Product Description Import-only collection from the acclaimed singer/songwriter spanning the first 12 years of her successful career and featuring tracks from her first five albums that she recorded for the Elektra label. When Tracy first appeared on the music scene in 1988, her self-titled debut album was heavily influenced by the classic singer/songwriter scene of the '70s and was a refreshing alternative to the over-produced dross that most of the labels were releasing at the time. 16 tracks including her first big hit 'Fast Car' plus other radio hits and great album tracks like 'Crossroads', 'Telling Stories' and 'Give Me One Reason'. Warner. 2001. .co.uk Some albums just can't be bettered. Tracy Chapman's 1988 self-titled debut is one of them. Led by poignant singles "Fast Car", "Baby Can I Hold You Tonight" and "Talkin' Bout a Revolution", its fragile acoustic laments tugged at the heart-strings and established Chapman as a songwriter with a uniquely human touch--selling 10 million copies and picking up three Grammies in the process. As this collection illustrates, such genius sets a difficult precedent. Despite including some truly beautiful songs from her four subsequent albums, the impact of those emotive early singles still dwarfs everything here. "I'm Ready" and "Smoke and Ashes" line up as the best of the rest, but with "Speak The Word", "Wedding Song" and "Open Arms" brimming with tender melodies and sentiments that touch in a way that most songwriters can only dream of, it's a close run thing. "Fast Car" & Co. may be untouchable, but with the quiver in her voice adding a depth of emotion to her words of love, need and hope, these 16 tracks make n salient point: with Tracy Chapman, there is no such thing as an average song. --Dan Gennoe
A**
Very good quality
In as new condition thank you.
J**S
Excellent 👍
Excellent 👍
A**N
Some of the best work of a very special talent
Ever since I first heard her eponymous debut album, I've been in love with Tracy Chapman's work.Her unique vocals manage to sound fragile but warm, positive, hopeful, heartwarming and strong at the same time. It is a voice that draws you in to an extent that I've never experienced before or since: you forget that the world outside of your room exists while listening to her music and it feels like she's in the room performing just for you.But of course every great voice also needs great songs to perform and Tracy Chapman has these in abundance too. Her talents as a songwriter match her outstanding voice; she's a fantastic storyteller on the more personal songs and an equally good social commentator on the politically centred songs, be it the (at the time) changing situation in South Africa or life in the ghettos of the US.When she's singing unaccompanied, it's a spine tingling experience; but the other tracks are just as good, with the clever, sparse use of a huge variety of instruments only adding to the atmosphere she creates.Every track on this collection is excellent and worthy of 5 stars by itself, making this CD an essential purchase. However, that's only part of the story: almost every track on every one of her albums is of the same astonishingly high standard and you really should own them all.
T**C
Fine Album
Tracy Chapman has such a clear and strong voice that it insists that you sit up and listen. I can imagine listening to this in a concert hall somewhere, being totally captivated and taking in the `easy listening songs, thoughtful lyrics and powerful vocals. Yes, she is a bit like Dylan isn't she?She hit the big time back in 1988. An American, her first two albums went to No 1 here in the UK. Most of her chart success was early on in her career. This compilation album got to number 3 here.With 16 tracks at an average time of 4 minutes each, this album is very good value. With her ability to write a song it's staggering that she hasn't had a hit single or album for so very long. As someone has already remarked, her music is timeless.I read the lyrics on `Fast Car' and `Baby Can I Hold You Tonight' and just shake my head in admiration; just wonderful and so, so poignant.Can you believe this - Tracy wrote `Baby Can I Hold you Tonight' when she was just 18! And, this truly brilliant song didn't even make the top 40 here! It was re-released years later... and fared even worse! There are some things in life that are just unexplainable! This song should have made number one?What a shame the album enclosures omit the lyrics? Anyway, this is, as you would expect from a 'best of,' a very accomplished album and very easy to listen to.
S**Y
Beautiful music and down to earth
Absolutely love the cd it’s awesome 🙌
K**M
Tracy Chapman CD
Excellent CD, arrived quickly.
M**R
Great album, (only missing If Not Now, in my opinion)
More than happy.Only one track not so keen on at first listening of album that arrived today. That's track 13. Give Me One Reason. Just not into the offbeat stuff that pushes timing around. Might grow to like it though.The rest of the album is complete music listening brilliance. I think Smoke and Ashes stands out and maybe my favourite track. Lots of classic TC hits here as well as some I have not heard before. Crossroads has this brilliant tom-tom stuff in it at the end of nearly each phrase.Anyway it hasn't got If Not Now from the original TC album. I bought it on Amazon as a 99p MP3 download.Really sad this album doesn't come with AutoRip copy.
A**E
Total
Brilliant thanks
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