Deborah Cox never got the respect she deserved, getting shuffled about and finally jettisoned from BMG even as her commitment to delivering quality dance and R&B music never wavered. This collection posits itself as a portrait of the complete Deborah Cox, spanning her R&B and dance sides to let the average member of the public know about this singer’s run of hits. Sadly, nothing could be further from the truth. The songs are still great, though most of the ‘rare mixes’ being touted are readily available on Cox’s Remixed album from last year. And as for truly rare Cox tracks, like the still-unreleased on CD Gabriel & Dresden Mix of “Play Your Part” or the Jonathan Peters Mix of “Same Script Different Cast,” well, don’t get your hopes up.
I am by nature a picky person, so I can overlook a lot of this kind of mentality (reusing widely available dance mixes) because a compilation like this has to appeal to everyone at the same time. Why then, I ask, is it mastered so abysmally? If you listen to “Nobody’s Supposed To Be Here,” presented in its ‘Special Slow-to-Fast Version,’ once you get through the 78% of the track that is slow and finally kick up the energy, you can scarcely hear the intricate synthesizer programming. It’s a muddle, and it should never have made it past quality control. The songs are great, and Miss Deborah is well-deserving of a comprehensive collection of her hits, but this is not it.
(songs and performer) ****1/2/*****
(this release) **1/2/*****
