Loretta Lynn
's three-disc box set
Honky Tonk Girl: Collection
has the requisite rarities, but the real strength of the set is how it offers all of her essential tracks -- from 1960s
"I'm a Honky Tonk Girl"
to 1988's
"Who Was That Stranger"
-- in one place. Not only are her classic hits like
"Fist City"
and
"Coal Miner's Daughter"
included, but so are most of her hit duets with
Conway Twitty
, such as
"After the Fire Is Gone"
"As Soon as I Hang Up the Phone."
A few hits are missing -- notably
"Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man"
-- but
Honky Tonk Girl
remains the one comprehensive and essential
collection. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine