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78 of 83 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Best of the woman who played God, November 15, 2005
Finally, Alanis Morissette's best songs are available all together in one convenient place. This heavenly collection from the woman who played God in the movie "Dogma" covers the period 1995 to 2005, with nineteen of her "impossible to sing along to" songs that we've come to love.
From the incredible album "Jagged Little Pill" (1995):
Head Over Feet; You Learn; You Oughta Know; Hand in My Pocket; Ironic
From "Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie" (1998):
Thank You; That I Would Be Good
From "Under Rug Swept" and "Feast On Scraps" (both 2002):
Hands Clean; So Unsexy; Simple Together; Sister Blister
From "So Called Chaos" (2004):
Eight Easy Steps; Everything
And those are not all - you also get "Princes Familiar" from her "MTV Unplugged" album; a cover of the Seal song "Crazy"; "Mercy" from "Prayer Circle"; "Still" from "Dogma; the haunting "Uninvited" from "City of Angels", and "Let's Do It" from "De-Lovely".
A must-have album for any fan of the often controversial, extremely talented, and sometimes foul-mouthed Canadian-American singer/songwriter/actress.
Amanda Richards, November 15, 2005.
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28 of 31 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Disjointed But Ultimately Satisfying Retrospective, December 31, 2005
The career of Alanis Morissette has been long and winding, despite the fact that the average music fan cannot see past her 1995 breakthrough "Jagged Little Pill," the best-selling album ever by a female artist. Now, it is finally catalogued on "The Collection," a disc that spans the last decade of the Canadian singer/songwriter's music.
Those of the opinion that a hit package from Morissette would essentially be a repackaging of Jagged Little Pill have a point; she has released only a handful of hit singles since that juggernaut. Nevertheless, in paving the road that subsequently ensued she released records that were true to herself and did not cash in on her initial success as an "angry" young singer/songwriter. The result has yielded her a rabid fanbase and music that has affected many listeners in a positive way, which is hardly something to look down at.
Nevertheless, "The Collection" is a rather iffy collection that comes off sounding disjointed when it comes to summarizing the Morissette's last decade. Right off the bat, anyone who has even a minimal knowledge of her career will see that some notable singles are missing such as "All I Really Want," the swashbuckling "So Pure" from 1998's "Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie" and "Precious Illusions," a sharp radio-ready single that reached the Adult Top 40 in summer 2002 but ultimately went over everyone's heads. Also, two "personal favorites" she chose for the collection, 1999's unplugged performance of "Princes Familiar" and 2002's excruciatingly sad "Simple Together," sound completely out of their element on a retrospective. Perhaps a better idea would have been a "Hits" and "Misses" pair of releases a la fellow Canadian songstress Joni Mitchell. Still, her unforgettable staples such as "Thank U" and "Ironic" are dutifully included and have not lost their power with the passage of time.
Especially of interest are tracks making their debut on a proper Morissette record. One such is "Mercy," a selection from Jonathan Elias' 1999 project "The Prayer Cycle," an album of swirling, devotional vocals in multiple languages that featured recording artists such as James Taylor and Linda Ronstadt. Morissette sings in Hungarian (her mother's native tongue) on the track alongside the vocals of famed Qawwli artist Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, who passed away immediately before she was asked to join the project. The result is something as spine tingling as it as sophisticated. Included also is her zesty take on Cole Porter's "Let's Do It (Let's Fall In Love)" from the "De-Lovely" soundtrack. Morissette played a bit part in the 2004 film that told the life story of the late tunesmith.
There's also "Uninvited," a fan favorite that Morissette wrote for the soundtrack to 1998's "City of Angels" where she sings not only from the perspective of the main character but also her own in the face of overwhelming fame in "Jagged Little Pill"'s wake. An even stronger inclusion, however, is "Still," which Morissette wrote for 1999's "Dogma" soundtrack. In the film she played the small but crucial role of God, and thus chose to write the song from His perspective.
