Greatest Hits: 1994-2004

Terri Clark | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 27, 2004)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Mercury Nashville
• ASIN: B0002IQICO
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #53,199 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

It's unfortunate that Terri Clark gained her highest chart debut with "Girls Lie Too," a hideously cartoonish song that perpetuates stereotypes about the sexes and, by its success, about country music fans. Clark, a Canadian tomboy in a rakish and attitudinal cowboy hat, has always played on her image as an independent female yearning for a relationship as strong as her personality. That worked well on a number of early songs, especially "Better Things to Do" and on the new "One of the Guys." But clearly she's yearned to expand her subject matter, and in recording songs co-written with Kim Richey, Beth Nielsen Chapman, and Mary Chapin Carpenter (a live version of their "No Fear" appears here), she nurtured the questioning side of her inner singer-songwriter. Clark has never really fit any kind of niche, and one suspects she's now caught between trying to stay alive commercially and satisfying herself as an artist. Greatest Hits is a colorful road map to the first 10 years of her journey, even as she seems to be doubling back on certain stretches of that highway. --Alanna Nash

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Decade of Great Tunes, December 5, 2004

By 

RDS (Michigan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Greatest Hits: 1994-2004 (Audio CD)

Terri Clark's Greatest Hits album is one of the finest greatest hits albums of all time. This compact disk is full of number ones and other hits of Terri Clark's career. Every song on this album is one that everyone will enjoy.
For over a decade Terri Clark has produced excellent country tunes for her fans. The songs on this disk are her finest works with such hits as "Poor, Poor Pitiful Me" and "When Boy Meets Girl". These songs as well as her other hits from before bring back some great memories for her followers.
This disk also comes with some newer songs on it for a wider range of Terri Clark's talent. "Girls Lie Too" which played on country radio prior to the release date of the album became an instant smash hit.
This album is great to listen to when you feel blue. The fast pace songs will surely brighten anyone's day. As well as some fast pace songs there are some slower songs such as "Now That I Found You" which is about finding true love.
Terri Clark's Greatest Hits album is full of songs from 1994 to 2004 which are truly the best of this great artist. This disk is one for the collection. Terri Clark's Greatest Hits disk is highly recommended for any country music fan, especially those who love the work produced by this fine artist.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "Greatest Hits": A Worthy Collection of Clark's Hits, August 5, 2004

By 

Timothy Yap "thy4568" (Sydney, NSW, Australia) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Greatest Hits: 1994-2004 (Audio CD)

Prime Cuts: "If I Were You," "I Just Wanna Be Mad," "A Little Gasoline"

Four time winner of Canadian country music's most prestigious "Entertainer of the Year," returns with a retrospective collection of her biggest hits since her 1995 debut eponymous album to last year's highly successful "Pain to Kill." In order to extract hard earned money from the pockets of diehard fans, it's almost protocol on the part of recording companies to throw in a few new tracks. Here there are two new songs plus a live version of Clark's "Fearless." So, let's start with the new entries: under the production aegis of Bryon Gallimore, current hit "Girls Lie Too" is a rousing in-your-face rocker containing some clever and witty comeback lines in the face of male bravado. Lines such as "size doesn't matter anyway," "we like Hooters for their hot wings," "old grey sweat pants turn us on" are sure to put a smirk on one's face. Normally, not for one who revels in those battle of the sexes type of songs, "Girls Lie Too," though a little feathery in its lyrically content, somehow works.

Continuing the feminist/strong woman theme is the stomping "One of the Guys"-an undulating and perhaps autobiographical tale of a woman who is not afraid to embrace the masculine side of her femininity. Though lyrically triumphant, melodically "One of Those Guys" sounds like one of those upbeat numbers you hear insistently on country radio. Mary Chapin Carpenter and Clark's composition "Fearless" is given a more rousing take than the studio version from Clark's album of the same name. However, "Fearless" bears so much of Carpenter's imprint that Clark almost seems anonymous in the song.

Culled from Clark's 5 previous albums, the rest of the songs here chronicled Clark's celebratory odyssey in the country music industry. What has set Clark apart from her other female peers is that she's a tough talking chick who is also not afraid of wearing her heart on her sleeve. The thumping "Better Things to Do," the funky "When Boy Meets Girl," and the wickedly mischievous "You're Easy on the Eye" showcase Clark's self-assured, unabashed and often strong stance on love and romance. However, when it comes to the plangent side of romance, she's not afraid to admit her vulnerability as in "Every Time I Cry" and on the classy loser-in-love paean "If I Were You." Even when the tempo accelerates on Linda Ronstadt's surging "Poor, Poor Pitiful Me," Clark again never sounded more sincere and vibrant, giving Ronstadt a run for her money. Listen especially to the least commercial sounding but emotionally riveting "A Little Gasoline" for some of Clark's most touching performances.

Though there are a few weaker moments (such as the aforementioned "One of the Guys" and her live version of "Fearless"), this is still noteworthy and highly enjoyable from this Stetson wearer. If you do not have any of Clark's CDs, this is one you may want to indulge as it contains all her hits, including 6 number ones. But if you already have all of her CDs, you may want to take a listen to the newer tracks first, before parting with the mighty dollars.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars female vocalist of the year... eventually., December 6, 2004

By 

Bob McGrath (Sacramento, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Greatest Hits: 1994-2004 (Audio CD)

I don't typically buy albums by female country artists, because for the most part the Nashville machine forces all female country artists to lose their distinctness and sound like everyone else; there is a particular manner in which females are "supposed" to sing, and it's conform or die. Recently, Gretchen Wilson has torn this stereotype asunder with her hard-driving singles, "Redneck Woman" and "Here For the Party." But Terri Clark did it first, she did it better, and she somehow managed to keep it pretty country.

The body of work represented in this collection is impressive. We see the rocking, attitudinal Terri on tracks like "Better Things To Do," "Poor Poor Pitiful Me," "You're Easy On The Eyes," and "I Just Wanna Be Mad." We see the graceful, gentle Terri on tracks like "If I Were You," "Now That I Found You," and "No Fear." She handles both ends of the spectrum with considerable proficiency, though admittedly her most memorable tunes tend to be the up-tempo ones. When she's growling out a rocker, she is at her best... which is very good indeed.

The quality of the songwriting does cut off rather abruptly after "I Just Wanna Be Mad." Tracks 11, 12, and 13 see her settling a little too comfortably into the typical formulaic Nashville stuff, and "No Fear" is not a very strong note to end on: the melody isn't very strong, and Clark's live performance finds her whining out the lyrics, and it's a little grating on the nerves.

The first ten tracks show sufficient promise. If the album had ended after the tenth track, I would have been convinced that Clark was the next big country superstar. The final four tracks affirm that there are still some bugs to be worked out in the system before she's ready for that leap. On the whole, a very enjoyable collection. Keep your eyes on Terri Clark.