Greatest Hit Singles

One of the best-available compilation, bypasses a couple of his later hits, but the result is a more unified sound that helps illustrate why was so important to the development of '70s . Of course, a major part of his legacy consists of the epic-length suites that helped usher into the album age, and that facet of his work is necessarily underrepresented here. But as a concise, easily digestible introduction to ' work, is indispensable. may have been a master of mood and flow when he crafted his albums, but his innovative, slow-building style also lent itself to indulgence. presents just what the title suggests -- the single versions of these songs, which prune away ' excesses and boil his core sound down to the bare essentials. Even if this doesn't capture the full scope of his talents, it still gives a sense of ' genius as an arranger and the groundwork he laid for the love-man archetype. There's only one of his trademark "raps" here, on which is slimmed down to seven minutes. Everything else clocks in under five, which usually involves heavy editing. Oddly, for one of the most accomplished songwriters of the '60s, ' solo hits tended to be covers; only four of the 12 tracks here are originals, and two of those were movie themes. His vision as a solo artist lay more in the elaborate presentation and, often, reimagination of his repertoire. If you want to experience the full-length versions, see 's two volumes of , or buy the original albums. But for a more concentrated dose of at his best, is hard to beat. ~ Steve Huey