Wilson Pickett

Rhino released a terrific double-disc Wilson Pickett collection in 1992 called A Man and a Half. It was a generous 44 tracks and spanned from Pickett's early recordings with the Falcons to his funky early-'70s work, and contained all the hits along the way. Fourteen years later, Rhino released a second double-disc Wilson Pickett collection, 2006's Definitive Soul Collection, which isn't nearly as comprehensive or definitive as A Man and a Half. It's 14 tracks shorter than its predecessor and isn't quite as attractively packaged, but it has a similar far-ranging scope, covering the same musical territory as A Man and a Half. Since it's not as lengthy as A Man and a Half, The Definitive Soul Collection pales when it's judged against its stellar predecessor, but if it's taken on its own terms, it's quite a good compilation, containing all of Pickett's biggest songs -- "In the Midnight Hour," "634-5789 (Soulsville, USA)," "Land of 1000 Dances," "Mustang Sally," "Everybody Needs Somebody to Love," "Funky Broadway" -- along with a good sampling of the best of the rest. A Man and a Half may be the first choice for anybody looking for a double-disc set, but if that's hard to find, this is a good substitute. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide