There seems to be some controversy regarding this one CD compilation. Some die hard Prince fans are offended that the record label released this one CD greatest hits when there were already two and three CD sets previously released on the market. Whereas I can understand these perspectives, I am choosing to evaluate the music on this compilation.

In spite of this CD not being all that comprehensive, I enjoy many of the songs on it. Little Red Corvette and 1999 are super classics as are the songs from Purple Rain. Well, I am not too crazy about I Would Die For U but the other tunes rule. Kiss is a funky soul number and Sign O The Times is kind of cool. Surprise gems are Cream and the hip hop Get Off. Alphabet Street and Thieves In The Temple are a bit to helter skelter for me.

Anyway, this compilation is for those who want a quick fix on Prince and aren't too interested in exploring him much further. Maybe that was the reason for this release in addition to the record company trying to bilk some more cash. Nonetheless, those fans seeking to explore this very creative artist should probably sample his originally released material or at least explore the other more comprehensive compilation sets out on the market.

The Hits/B Sides covered Prince's last years's on Warner Brothers, but this odd release focuses on 1979-1991 only. The idea is to cover his biggest crossover Pop Top 40 hits. No album cuts and if an album didn't have a Top 40 single (Like Controversy or Dirty Mind) it was skipped. So, while it's missing 4 Top 10's from this period: Batdance, Pop Life, I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man and Delirious, all 4 of those are the least played of Prince's Top 10's. As for the inclusion of the Top 30 Money Don't Matter Tonight, well it's a great song that the compilers must have thought deserved a second chance. But at 73 minutes Warner had time to squeeze in the under 3 minute "Delirious", especially considering that the versions of When Doves Cry and 1999 are the single edits. And that's the rub of this whole set. Using single edits (when they had time for the album length versions), no liner notes, no alternate takes and live cuts to entice the Prince collector and cutting off the whole affair in 1991, when The Hits/B Sides didn't, makes for a compilation that can only be recommended for those who are skeptical of Prince and need a reason to take a chance. Nice cover photos, though. For Prince Newbies Only.

If this is what record companies think are Prince's "best" no wonder why artists are always holding press conferences, demanding more control of their work. No wonder why most music on the radio seems like it was created on an assembly line. Of course, these are all classic songs, but they're not the BEST. For Time-Warner, they have essentially confined Prince's best to what made them the most money and when he was still with the company. (For example, his independently released single "The Most Beautiful Girl In the World" is missing, which was one of his biggest hits ever, a single which reached number 1 even in countries where he never had number 1's before, like Spain. It later appeared on an album released by this company called "The Gold Experience".) What they should have called this is "Some Of Prince's Hit Singles" and not the best of Prince. The best of Prince would probably encompass too many cds to be affordable since he has recorded and released more material than almost anyone. Besides, everyone knows that Prince's "best" is LIVE, where the studio recordings function as a rough blueprint for additional creating and where the songs really come alive and change form. But studio recordings is what this company owns, not live material. (They own the master recordings for all his output with Warner Bros.) This is not a release the artist in question approved of anyway. There have already been two "Hits" cds (sold seperately) released by Warner Bros. which Prince was involved with compiling, as well as a "Hits" 3 cd set which also contains most of his rare b-sides. They have great liner notes written by Alan Leeds, Prince's tour manager from way back, and features material this disc doesn't cover. This is just a quick way for the company to make an extra buck. And the only reason anyone would give it a kinda-sorta favorable review with noncommital critisism is because they have money to make from it when you order it. Don't buy it unless you just like making donations to companies that are in no danger of going out of business any time soon.

This is a nice collection of hits, but there's a few things I didn't like about it. You see--Trust, Dirty Mind, Thunder, Pop Life, Sexy M.F., Nothing Compares 2 U, Batdance, If I Was Your Girlfriend, 7, P Control, Partyman, Controversy, Head, and a slew of others are missing. Now, if this is the very best of Prince, how come some real gems like these are out, while a song as lame as Money Don't Matter 2 Night makes the cut? I'm only a casual Prince fan myself, but even I recognize where a double CD would be needed to cover a twenty-plus year epic career.

I'm hoping that Prince was not involved with this and that he is rolling over in his artistic grave. This collection widdles down the much superior Prince / The Hits / The B Sides from 1993 that Warner Brothers released when Prince was leaving the label in the early 90's. Gone are a few hits (Delirious, Pop Life, I Could Never Take, Batdance - thanks for leaving off Batdance), the R&B hits from his first few albums (Controversy, Dirty Mind, ...), the B-side classics (Erotic City, 17 Days, ...), his versions of songs that became huge hits when covered by others (Nothing Compares 2U, I Feel for you, Do Me Baby, ...).

I can imagine someone defending the omissions by saying that WB wanted to get the very best on one CD. If so, how did "Get Off" and "Money Don't Matter Tonight" make it on the CD? It would have been much better to include some of the songs listed above that demonstrate the creative, influential core of the artist.

This collection is lost in the 1980's. By leaving off the first New Power Generation CD ("7", "Sexy MF", ...), this collection does not even go as far as the 1993 collection. And nothing since 1993 has been included ("The Most Beautiful Girl in the World", "Letitgo", would have been good additions).

I'm already hearing the collection in music stores and on car radios. It's great to hear Prince again, even if a former label is selling out the artist - again - and could have made a much better collection EASILY.