Alison Moyet Album: “Singles [US/UK]”

Moyet has one of the best voices of recent years; anyone, not just her loyal fans, can easily see and admit this. The singles captures her voice in full-flower, but occasional weak material make it impossible to give this collection 5 stars.

There are, however, gems all over the place. "Whispering Your Name" has to be, lyrically, the best dance song I have ever heard. "That Ole Devil Called Love" carries her voice into straight-out torch jazz. The Yaz songs are very good (although I might have replaced "Winter Kills" with "Mr. Blue" or "Don't Go") and her redo of old Yaz song "Ode to Boy" is as great in its way as the original. Other strong songs dot the album, especially in the first half ("Ordinary Girl," "Is This Love?" "Love Resurrection," are the best of the rest).

However, the songs from the album 'Hoodoo' are much weaker. "This House" has passionate vocals, but the others don't work at all. "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" didn't need to be remade, and it sounds rather strange here. With the exception of "That Ole Devil..." the other previously unavailable or unreleased songs aren't particularly interesting.

Still, this is a great representation of Moyet's style, songs, and voice, and is probably easier to acquire than finding all the original albums.

In an industry where looks and image often seem to be more important than talent, it is refreshing to know that - just occasionally - somebody comes along with such a great voice that such considerations are set aside. So it was in the eighties that Alison Moyet, a woman with a strong, bluesy voice had a string of hits despite her unflattering looks.

Alison was originally part of the duo Yazoo. Some Yazoo tracks are included here, but by far the best is Only you. This song is not to be confused with the fifties classic originally recorded by the Platters and often covered down the years, but it is equally brilliant. In Britain, it provided Yazoo with a number two hit and was covered by the Flying Pickets, an a capella group that took it to number one a year or two later.

Alison wrote many of her own songs, either alone or with others, but she recorded great covers. The first time ever I saw your face is a song Ewan MacColl, father of Kirsty, wrote about Peggy Seeger, who later became his wife - but most people remember it from Roberta Flack's hit version. Love letters dates from the 1940's, when Dick Haymes wrote and recorded it, but it was revived in the sixties, first by Ketty Lester and then by Elvis, both of whom had massive hits with it. Alison had a British top ten hit with her cover. But the best cover of all is her revival of That ole devil called love, a Billie Holiday classic that gave her a British number two hit.

Of her own songs, my favorites are Nobody's diary, All cried out, Is this love and Wishing you were here, but many of the others are not far behind.

Alison still records occasionally, but this is a fine collection of her most successful years.

Thank God I bought this album! All her hits are there plus some very suprising bonus tracks. The first 2 songs of the album, "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" and "Only You" capture your inner emotions and will lead you to an array of powerful renditions that ranges from chanteuse-type lounge acts to angst-filled rock numbers. A must-have for an Alison Moyet fan.

This CD is fantastic; it is one of those CDs you listen to over and over again. Every song will creep into your heart. It has a nice mixture of soul and blues, some jazz, rock, a little funk and ballads. The tunes are catchy and most of Moyet's best stuff is on here. Highly recommended.

Completely underated and underappreciated, Alison Moyet is of the greatest and most overlooked vocalists of this century. This compilation will satisfy her fans as well as introduce those unfamiliar with her to her unique voice and vocal style. Her remake of "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" is as powerful as Roberta Flack and stronger. Her song, "Invisible" rivals any soul singer from the Motown era. She can out rock Janis on "It Won't Be Long" and out do any pop singer on "Getting Into Something." A bargain buy at any price.