Greatest Hits (CD - 2005)

Personnel: Tracy Byrd (vocals, guitar); Joe Lee Carter (harmonica, background vocals); Joe Carter (harmonica); John Jarvis (piano, Hammond b-3 organ); Glenn Worf, Mike Brignardello (bass guitar); Michael "Bear" Taliferro, Mike Taliaferro (background vocals); Billy Joe Walker, Jr. (acoustic guitar, electric guitar); B. James Lowry, Biff Watson (acoustic guitar); Pat Buchanan, Reggie Young , Steve Gibson, Adam Shoenfeld, Brent Mason (electric guitar); Dan Dugmore, Paul Franklin (steel guitar); Kenny Sears, Aubrey Haynie (fiddle); Greg Morrow, Paul Leim (drums); Curtis Young, John Wesley Ryles, Neil Thrasher, Wes Hightower (background vocals).

Audio Mixers: Kyle Lehning; Bob Bullock.

Recording information: Emerald Entertainment; Our Place Studios.

Photographer: Nigel Parry.

Tracy Byrd's first hits compilation, 1999's Keepers: Greatest Hits, covered his hits for MCA during the '90s, as did his second, 2001's 20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection (eight of its ten songs were on Keepers as well). His third collection is 2005's Greatest Hits and it's the first to cover his recordings for RCA in the 2000s. While this is only three albums -- 1999's It's About Time, 2001's Ten Rounds, and 2003's The Truth About Men -- it is a period of time that not only gave Byrd his biggest hit with "Ten Rounds With Jose Cuervo," but found him coming into his own as a funny, loose-limbed neo-traditional country singer. His material wasn't only become more distinctive, so were his performances, and the best moments of these three records were ridiculously fun. Most, but not all, of those performances are collected on Greatest Hits, along with two new songs -- the rowdy road trip anthem "Johnny Cash" and the even better "Revenge of a Middle-Aged Woman" -- and new versions of his MCA hits "Watermelon Crawl," "Keeper of the Stars," and "I'm From the Country." Often, re-recorded tunes for hits collections are rote, perfunctory filler, but these three tunes illustrate how Byrd has hit his stride; they equal, or arguably eclipse, the originals and help keep the record moving along at a rapid clip. Yes, a couple of charting singles are missing -- 2000's "Love, You Ain't Seen the Last of Me" and 2004's "How'd I Wind Up in Jamaica" -- and since this clocks in at a mere 12 tracks, they really could have fit on here, but that aside, this is an otherwise impeccable collection that's nothing but pure fun. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

The first two songs on Tracy Byrd's GREATEST HITS make clear what a wide variety of material the Beaumont, Texas native has successfully tackled. "The Truth About Men" (which also features Andy Griggs, Montgomery Gentry, and Blake Shelton) is a great example of Byrd's trademark party songs. Celebrating the less-than-dainty behavior that often characterizes the male gender, the tune is driven by a beat that tears a honky-tonk page straight from the Merle Haggard barroom book. "Just Let Me Be in Love," on the other hand, is a Latin-influenced number full of nylon-string flamenco-guitar leads and lush synthesizer lines. Although Byrd's vocal performance is stone-cold country, the end result here sounds more like SHANGO-era Santana than Marty Robbins or Freddy Fender. Luckily, Byrd's big, rich voice and classic phrasing tie the various stylistic detours together.

In addition to several re-recorded versions of his biggest chart-toppers, the 2005 collection includes two previously unreleased tracks. "Johnny Cash" is an escapist fantasy in the vein of Johnny Paycheck's "Take This Job and Shove It," while "Revenge of a Middle-Aged Woman" is a hilarious two-stepping romp that will definitely make male listeners think twice about doing their woman wrong. minimize