Louise - Finest Moments (2002)

While it makes perfect commercial sense for a record company to want to make optimum use of their assets by regularly churning out repackaged anthologies of their biggest selling artists, compiling a collection from an artist's variable back catalogue and labelling it as their Finest Moments is likely to infuriate many. No doubt a debate will rage for years on Louise's fan Web sites on whether the tracks included on this compilation are her better cuts. However there's no questioning that this collection does provide a budget priced, and representative taster of her EMI years. Peppered with greatest hits ("2 Faced" and "One Kiss From Heaven"), the collection is predominantly made up of tracks from her three "hit and miss" solo albums. By far, the standout track is the saucy "Naked", while "Arms Around The World" still sounds suitably enchanting, even though it was a blatant Janet Jackson rip-off. The rest of the compilation is typical Louise R&B fare, with the later tracks picked from 2000's mature but bland Elbow Beach. "First Kiss (The Wedding Song)" is one of the better tracks from this album, with Louise warning her new husband (Jamie Redknapp) against cheating ("Don't you push your luck!"). Disappointingly, one or two hit singles remain absent, while others are relegated to less-than-impressive "medley" or remix versions. All in all this is an enjoyable but at times mixed overview of Louise's solo musical career, so far. -- John Galilee