Setting the standard for those that followed

Review Score: (10/10)
Patsy set the standard for female country singers, with many of those that followed trying (or so it seemed) to be the next Patsy Cline - even today, forty years after her death in a plane crash. All but one of Patsy's classic songs can be found on this collection. Crazy was a top ten pop hit in America and (in 1990) a top twenty hit in Britain. Heartaches was Patsy's first American top forty pop hit. Don Gibson wrote Sweet dreams and had a big country hit with it, but once Patsy recorded it, it became much more popular and will be forever thought of as a Patsy Cline song. She's got you was an American top twenty pop hit and was also Patsy's first British hit, albeit only a minor one I fall to pieces was yet another top twenty pop hit in America. Walking after midnight is the song that began it all for Patsy in the fifties. Poor man's roses, Back in baby's arms and Leaving on your mind are other Patsy classics included here. The only serious omission is Faded love, a cover of a Bob Wills song that, like Sweet dreams, is regarded as a Patsy Cline classic despite being a cover.

Adequate compensation for the omission of Faded love is provided via Patsy's fine interpretations of Your cheating heart (Hank Williams), I love you so much it hurts (Eddy Arnold), Wayward wind (Gogi Grant), South of the border (Gene Autry), True Love (Bing Crosby), San Antonio rose (Bob Wills), You belong to me (Jo Stafford) and many other fine songs.

Prior to 2004, this compilation was arguably the strongest single CD of Patsy's music available despite the omission of Faded love. With the release of Definitive collection in 2004, I now recommend that collection instead. It only contains 22 tracks instead of the 25 here but there are no serious omissions and everything there has been digitally re-mastered.

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