"My Baby Loves Me": good... a very sweet and happy song. (5 stars)

"Life #9": great... an up-tempo song, full of country dancing and two-stepping. (5 stars)

"Independence Day": Martina's career hit... an excellent song against domestic violence and can be used for patriotic purposes. (5 stars)

"Strangers": I love this song... but I am sad Martina never released it as a single. However, I'm glad she included it in this collection. (5 stars)

"Safe in the Arms of Love": a very cool sounding record, the background vocals are amazing, Martina's voice rules and it really is "pure ear candy."

"Wild Angels": nice... Martina's first #1 song and an overall very happy song. Just like a cartoon. (5 stars)

"Valentine": a love ballad well sung by Martina, perfect for all weddings. She duets this song with guest artist, pianist, Jim Brickman. (5 stars)

"Broken Wing": what a beautiful song... I love how Martina holds the last note 'fly' for 12 seconds!!! (5 stars)

"Happy Girl": another up-tempo song, has real nice melody, shows the 'happy side' of Martina. (5 stars)

"Wrong Again": I love this... it has a different chorus every time, nice background vocals, an overall a strong vocal performance by Martina. (5 stars)

"Whatever You Say": wow... I still remember the vocal performance Martina did on the 1999 ACM awards of this song and I am blown away. I am in awe of such determination. (5 stars)

"I Love You": very cool song, found on the 'Runaway Bride' soundtrack and to this day, Martina's most successful single, spent 5 consecutive weeks at the #1 spot in Country charts. (5 stars)

"Love's the Only House": wow... this powerhouse song shows the mature, humanizing side of Martina. It makes you want to do something for your fellow humans. Full of very positive messages. (5 stars)

"There You Are": sung really low and soft in this recording. However, if you see Martina in concert, this song is a very powerful 5 star performance. (4 stars)

"When God-Fearin' Woman Get the Blues": a very cool up-tempo song, and drop dead hilarious... against cheating, and traditional instruments such as dobro and fiddle are included. (5 stars)

"Where Would You Be": my all-time favorite song by a female vocalist!!! Amazing and breathtaking! I love the raw emotions it has and its sincerity. Proves that Martina is the best soprano she can be. (6 stars!!!!)

"Concrete Angel": a very sad song about child abuse. Martina makes you want to do something and help today's children about this. May radio stations never stop playing this! (5 stars)

"Blessed": very good song about Martina's life being 'blessed.' Has very cool background vocals, by Carolyn Dawn Johnson, and a cool music video. (5 stars)

Overall Rating of the Album: 5 STARS!!!!!!!! (5 = BEST)

Rush out and buy this album!!!


The little lady with the BIG voice!   December 16, 2001
K. Stuckey (Port Huron, MI USA)
19 out of 23 found this review helpful

Martina's songs speak volumes and this CD is truly a must-have. It is everything a greatest hits record should be - all of her biggest hits (where is "It's my Time"???) neatly packaged, along with a handful of new songs. Martina and producer Paul Worley offer cut-by-cut comments as well.

The new material is just incredible! "Blessed" (written by Troy Verges), reunites Martina with former backup singer Carolyn Dawn Johnson, who just 'makes' the track. The CD version of "God Fearin' Women" is longer than most radio stations played and well worth the price of the CD for the intro. "Concrete Angel" is the story of a little girl lost and is akin to John Michael Montgomery's "The Little Girl". "Where Would You Be" is a Martina trademark song, wondering about love, but in a way that real women do.

The already released material is all great, Martina's powerful breakout hit "Independence Day", the somewhat trite "I Love You", my favorite "Wild Angels" and "Love's the Only House". Martina truly has one of the best voices in country music right now, as evidenced in "Broken Wing", it is so real it will give you chills!


Karen's review of Martina McBride's Greatest Hits   January 30, 2003
Karen James (Indianapolis, IN USA)
7 out of 7 found this review helpful

Until recently I haven't been that big of a country fan. I liked Shania and Faith, and that was about it. So I turn on CMT and GAC to catch their videos and I see some of Martina's videos, like "Concrete Angel", "Blessed", "Independence Day" and "Love's The Only House". Last November, I watched CMT's Top 40 Countdown of Females in country. They showed clips of Martina's videos such as "A Broken Wing" and "Whatever You Say". I was very impressed with her vocally. And I thought she really should have been higher than No. 25 This month I finally got around to buying her hits collection. It's the first time I've ever bought a greatests hits by someone I've never owned a album of. All the songs I'd heard and loved by her was on it. I love the nice ballads such as "There You Are", "Wrong Again" and "Where Would You Be". "Safe In The Arms Of Love" is another fave. So is "When God-Fearin' Women Get The Blues." This song has finally gotten me to appreciate the traditional country sound. The happy songs "Happy Girl" and "Blessed are great." I love the 'issue songs' "Indepedence Day", "Concrete Angel" "Love's The Only House" and "A Broken Wing" which is probably my fave song. A country song with a lot of soul. I love it! And now I'm gonna go out and buy all her albums.


Perfect 'Greatest Hits' collection   January 12, 2002
7 out of 7 found this review helpful

This album is an example of a perfect `Greatest Hits' collection. It shows such sensitivity towards old fans, understanding of what newcomers and casual fans want, and respect for Martina's music.

The fans are rewarded with 4 new songs that are good enough to be on this collection (rather than the throwaways they could have been), plus some gorgeous photographs and thoughtful, revealing comments on every song from Martina and long-time producer Paul Worley.

The 18 songs are an excellent introduction to Martina, almost spanning her career and representing all aspects of her music - heartfelt ballads ('Strangers'), fun rockers ('When God-fearin' women get the blues', 'Wild Angels'), upbeat love songs ('I love you', 'Safe in the arms of love') and impassioned issues songs ('Independence Day', 'A Broken Wing'). Even if you don't like some tracks, there are enough for this to be great value! The chronological order and informative commentary put the songs in perspective, and it's also great as a sampler, with info on which songs come from which album if you want to explore further.

Martina's careful role in the project is obvious. I love her charmingly honest notes on which songs she doesn't like so much, and inclusion of a non-single fan favourite.

Her first album and Christmas album aren't covered so this isn't a comprehensive set, but that way it maintains quality. This is a five star album for fans of contemporary chart country, and I hope others like me who aren't into `mainstream country' enough to want individual albums discover this set and Martina's wonderful music!