Sony/Legacy
's 2016 single-disc
The Ultimate Collection
is the first career-spanning
Roy Orbison
compilation since their double-disc
Essential
from a decade earlier. At 40 tracks,
would seem to have an edge over
, but the 2016 compilation has a significant advantage in that it contains the original hit versions of "Running Scared" and "In Dreams," iconic hits present only as re-recordings on the double-disc set. This is a significant boost for
Ultimate
, yet the collection still has its flaws, chief among them a non-chronological sequencing -- it's disconcerting to hear the posthumous "I Drove All Night" follow "Oh, Pretty Woman" at the outset of the set -- and how it emphasizes
Orbison
's post-
Traveling Wilburys
recordings over his early
Sun
sessions, which are represented only by "Ooby Dooby." A few other notable hits are missing -- the seasonal standard "Pretty Paper," "Blue Angel," and "I'm Hurtin'," plus the cult favorite "Communication Breakdown" -- which may prevent this collection from truly being called "The Ultimate," but this nevertheless remains the best single-disc collection of
's career ever assembled. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine