Prelude: The Best of Charlotte Church

Charlotte Church | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 26, 2002)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B00006LFGG
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 2.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (134 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #18,553 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #10 in Music > Classical > Opera & Vocal > Featured Performers, A-Z > C to G

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Need more evidence of the record industry's obsession with youth? Consider that budding Welsh diva Charlotte Church was a ripe, old 16 when this, her first greatest-hits anthology was released. Spanning her first four releases, as well as some outside collaborations and unreleased material, this 18-track collection underscores the soprano's seemingly boundless potential--as well as some potential career obstacles ahead. Her crystalline, still-maturing voice is best showcased on classically oriented works like Andrew Lloyd Webber's "Pie Jesu," Franck's "Panis Angelicus," and her now-ubiquitous rendering of Delibes' "Flower Duet." She also excels on folk traditionals such as "She Moved Through the Fair" and "My Langan Love." But overwrought productions like the already-dated "Dream a Dream" and "Habanera," a faux-flamenco take on Bizet, nearly get the best of her. Still, her promising duet with fellow young phenom Josh Groban on "The Prayer" and her mature, dreamy reading of A Beautiful Mind's "All Love Can Be," as well as strong performances on the previously unreleased "It's the Heart That Matters Most" and "Bridge over Troubled Waters," are ample evidence of her potential for rewarding pop crossover--if she doesn't retire by 21. --Jerry McCulley

Product Description

Japanese edition of the Welsh classical superstar's 2002 compilation includes three bonus tracks, 'Barcarolle (Night Of Stars, & Night Of Love)', 'Summertime', & 'Quis Est Deus'. Sony. --This text refers to an alternate Audio CD edition.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

56 of 64 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars "Greatest Hits"???????, November 26, 2002

By 

Milton Gullickson (Los Angeles, California, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Prelude: The Best of Charlotte Church (Audio CD)

In reviewing the selections on this CD, I noticed only one original work and that was the song, "Just Wave Hello". I am totally amazed that this song would be included herein as it was billed as "The Ford Global Anthem". When people heard it, it simply engendered feelings of the "Rollerball Syndrome" where corporations had control of an Orwellean world, and their anthem was played before the beginning of sporting events. The song was quickly pulled when Ford sales tanked. In any case, to put in a song which was produced to be part of a commercial is, IMHO, to short-change the public.

The remainder of the songs we hear are simply renditions which almost any girl Charlotte's age could have sung. There is nothing special here and certainly nothing which any music lover would consider a hit. If this is the "Best of", then it is best left in the vaults of Sony. When this girl's career is finished, then is the time to see if there is a "Best of" worth offering to the music-listening public.

42 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars More of the same., December 4, 2002

By 

Jana Kalmari (Wheeling, West Virginia, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Prelude: The Best of Charlotte Church (Audio CD)

As others have noted, this CD brings nothing new to the table. The "new" songs have the same problem that Enchantment had and that is that she had lost most of her voice when they were recorded. I am very disappointed that something better than this could not have been released after such a disappointment as Enchantment. But maybe this is as good as she will ever be. If so, she needs to look for new musical genres. The ones included herein are not compatible with her voice any longer.

37 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Negative Reinforcement, December 2, 2002

By 

Dan Wright (Flagstaff Arizona) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Prelude: The Best of Charlotte Church (Audio CD)

In my opinion, Charlotte's label chose a very poor time to release a compilation of her songs from her first 4 albums. There are many faults with the way she sings; not the least of which is the fact she no long can sing with any sort of volume to her voice. While many of her faults can be attributed to age, we do not need to be reminded of this with a re-hash of many of those songs which showcase these faults. Hopefully this CD will be pulled from circulation until she can legitimately present a compilation of professionally-correct sung songs. A "best" compilation fo a 16-year-old is as silly as the book she wrote about her life at the age of 15.