Album Review

Boasting 13 tracks, plus two new songs, The Next Voice You Hear: The Best of Jackson Browne contains some of Browne's biggest hits -- "Doctor My Eyes," "Running on Empty," "Somebody's Baby," "Tender Is the Night" -- but it leaves a surprising number off, including "Rock Me on the Water," "Here Come Those Tears Again," "Stay," "Boulevard," "Lawyers in Love," and "For America." Of course, singles only told half the story with Browne, and many of his greatest songs were only available as album tracks. Therefore, it makes sense that album cuts like "These Days," "Late for Sky," and "The Pretender" are present, but there are still a number of equally good, if not better, cuts that are left off. Consequently, The Next Voice You Hear falls short of being definitive. Nevertheless, for the curious and casual fan, it's a good purchase. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi