The Essence of Nancy Wilson - Four Decades of Music (4-CD Box Set)

4-CD of previously unreleased tracks, hits, live performances and personal favorites from this unique 2Song Stylist". 81 tracks including a 56-page book featuring comments from Nancy wilson, her long-time manager, musicians and publicist, as well as quotes from Quincy Jones, Tony Bennett, Bill Cosby, politicians, religious leaders and many more.

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"Nancy Wilson has recorded a lot of material in several different styles, so an accurate summary is hard to achieve -- even on a collection the size of the four-disc The Essence of Nancy Wilson. Perhaps realizing this, the compilers have ditched the traditional chronological progression of a box set and instead dedicated each disc to a specific theme. The first disc is "Spanning the Decades," containing "rare singles and charted hits"; the second is a collection of 23 previously unreleased cuts, including an entire unreleased Live at the Sands album from August 1968, dubbed "From the Vaults"; each of the 22 selections on the third disc were selected by the artist herself on a disc appropriately called "Nancy's Choice"; the fourth is "Hidden Gems," featuring 18 tracks finding their first U.S. release on CD here.

This is an idiosyncratic approach, to say the least, and it does have its charms, especially since the Live at the Sands is nicely done (albeit a little supper-clubby), and there are good moments peppered throughout the rarity-filled collections, moments that hardcore collectors will cherish. That doesn't mean that this is the definitive Nancy Wilson set, or that it truly captures her "essence," either, especially since it often leans toward the pop side and does favor the obscure to the basic canon (which essentially is on disc one and much of disc three). That doesn't make this a bad box, since it does have a lot of good Nancy Wilson in one place, plus a lot of interesting material for collectors, but it falls short of being truly definitive."

Stephen Thomas Erlewine -All Music Guide


Tracklisting:

CD 1 - SPANNING THE DECADES
A selection of rare singles and charted hits,
most making their CD debut in the U.S.

01. The Seventh Son
02. My Foolish Heart
03. The Verdict
04. The Next Time You See Me
05. Save Your Love For Me - Nancy Wilson & Cannonball Adderley
06. You Can Have Him
07. (You Don't Know) How Glad I Am
08. Afterthoughts
09. (You Got) The Power Of Love
10. But Only Sometimes
11. He Called Me Baby (Previously Unreleased Version)
12. Are We Losin' Touch
13. You're As Right As Rain
14. Now
15. In My Lonliness (When We Were One)
16. As Time Goes By (+)
17. The Way It Goes - The Crusaders feat. Nancy Wilson
18. Do You Still Dream About Me (+)

CD 2 - FROM THE VAULTS
All tracks previously unreleased
Tracks 1-14 are live recordings

01. Hello, Young Lovers
02. Small World
03. Gypsies, Jugglers And The Clowns
04. I Can't Get Started
05. If We Only Have Love
06. The Man That Got Away
07. The Folks Who Live On The Hill
08. Crazy Butterfly
09. Peace Of Mind
10. Face It Girl, It's Over
11. Just Go
12. Band Introduction
13. We Would Have Been Fine
14. K.C. Medley:
-That Face
-K.C.
-Black Is Beautiful
15. Ghost Of Yesterday
16. I Concentrate On You
17. Be True To Me
18. Anytime
19. Hurry Change (If You're Coming)
20. No Easy Way Down
21. Go Away And Find Yourself
22. When You're Alone
23. I'm Gonna Make You Love Me

CD 3 - NANCY'S CHOICE
All selections chosen by Nancy Wilson

01. I Want To Be Loved (But Only By You)
02. Passion Flower
03. He's My Guy
04. Did I Remember
05. Rain Sometimes
06. Over The Weekend
07. Free Again
08. Theme From Hotel
09. Prelude To A Kiss
10. Glad To Be Unhappy
11. Do It Again
12. Suzanne
13. How Many Broken Wings
14. Can I
15. China
16. I'm A Balloon
17. Sunshine
18. Casablanca (+)
19. If You Wanna Sing Me (I'll Be A Song) (+)
20. Dindi (+)
21. Godsend (+)
22. I Remember

CD 4 - HIDDEN GEMS
Choice cuts from Nancy's albums,
all released for the first time on CD in the U.S.

01. I'm Gonna Laugh You Right Out Of My Life
02. Listen Little Girl
03. Wave
04. Below, Above
05. What Do You See In Her?
06. Let's Fall In Love All Over
07. Morning In Your Eyes
08. All My Love Comes Down
09. I Don't Want A Sometimes Man
10. All By Myself
11. He Makes Me Feel Good 'Bout Myself
12. I'm Gonna Let Ya
13. The Island (+)
14. Ribbon In The Sky (+)
15. Not Afraid To Love (Live)
16. When Did You Leave Heaven? (Live) (+)
17. Guess Who I Saw Today (Live) (+)
18. The Greatest Performance Of My Life (Live) (+)

(+) Previously unreleased in the U.S.

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