Search - Britney Spears :: Greatest Hits: My Prerogative (Limited Edition with Bonus CD)

More staying power than her detractors want to admit

Music Fan Jeff | San Francisco, CA United States | 12/08/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I'm late to the game in reviewing this cd, though I've owned it for a few years now. I just reviewed some of the most positive and most negative reviews here. I have to say that, without a doubt, the 1-star reviews are quite amusing since Britney is still here, 3-4 years later, having number one hits (and ANOTHER greatest hits package).



What is true about what some of the 1-star reviewers wrote: Britney isn't a musician in the sense that she doesn't play an instrument and doesn't write her own material. What these people fail to mention is that the same could be said for some very well regarded pop vocalists of the 20th century -- say, Frank Sinatra. Okay, so I'm not comparing Britney with Frank on a vocal level. I actually agree that Britney is not a particularly good singer. That's besides the point, however. Britney's music is not about pure singing ability. It isn't about depth of meaning. It's ear candy, pure and simple. Equal credit needs to be given to her producers and songwriters for without the catchy pop hooks, these songs would not hold up. I liken some of Britney's best tracks (among these I include Oops, Toxic, and Hit Me Baby) with some of the classic bubble-gum pop of days gone by -- songs like The Archies' "Sugar Sugar" or any number of Partridge Family records. The bottom line is that you either like this kind of catchy pop or you don't. I can understand some people not liking this kind of music, but why even write a review of the cd if this style of music isn't to your liking? To suggest that people who do like this kind of music should instead listen to Tom Waits, Pink Floyd, Randy Newman, or any of the other number of aging, white men that some of the 1-star reviewers mentioned is just ludicrous! I actually like some of that music, too, but it isn't like I want a musical diet that solely consists of songs written and performed by old, white men."

Musical junk food: Not always a bad thing

Basbenee | USA | 07/07/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"It's pretty daring of Britney to have released a greatest hits package after four or so albums, but she has had some mega hits. People can argue whether she's solid crap or solid gold as an artist, but she's definitely gotten a lot of attention, probably least of all for her music. Especially lately.

This is a great collection, though, in terms of dance music, with Toxic, I'm a Slave 4 U, Oops I Did It Again, and Baby Hit Me One More Time and more (I still don't like that Madonna collaboration she did, though, just offputting to me!). I wanted something with some poppy, dancey elements to it, and wasn't disappointed. I do love the two new tracks, as they're fun and make you want to dance, though Do Something seemed familiar to me, and then I realized it reminded me of No Doubt, off their Rock Steady album.

I'm not crazy about her ballads, as I don't think her voice is that good (and I find it odd that a lot of her tracks feature a lot of digital manipulation -- why is that? Though I think I know the answer), but I just fastforward and am perfectly happy to listen on, enjoy a little fluff and inject a little energy into my day. It's like junk food, you can't live on it, but sometimes a taste hits the spot."