Wiki
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Release Date
1972
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Length
15 tracks
"The Best Of Liza Minnelli" is a musical compilation by American singer and actress Liza Minnelli. It was released in 2004 and encompasses fifteen songs from Minnelli's classic years with Columbia, EMI, and MCA record labels.
The tracklist includes a generous selection of theater songs, including an unreleased version of "Me and My Baby" from the musical "Chicago." Composer Fred Ebb, who worked with Minnelli throughout her career, contributed an article included in the album's booklet.
Liza Minnelli's career spanned decades of success in various fields, from music to theater and film. Building a comprehensive compilation of her greatest hits from her extensive discography always faced a notable obstacle: her recordings were spread across various record labels, making it commercially unfeasible and bureaucratic to compile them into a single album.
Most previous compilations before "The Best Of Liza Minnelli" specifically featured songs released by a single record label. Compilations related to the early days of her recording career as a Capitol Records artist include "A Touch Of Class" (1997), "The Capitol Collection" (2001), and "Essential" (2003). Songs from her tenure with A&M Records are included in compilations like "The Liza Minnelli Foursider" (1973) and "The Collection" (1998). Her Columbia Records era is represented in compilations like "All That Jazz" (1999), "16 Biggest Hits" (2000), and "Simply The Best" (2001).
"The Best Of Liza Minnelli" includes songs from eight of Minnelli's albums, including three soundtrack albums ("Cabaret" from 1972, "Chicago," and "New York, New York" from 1977), three live albums ("Liza with a Z" from 1972, "Live at the Winter Garden" from 1974, and "Live from Radio City Music Hall" from 1992), and two studio albums ("The Singer" from 1973 and "Results" from 1989). Each significant phase of her career is presented with one song, whether in studio recordings or live performances recorded later.
Music critics gave favorable reviews of the compilation. John Bush of AllMusic rated the album with four and a half stars out of five and noted that for fans who couldn't attend Minnelli's live shows, the compilation "functions as the next best thing." He acknowledged that previous compilations had struggled with Minnelli's material being spread across various record labels and praised "The Best Of Liza Minnelli" for creative licensing efforts that made it the best collection to date.
In his review, critic Tom Hull highlighted Minnelli's ability to breathe life into songs from the past but also noted variations in her energy and enthusiasm throughout the album. He gave it a "B+" rating, suggesting that the album is a solid collection of Liza Minnelli's best songs over the decades.
Goldmine magazine's critic, Gillian G. Gaar, found the decision to include more live tracks a wise choice, as he believed the stage was where Minnelli shone the brightest. He selected "There Is A Time," "Some People," "Say Liza (Liza With A 'Z')," and "Me And My Baby" as the best tracks. He criticized the album for its short duration of 50 minutes but overall found "The Best of Liza" to be a good overview of some of Minnelli's best work.
Despite the critical acclaim, the album failed to chart on the Billboard 200.
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