't Say Goodbye to You", "Think I'll Write a Song", and "More Than You Could Take", all great tracks absent from the earlier compilation. One more bonus is her cover of The Beatles' "The Fool On The Hill" from the 70s concept album "All This & World War II". On the downside, this disc omits "The Happy Girls" and "Make Love to Me". While I'm still having trouble getting into "Leave Me Alone", "Keep On Singing" and "Ain't No Way to Treat a Lady", I guess I have to admit that I'm a fan of Helen Reddy.

I've been a fan of Helen Reddy for years. All of the music I have is on albums. I've been hesitant to buy what I find at the record stores on CD since they usually only cover the most popular of her songs. I am more fond of her lesser known songs such as Crazy Love, You and Me Against the World and Candle on the Water. Unfortunately, my favorite song by Helen Reddy is nowhere to be found. I wish this collection could have included Stella by Starlight. I've been looking for the CD that has these songs on it for some time. This collection is by far the one to do her justice as an artist.

I can't even remember the first time I heard Helen, but I do remember that I had to stay and listen till the song was over. Her singing and acting made "Pete's Dragon" my favorite Disney movie. I have to break out the video every once and a while to hear her singing. I do wish, though, that the final duet she did with Tom Sullivan for the film "If You Could See What I Hear" was included on the CD. Regardless, Helen Reddy is , was, and will always be one of the best. Oh, by the way, she's pretty gorgeous too. Happy 1999, Bob

If you are a Helen Reddy fan, go out and by this CD. It has the best of everything. However, a few songs I wish this CD did include... such as "This Masquerade," "Gladiola," "Music Is My Life," "We'll Sing in the Sunshine," and a very scarse song called "Ready or Not." Here's my dream Helen Reddy CD (chart listing included):


1. I Don't Know How to Love Him (Pop #13)
2. Crazy Love (Pop #51/AC #8)
3. I Am Woman (Pop #1/AC #2)
4. Peaceful (Pop #12/AC #2)
5. Delta Dawn (Pop #1/AC #1)
6. Leave Me Alone (Ruby Red Dress) (Pop #3/AC #1)
7. Keep on Singing (Pop #15/AC #1)
8. You and Me Against the World (Pop #9/AC #1)
9. Angie Baby (Pop #1/AC #1)
10. Emotion (Pop #22/AC #1)
11. Bluebird (Pop #35/AC #5)
12. Ain't No Way to Treat a Lady (Pop #8/AC #1)
13. Somewhere in the Night (Pop #19/AC #2)
14. I Can't Hear You No More (Pop #29/AC #1)
15. Music Is My Life (Pop #29)
16. Gladiola (AC #10)
17. You're My World (Pop #18/AC #5)
18. Candle on the Water (AC #27)
19. We'll Sing in the Sunshine (AC #12)
20. Ready or Not (Pop #73/Club [Disco] Play #1)