"I see you altering history/I see you abusing the land/I see you and your selective amnesia/And I love you still."
The biggest slice of ear candy on the disc, however, comes in the form of her take on "Crazy," Seal's classic 1991 hit. A song with a catchy groove and powerful lyrics, it is easy to see why it is one of Morissette's favorite songs.
"Crazy yellow people walking through my head/One of them's got a gun, shoots the other one/And yet together they were friends at school/But we're never gonna survive/Unless we get a little crazy."
The scarce but desirable limited edition of "The Collection" contains improved artwork and a loaded DVD with an hour-long documentary, photographs, overviews of past tour itineraries and three bonus performances including an unreleased track from the mid-90's entitled "King of Intimidation."
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Superb Canadian Talent Compiled!, February 7, 2006
I've followed Alanis Morissette since her first 2 commercially released albums "Alanis" in '91 and "Now is the time" in '92. I've always loved her voice and expected a come-back since the "NITT" CD...but she took a 3-year break and came back with a new image, voice and talent with "Jagged Little Pill" in '95. Since then, she's pumped out song after song, singing & voicing her own opinions, musically. I'm proud to live in a Country where we can have fantastic talent such as Alanis Morissette. Some really talented artists come from Ottawa, Canada...and I'm mighty proud to play their music. Alanis Rocks!
"The Collection" brings out Alanis' best, although, there are some songs which could've been included. There will always be compilations which don't have all the goodies of an artist on it. Forget about what this CD doesn't have and think about its good points...which are countless. The photos are lovely and the tracklist is pleasing to the ears. For one reason, Alanis' selection of songs puts the listener on a musical roller-coaster of emotions, whether it's a dark song or something really fast & happy.
My all-time favorite track has to be "Uninvited". For one, because it wasn't released on an album. Two, I like it because of the drama & the way Alanis' voice goes so well with the arrangements...starting with the organ & piano. Really nice! "Crazy" is a fine song & excellent choice for Alanis. I didn't think she would choose this song for her compilation...perhaps because I never heard it until playing this CD. The only Alanis albums I've got are her first 3 + the unofficial biography & fully-illustrated book. "Crazy" is right up there with Seal's version...and I like Alanis' version better. More emotion is put into it.
The first time I've heard "Let's do it (let's fall in love)"...I heard it sung by Eartha Kitt. Strange mix (eartha kitt & alanis morissette...huh?) Well, a true music lover will try anything once. I can't say I hate Eartha Kitt, but her music isn't anything near Alanis'. Alanis has given new life to "Let's do it..." and it's refreshing to find such a track on "The Collection".
Thank you, for not removing the F word from "You Oughta Know". Without it, the song doesn't have much meaning...'cos everyone's left waiting for her to say it, right? All the other tracks are fine & fit the tracklist well.
Tracklist:
01- Thank You
02- Head over feet
03- 8 easy steps
04- Everything
05- Crazy
06- Ironic
07- Princess Familiar (MTV Unplugged)
08- You learn
09- Simple together
10- You Oughta know
11- That I would be good
12- Sister Blister
13- Hands clean
14- Mercy (from the prayer cycle)
15- Still (from the dogma soundtrack)
16- Uninvited (from the city of angels soundtrack)
17- Let's do it (let's fall in love ) - from the de-lovely soundtrack
18- Hand in my pocket
Album Info:
- FBI Anti-Piracy Warning
- alanis.com
- maverick.com/alanis
- Distributed by Warner Bros Records Inc.
- Maverick Recording Company
- Full Song Credits in booklet
- Full Lyrics for each of the 18 tracks in booklet
- Small personal note from Alanis on inner front of booklet
- Additional info (legal & production) inside booklet
- Disc is purple with song titles written in pale purple & black
- Standard Jewel case packaging
I love all the songs & the recording quality is amazing. Alanis didn't leave anything out when she released this fine collection of her personal best. Thanks Alanis! You rock!!!
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