Luther Vandross was taken far too early and it was a real tragedy for the world of soul music. Only 54 when he passed almost 10 years ago, Vandross left an legacy that will live on and on for years to come. A singer, songwriter and producer Vandross brought so much to the music industry and left it on a high with his last studio album Dance With My Father. Ahead of the festive season UK fans of the soul legend are getting a new release in the shape of The Greatest Hits.
The Greatest Hits is packed with some of the best songs from Vandross’ career and serves as a reminder of what an incredible talent he was. The album opens with Vandross’ debut single Never Too Much, which sounds as fresh today as it ever did. It certainly starts the album off on the right note and it never fails to get us on our feet and dancing.
The tracklisting is packed with hit after hit including Vandross’ version of the Bacharach classic A House Is Not A Home, the disco-tastic Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now (sadly not with the Spice Girls – we loved that version!), and the gorgeous ballad Here and Now. Highlights include the R&B feel of Your Secret Love and the uptempo Shine.
The only song on the whole collection we don’t really care for is the Beyonce duet The Closer I Get To You. It’s not that it’s a bad song by any means but next to the rest of the songs here it pales in comparison. Sorry Bey! We still love you though.
One omission from the tracklisting is The Best Things In Life Are Free with Janet Jackson. It’s a real shame that track wasn’t included here as it is one of the best songs, and collaborations, he did in his career.
The best moments on the collection are Dance With My Father and Endless Love with Mariah Carey. Dance With My Father has so much emotion attached it to and is such a beautiful song. You can hear every ounce of passion in Vandross’ voice and if it doesn’t bring a tear to your eye then you’ve clearly got a heart of stone. Endless Love, a cover of the Diana Ross and Lionel Richie classic, is in our eyes the definitive version. Vandross’ silky smooth voice complements Carey’s powerful and breathy tones perfectly.
The album closes with the previously unreleased song Love It, Love It originally recorded in the mid 90s around the time of his Never Let Me Go. It’s a nice addition to The Greatest Hits and could easily have been another hit for the soulful singer.
The Greatest Hits is a collection of solid hits and there’s something for everyone. Whether you prefer Luther at his most soulful or on the dancefloor, you get the best of both with this release. It just makes us wish he were still with us so we could hear that incredible voice live just one more time. The Greatest Hits is a perfect retrospective collection that is sure to be on plenty of Christmas lists this festive season.
