Janet Jackson Album: “Number Ones”

34 tracks on 2 discs remastered to perfection. I have fallen in love with Janet's music all over again.

PROS

1. Excellent Remasters of all her classic hits!

- "That's the Way Love Goes" sounds brilliant.

- "When I Think of You" never sounded better.

2. This is truly an almost all encompassing and comprehensive collection of Janet's career spanning hits, including duets she has done through the years! (Diamonds,Best Things In Life,etc)

3. New track - Make Me (Produced by Darkchild/Rodney Jenkins) Disco House/Pop Janet is Back. This song is a major stand-out.

CONS

1. I am not a fan of some of the versions chosen to be on this collection. The one that is really glaring is the hip hop sounding version of "Best Things In Life Are Free" Would have much preferred the more popular radio version which was also used in the music video over the one chosen to be on this hits set.

2. Album cover = Thought Janet's smile is a classic visual and just about everyone knows her and that beautiful smile, I think a more iconic image should have been used, either from the past or a new pic shot just for this album cover.

As you can see, we are short on cons here and the fact that you have amazing remastered tracks trumps any of the negatives I have mentioned. A&M and Janet's team have really done a spectacular job on making this a very neat and concise collection. There was another remastered comprehensive greatest hits that came out just a couple months ago from another artist (whose name I wont mention but that I absolutely love) which was disastrous in such a number of ways (production, remaster, artwork) and offensive to her and her fans that I really have to appreciate this strong release from Janet.

This is a real must-have for anyone who grew up in the 80's, 90's and today with Janet's great sounds!

When I think of JANET and her music...it puts a smile on my face and a steady groove in my heartbeat.I too have all Janets albums and have been a FAN for over 28 years now...yeah from junior high,high school,college and the real world..lol.I guess you can say that JANET'S music has been the soundtrack of my life...(Janet & Madonna) All the songs on here are REMASTERED FLAWLESSLY..!!!I agree it would be nice to have some the B-Sides but if you're already a huge fan then you already have them :-)..Janet is an AMAZING and very HUMBLE WOMAN that sparks creativity and motivation.I will continue to be a loyal FAN. This album is a MUST have!!!

Long overdue, "Number Ones" is Janet Jackson's first greatest hits album since "Design of a Decade 1986/1996", which was released in 1995. Record label politics made me wonder if a comprehensive collection of Janet Jackson's greatest hits would--or could--ever be released. (Janet originally signed with A&M, then moved to Virgin for the "janet." album, and then to Def Jam for 2008's "Discipline".) But comprehensive is what exactly what we've got here with "Number Ones", which is a worthy look back at one of the most successful recording artists of all-time.

The album, which is in chronological order, begins with "What Have You Done For Me Lately" from the 1986 album, "Control". While Janet had had already released "Janet Jackson" and "Dream Street", it was "Control" that established Jackson as a superstar, propelled to that level by hit makers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. After that the hits kept coming with albums including the socially conscious "Rhythm Nation 1814", "janet.", the album that explored Jackson's sexuality, "The Velvet Rope", which Janet recorded during a bout with depression, and "All For You", which explored her fun side. It's amazing just how fresh these songs still sound. This is helped All of the songs from these albums have been digitally remastered to a very high standard. Songs like "Rhythm Nation" have never sounded better. Everyone has their own opinion as to why Janet's last three albums, "Damita Jo", "20 Y.O." and "Discipline" have not been received as warmly by the public, but all three spawned number ones and are of course are included here.

I appreciated the fact that Janet's number one collaborations with other artists, including "Diamonds" with Herb Alpert, "The Best Things In Life Are Free" with Luther Vandross, "Scream" with her brother Michael, and "What's It Gonna Be?" with Busta Rhymes are included here. This is an extra incentive to purchase "Number Ones" since none of these singles have appeared on any of Janet's own albums.

The album concludes with one new track called "Make Me". The disco inspired song is infectious, and is a return to her lighter, more fun roots and whets the appetite for what we can expect from Jackson's next studio album, due out in the first quarter of next year.

While these compilation releases often spark debate on what should have been included--or left off--I think most of Janet's diehard and casual fans alike will be completely satisfied with "Number Ones". The only thing that could have made this release better would have been the option of a deluxe package with a DVD of all of Janet's iconic music videos. However, that's just a slight quibble and "Number Ones" is truly a comprehensive look back at one of the greatest entertainers of all time and some of the best pop music ever recorded. It was worth the wait.

I love these tunes some of which were not on her regular CD releases like "Diamonds". This gives the listener an opportunity to hear songs you don't always get to hear on a regular basis. Some of the songs were a bit different from the ones from her original releases but its all good. I kind of liked that at times but in some cases the song was cut off a bit like the song "The Best Things in Life" with Luther. I got to hear some of her newer songs too. I have not been following her tunes very closely like I did in the 80's and that was good to know what her recent hits were. All in all the CD is very entertaining although I liked to hear more of her slow tunes but I guess they were not number ones. I love the CD.

Janet Jackson's career has seen mostly highs and a few lows (that would be the last 3 studio albums). In 1995, the best-of "Design of a Decade" was released. Fourteen years later, this updated "best of" is issued.

"Number Ones" (2 CDs; 34 tracks; 150 min.) collects 33 tracks that have reached number 1 in some chart, plus one new track "Make Me" to close the collection. CD1 (16 tracks; 76 min.) goes up to 1993. Rightfully so, the 2 classic albums "Control" and "Rhythm Nation" each get 6 and 7 tracks, respectively. There are a couple of nice additions from that era, in particular the Herb Albert track "Diamond", and the duet with Luther Vandross "The Best Things in Life Are Free" (from the "Mo' Money" soundtrack). Somewhat unfortunately, CD1 closes with "That's the Way Love Goes", the first single from "janet.", rather than lumping it with the other selections from that album on CD2. CD2 (18 tracks; 74 min.) continues with 4 more tracks from "janet.", and then rolls on with the duet with Michael "Scream", and one of the then-new tracks from Design of a Decade" ("Runaway"). "The Velvet Rope" gets 4 tracks; and more than halfway through CD2 we are still only up to 1997. The last 12 years are covered quickly, as Janet's commercial success drops off steeply in the last 10 years or so. The last 3 studio albums each get 1 track, that's it.

Listening to this collection, you come to the realization that this is truly an impressive string of hits. Thankfully, the entire collection is brought in strict chorological order (which was not the case on "Decade"). The liner notes are quite helpful as they bring full information which song was number one on what chart (it is here that we find out that all-but-one of the songs here have charted on Billboard, the lone exception being "Got 'Til It's Gone", which is credited as "#1 Japan, 1997". While "Decade" was a good compilation, this one is better yet and therefore the recommended way to go.