''The Ultimate Collection'' (subtitled ''Celebrating Four Decades of Soul'') is the fourth

greatest hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...

album by

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

n musician

Renée Geyer Renée Rebecca Geyer (born 11 September 1953) is an Australian singer who has long been regarded as one of the finest exponents of jazz, soul and R&B idioms. She had commercial success as a solo artist in Australia, with "It's a Man's Man's Worl ...

. It was released in March 2010 by

Warner Music Australia Warner Music Australia Pty Limited (WMA) is the Australian division of the Warner Music Group. WMA also distributes in New Zealand. History In 1969, Warner Bros. Records branched out and WEA was born. The first country in which it was estab ...

and peaked at number 21 on the

RIANZ Recorded Music NZ (formerly the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ)) is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell recorded music in New Zealand. Membership of Recorded Mus ...

charts, becoming Geyer's highest charting album in New Zealand.

Background and release

Geyer's career has spanned four decades and has achieved commercial success, appearing on the Australian charts since the 1970s to 2000s. The 17 tracks were selected by Geyer. She believes that they are fan favourites and are always requested at live shows. In 2005, Geyer was inducted into the

ARIA Hall of Fame In music, an aria (Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompanime ...

. In a 2011 interview with

Bendigo Weekly The ''Bendigo Weekly'' is a tabloid-size, full-colour newspaper published weekly throughout Bendigo, and country districts in central Victoria, including Woodend, Echuca, Wedderburn and Colbinabbin. The paper has won many awards, including a Walkl ...

, Geyer said "People like it (the album) because it's the songs that I know are the most yelled out for me. I know these are the ones that people really want to hear. It's a basic sum-up of my career."

Reception

Julie Taylor from ''

The Northern Advocate ''The Northern Advocate'' is the regional daily paper for the city of Whangārei and the Northland Region in New Zealand. History ''The Whangarei Comet and Northern Advertiser'' was founded in 1875 as a weekly paper by George Alderton and, desp ...

'' gave the album 3 out of 5 saying; "Her best known hit,

Eddy Grant Edmond Montague Grant (born 5 March 1948) is a Guyanese-British singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, known for his genre-blending sound; his music has blended elements of pop, British rock, soul, funk, reggae, electronic music, Afr ...

's " Say I Love You", is an essential, but somewhat out of place, inclusion in this collection of soulful classics. The more emotionally infused tracks such as "

It's a Man's Man's World ''It's a Man's Man's World'' is the second studio album by Australian soul/R & B singer Renée Geyer. The album was released in August 1974 and peaked at number 28 on the Kent Music Report. Track listing ;Vinyl/ cassette (MVPL1-0024G) Side ...

", "

If Loving You Is Wrong ''If Loving You Is Wrong'' is an American prime time television soap opera created, executive produced, written, and directed by Tyler Perry. The series premiered on September 9, 2014 and ended on June 16, 2020. It focuses on the lives and relati ...

" and "

Love Don't Live Here Anymore "Love Don't Live Here Anymore" is a song written by Miles Gregory and originally recorded by Rose Royce. It was produced by former Motown songwriter and producer Norman Whitfield for Whitfield Records. Lead vocals were sung by Gwen Dickey a ...

" are artfully performed and wrench, rather than tug, on the heart strings. There are also lighter moments with "

Shaky Ground Shaky Ground is an American sitcom, created by Bob Keyes, Chip Keyes, and Doug Keyes, which starred Matt Frewer as Bob Moody, a hapless but supportive and caring father. Robin Riker played his wife and Matthew Brooks, Jennifer Love Hewitt, and ...

" and a cover of "

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...

's "

Thieves in the Temple "Thieves in the Temple" is a song by American musician Prince from the 1990 soundtrack album '' Graffiti Bridge''. Added at the last minute, it was the final song recorded for the album. "Thieves in the Temple" topped the US R&B chart and became ...

". Geyer has a strong voice and knows how to use it to full effect."

Track listing

Weekly charts

Release history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ultimate Collection (Renée Geyer album), The 2010 greatest hits albums Renée Geyer albums Compilation albums by Australian artists