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Probably the most most soulful voice of the 21st century...i sometimes wonder if we Americans realise how bless and fortunate we are to have a singer of this talent in our lives...really great music....oh so touching.

Anyone who loves the very best in singers will fall in love with this smoldering classic singer who is one of the all time greatest and surprisingly one of the music industries best kept secrets!! This stunning collection is a great place to start for those who want an overview of Miss Crawford's career to date and it is guaranteed to make any true music lover want more!! "You Might Need Somebody" is a great Memphis Soul track that is given a passionate reading by Randy that is beautifully complimented by fiery background singers and this is followed by a haunting masterpiece "Who's Crying Now" that features Joe Sample on keyboards. "Streetlife" features Randy with The Crusaders and this classic was featured in the Burt Reynolds film "Sharkey's Machine". Randy is fiery and passionate in this cooker and this athem gave her a great amount of success and is always a highlight in her live concerts as is her earthy and incredible version of "Knockin' On Heaven's Door" which features Eric Clapton and David Sandborn on the definitive version of this Bob Dylan classic. A gorgeous duet with Lava on the romantic "You" flows into a tropical "Rio De Janeiro Blue" which features Ernie Watts with a glorious Randy vocal. "Give Me The Night" is winning and "Secret Combination" is a sweet soul delight! Haunting and passionate is the masterful "Why" from the classic "Nightline" set and "One Day I'll Fly Away" is another haunting beauty that features The Crusaders. Vocal beauty at it finest on the gorgeous athem "Shine" then to deep soul on a hauntingly beautiful "Rainy Night In Georgia". From the classic "Windsong" set comes the incredible Marvin Hamlish/Carole Bayer Sager "One Hello" that Randy gets inside of and turns inside out!! The Crusaders give Randy another soulful athem from 1980's "Now We May Begin" with "Same Old Story (Same Old Song)" then from Randy's pen comes the beautiful "Almaz" from the brilliant "Abstract Emotions" which is full of wonderous performances. "Tender Falls The Rain" is another beautiful collaboration with The Crusaders but the best is saved for last in this incredible collection!! "Imagine" would have thrilled John Lennon with its depth of emotion and pure vocal beauty that is spellbinding and completely stunning. This incredible performance makes this collection a must and don't miss it while it is available!! This is the ultimate!!! Bravo Randy!! You are a beautiful soul...

Don't get me wrong: I like this album. Rio de Janeiro Blue is the best, but I have to say that I bought it particularly for "Streetlife" which is one of my favourite of all time and what a disappointment it was to find it has been "messed with", "jazzed up". The original song is 100 times better and I've found myself shopping for the real thing on Amazon once again.

Inutile de gloser indéfiniment sur la qualité des films de Quentin Tarantino : beaucoup l'ont déjà fait, et bien mieux que moi... Attardons-nous plutôt sur leurs soundtracks, qui au gré d'une fructueuse filmographie, nous ont permis d'apprécier un réalisateur mélomane aux goûts sûrs et variés, et de découvrir ainsi une flopée d'artistes plus ou moins confidentiels, avec une prédilection évidente pour la frange folk-soul des seventies : quel bonheur d'entendre Minnie Riperton, chanteuse soul dramatiquement oubliée et disparue beaucoup trop tôt à 31 ans, les délicates envolées pop-soul des Delfonics (les Beach Boys noirs !), Stealers Wheel, duo folk-pop anglais qui aurait le talent de Crosby, Stills & Nash mais la reconnaissance médiatique de Nick Drake, ou encore Al Green, dont Let's Stay Together, devenu un des morceaux emblématiques de Pulp Fiction, a été redécouvert par toute une génération grâce au film.
Bref, laissons là ces quelques digressions pour évoquer le cas de Randy Crawford, chanteuse américaine méconnue, présente sur la bande-son de Jackie Brown (Streetlife), et dont le principal tort est d'avoir publié ses disques les plus intéressants dans les années 80, période éminemment trouble pour la soul-music. Même si son meilleur album reste Secret Combination, produit en 1981 par le vieux sorcier Tommy LiPuma en présence d'illustres requins de studio (Toto...), cette compilation retrace assez fidèlement son parcours, et surprend par la variété des styles abordés : impossible de ne pas taper du pied en écoutant un de ses tubes, le funkissime Streetlife, enregistré avec le concours des Crusaders, Rainy Night In Georgia, titre emprunté au soulman blanc Tony Joe White, est un incontestable chef-d'œuvre largement supérieur à l'original, dont les subtils arrangements jazzy confèrent à la chanson un charme laid-back indéniable, You Might Need Somebody, aux savoureux accents Steely Daniens, repris à la virgule près par cette pimbêche de Shola Ama, quelques petites douceurs Quiet Storm (Rio de Janeiro Blue, Secret Combination...), jusqu'à sa version de la vieille scie de George Benson, Give Me The Night, où elle semble accompagnée par Massive Attack...
Si vous arrivez à gratter le clinquant vernis eighty, vous découvrirez ainsi une des plus intéressantes chanteuses de l'époque, pas si éloignée de la langoureuse Sade, et même si sa carrière comporte quelques encombrantes zones d'ombre (au moins un tiers des titres de ce disque sont négligeables, et récemment, elle participait au spectacle Night of the Proms...), cette compilation est un excellent panorama de cette charmante diva soul...

I've always been a Randy Crawford Fan every since "Street Life" with the Crusaders.I have Bought alot of Her Albums&liked different cuts&things but this Collection puts Her into a Better Perspective.I don't think She has always gotten Material to fully Capture Her range&lets be real: A "Street Life" is one of those Once in a Lifetime type of tracks that everything hits all at once.still there is more to Her than that Dynamic Cut&this Set highlights Her&Her Solid Range.