It took quite a while for a definitive
Barry White
compilation to hit the market, but
All-Time Greatest Hits
-- part of
Mercury
's Funk Essentials series -- finally filled the bill in 1995. Boasting a full 20 tracks from
White
's heyday of 1973-1978, more than half of which made the
R&B
Top Ten,
is easily the most generous single-disc
collection on the market. It includes the edited single versions, not the full-length album tracks, which actually makes for a more digestible introduction to
's achievements. Like his forebear
Isaac Hayes
,
was not just a deep-voiced crooner, but a talented producer and arranger who'd spent years honing his craft behind the scenes in the industry. And like
Hayes
spent a great deal of time setting up moods on his albums, using lush, sweeping orchestrations to build very gradually to climaxes. (Actually, that probably explains a good deal of his effectiveness.) But
was not simply a
disciple; his swirling productions were less complex than
', but more in tune with the emerging
disco
sound, which certainly boosted his popularity. Plus, he took full advantage of
's new lyrical permissiveness in the wake of
Marvin Gaye
's
Let's Get It On
. If his voice was limited, it was also a tremendous asset for the kind of music he recorded -- deep, resonant, caressing, but always suggestively masculine. The total package made
an
love-man icon not just for the
era, but all time. For all but the most dedicated fans,
is one-stop shopping. ~ Steve Huey