GHV2 (Greatest Hits Vol.2) - Madonna > Reviews > Part 2 of the Madonna Bible

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Definitely a cut above the rest
Lyrics	Thought-provoking
Quality and consistency of tracks	A couple of weak links
How does it compare to the artist's other releases	Good
Value for Money

Advantages:	Great collection of Madonna songs from the past 10 years
Disadvantages:	Should have more tracks hence some good songs are missing

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

How many female pop artists do you know who can bring out 2 greatist hits albums which span nearly 20 years? Well Madonna is the only one I know of, releasing her second greatest hits album named GHV2 (Greatest Hits Volume 2) which consists of her hits between the years 1991 - 2001. I would have thought she would have called it Immaculate Collection 2.

The CD has 15 tracks in all and unlike The Immaculate Collection, this compilation shows the diversity of Madonna and how, over the years, she has constantly reinvented her image and tried different material. I must admit, in the 90s Ive been less of a Madonna fan compared to when I was a teen in the 80's when Madonna was all the rage. In the early 90's, with her release of Erotica and her infamous Sex book, Madonna image went from raunchy to downright explicit and overnight the backlash came from her critics. At the time, being a teen and not knowing much, I felt that she overstepped the line too, and I started to dislike her new image. More importantly I didn't like the tracks off her Erotica album as I felt it was a very drastic change from her previous pop material with the new songs sounding just like Madonna's indulgence of sexual fantasies. Guess that this wasnt a surprise as it tied in with the release of her Sex Book.

Looking back now, with a few more years on my shoulders, I think Madonna was very brave to do what she did back then and I now see it as a statement and not as an insult. Her career could have went down the drain with her new image but with Madonna, you know she is not afraid to try everything once in life, and you get the feeling that she thinks life is too short to worry about what other people think of her. I mean she was at the peak of her fame and at 30 odd she felt she had a great body and wanted the world to see she was proud of it. Good on her! Oh and I do like Erotica now!

And if she could survive the critical panning that she received from the critics, then you knew she would try out other things. She went on to do Evita and and the soundtrack which included 'Don't Cry For Me Argentina', once again showing her diversity. I personally have never seen the movie, as it didn't appeal to me. Some of her other movies flopped terribly but I reckon thats down to her not being a good actress and the scripts.

In the late 90's, with the release of 'Ray of Light', we saw a older Madonna with a darker image. I began to like Madonna again as her new material was very moody and mysterious especially the songs 'Frozen', 'The Power of Goodbye' and 'Substitue For Love'. Madonna also re-invented herself as a bit of a dance queen as well with tracks like 'Ray of Light', 'Music' and 'Dont Tell Me'

GHV2 consists of most of the tracks that I have mentioned above but I think there could have been a few more tracks on the compilation as it only has 15 and some tracks that I think were good such as 'Rain', 'This Used To Be My Playground', and 'One More Chance' are missing. I really like 'Take A Bow'! Don't know why, but I guess it just reminds me of good old 80's Madonna! Warning though, this compilation doesn't have any new tracks like Immaculate Collection did when it was released.

If you want most of the songs you remember hearing from Madonna in the last 10 years, then you won't be disappointed by this diverse compilation. You will like most of the tracks if not all. However, for all the smoochy Madonna fans who like her ballads (i.e. Me), the older 'Something to Remember' compilation is more or a recommended choice.

You just cant help but to appreciate and acknowledge how well Madonna has done in her career and most people I know like her for being such a strong character in the music industry. Long live Madonna, Queen of Pop!

Track List

1. Deeper and Deeper
2. Erotica
3. Human Nature
4. Secret
5. Don't Cry For Me Argentina
6. Bedtime Story
7. The Power Of Goodbye
8. Beautiful Stranger
9. Frozen
10.Take A Bow
11.Ray Of Light
12.Don't Tell Me
13.What It Feels Like For A Girl
14.Drowned World/Substitute For Love
15.Music