The problem with the recent spate of "number one" collections from the
pop
elite --
the Beatles
,
Michael Jackson
, and now
the Bee Gees
-- is that they're consistently marketed as "greatest-hits" collections. The conceptual weight of "number one" singles for the average listener is about as heavy as the slabs of wax they came out on, and compiling an entire record around them only shines the spotlight on the tracks that suffered the cut. In
' case, it's the omission of classics like
"Nights on Broadway,"
"New York Mining Disaster 1941,"
"If I Can't Have You,"
and
"More Than a Woman"
-- the latter does appear on the European versions -- that causes
Number Ones
to pale in comparison to 2001's highly superior
Their Greatest Hits: The Record
. ~ James Christopher Monger