The third and most adventurous double-disc
Patti LaBelle
compilation released within the several previous years, following 2004's
Philadelphia International
-centric
Anthology
(released through
The Right Stuff
) and 2005's wide-ranging
Gold
(
Hip-O
),
The Essential Patti LaBelle
features a surprising amount of '70s material, a fair portion of which comes from her often overlooked work with the group
LaBelle
(who just happened to be prepping a new album at the time of this set's release). A fifth of the material here comes from the
albums
Moon Shadow
,
Pressure Cookin'
Nightbirds
Phoenix
, and
Chameleon
, and it helps prove that there was much more to them than the proto-disco classic
"Lady Marmalade"
(included here). The set spans nearly four decades, from an alternate version of 1962's
"I Sold My Heart to the Junkman"
(with
the Bluebelles
) through 1997's
Jam & Lewis
-produced
"When You Talk About Love."
There's some previously unreleased material as well, including a
Gamble & Huff
"Mean Ol' Man's World"
and a disco mix of
Released
's
"Release (The Tension)."
Most of the major hits are here, solo and otherwise, including the Black Singles/R&B Top Ten hits
"What Can I Do for You?,"
"If Only You Knew,"
"New Attitude,"
and the
Michael McDonald
duet
"On My Own."
~ Andy Kellman