rewrote the rules for singing in the late '40s by bringing phrasing and other secular elements into sacred song, and with her powerful alto, she sang with an immediacy and conviction that are still startling when they break out of the speakers some 30 years after her death. This two-disc set collects tracks from 's long stay at , as well as a few tracks from her previous label, , where she recorded from 1947 until signing with in 1954. What makes this set feel like more than a greatest-hits collection is the inspired sequencing, which doesn't move chronologically but instead is paced like a concert, helped by the placement of key live tracks, including several from her historic appearance at the 1958 . Highlights are almost too many to mention, but her elegant version of with is majestic in scope, and her interpretations of a pair of compositions, and are definitive. The funky featuring some wonderful stop-start stuttering piano work from , rocks the house, as does the rousing, jazzy version of that is included here. A beautiful and heartbreaking reading of from 's tape archives is another obvious high point. No one could worry over a note like . makes a marvelous introduction to the era of this powerful and soulful singer, and coupled with the earlier three-disc , paints a complete picture of an American treasure. ~ Steve Leggett