Search - Ultimate Kylie on DVD

K. K. (GAMER)
Reviewed on 10/10/2023...

A two-hour collection of her videos. There were a few that you will know and some of the music videos are cool but the rest are very repetitive.

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Dream compilation shows Kylie's brilliance

Peter Durward Harris | Leicester England | 01/10/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The first CD contains Kylie's hits from her time with Stock, Aitken and Waterman while the second CD shows how Kylie has progressed since then, up to and including her last UK hit of 2004 (I believe in you), which made number two (behind Band Aid 20's re-recording of Do they know it's Christmas) in the UK chart.

On the first CD, you can hear Kylie's UK chart-topping duet with Jason Donovan, Especially for you, as well as her many solo hits from the period such as I should be so lucky (the kind of song you either love or hate - I love it), Je ne sais pas porqoui (an English language song despite it's chorus line), Got to be certain, Hand on your heart, Better the devil you know and Wouldn't change a thing. There are a few covers and it was two of these - Locomotion (the Little Eva sixties classic) and Tears on my pillow (the Little Anthony fifties classic) - that originally aroused my interest in Kylie's music. They are both brilliant - indeed, Locomotion provided Kylie with her only huge American hit during this period. As to Tears on my pillow, I've heard several versions. Kylie should be proud of her cover, which gave her another huge hit. Give me just a little more time and Celebration (Kool and the gang) provide further evidence of Kylie's ability to revive oldies and take them high up the charts.

The oldest major UK hit on the second CD is Confide in me, a brilliant song that Kylie took to number two in the UK charts. However, subsequent releases were somewhat less successful until the release of the album Light years (but see later for my comments about Where the wild roses grow). By now her style of music had evolved somewhat. Kylie returned to the big time with four hits beginning with Spinning around, which topped the UK charts, and continuing with On a night like this, Kids and Please stay.

With her next album, Fever, Kylie made an effort to promote her music in America so her first hit from the album, Can't get you out of my head, became a big hit in America as well as in the UK and her other traditional markets. Like its predecessor, Fever yielded four major UK hits, the others being In your eyes, Come into my world and Love at first sight. The next album, Body language, also yielded four UK hits - Slow, Red blooded woman, Chocolate and Can't start giving you up. It was the last original album prior to this compilation and the single, I believe in you, which completes the compilation.

While many will continue to dismiss Kylie (especially her early hits), she is much better than many of the singers she is sometimes compared to, and has proved it by lasting longer than any of her critics thought possible.

The most surprising track here is Where the wild roses grow, a duet with Nick Cave in which Kylie sings in an almost whispery style. The song (about a death pact) is typical of Nick's music but very different from Kylie's normal style. It proves that Kylie is capable of singing a wide range of material when given the opportunity.

This compilation is truly the ultimate Kylie compilation at the time of its release, though I expect more hits to come for Kylie.

Just a warning - if you got into Kylie's music because of her more recent material, you will find that her early music is very different. It is possible to enjoy both her recent music and her early music (as I do) but not everybody does."

Here is the track listing

d.kainoa | los angeles | 02/20/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"DVD Description
1. I Should Be So Lucky 2. Got To Be Certain 3. The Loco-motion (7" Mix) 4. Je Ne Sais Pas Pourquoi 5. Especially For You 6. Hand On Your Heart 7. Wouldn't Change A Thing 8. Never Too Late 9. Tears On My Pillow 10. Better The Devil You Know 11. Step Back In Time 12. What Do I Have To Do 13. Shocked 14. Give Me Just A Little More Time 15. Celebration 16. Confide In Me 17. Put Yourself In My Place 18. Where The Wild Roses Grow 19. Did It Again 20. Breathe 21. Spinning Around 22. On A Night Like This 23. Kids 24. Please Stay 25. Can't Get You Out Of My Head 26. In Your Eyes 27. Love At First Sight 28. Come Into My World 29. Slow 30. Red Blooded Woman 31. Chocolate 32. I Believe In You 33. Can't Get Blue Monday Out Of My Head (Live At The Brits)"

Ideal Retrospective of a Talented Diva

Rudy Palma | NJ | 02/12/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Even though many in this country only know her as that cute diva who came out of nowhere with a pair of hit singles in 2002, Kylie Minogue has in fact been on an exceptionally long path ablaze with creative twists and turns. The newly released "Ultimate Kylie" serves as an ideal retrospective that summarizes nearly two decades of the Aussie singer's melt-in-your-mouth pop confections. Twenty-seven of the set's thirty-three tracks reached the Top 10 in the UK.

The first disc, which contains recordings from the late 80's and early 90's, kicks off with the frantic "Better the Devil You Know" from her 1990 album "Rhythm of Love." A fast-paced track with strong vocals and an undeniable hook, it epitomizes the pop sensibility and the lovable plonkety-plonk production of the era that satiates the first half of the collection.

One of the most intriguing things about these songs is that, although her remake of Little Eva's 1962 hit "The Loco-Motion" was her only runaway hit in the US in 1988 before she disappeared from stateside radar for a decade and a half, it is the least enduring track on the first disc. This thus proves the worth of songwriting team Stock, Aitken and Waterman. who penned the great majority of her early string of hits while reportedly controlling her image and sound with a resented iron first.

As a result, selections such as the urgent "I Should Be So Lucky, "Je Ne Sais Pas Pourquoi" and "Got Be Certain" are pure listening pleasure. Her cover of Chairman of the Board's "Give Me Just a Little More Time" from her 1991 album "Let's Get to It" is also surprisingly soulful, although her rendition of Kool and the Gang's "Celebration" which rounds out the disc sounds like it belongs on a tape to play in the car for your child under 4.

The onset of the second disc flips us into present-day Kylie with her new single "I Believe In You," an entrancing slice of pulsating pop perfection she wrote with the Scissors Sisters that manages to pay homage to musical years gone by while still sounding fresh and original. Another new recording, "Giving You Up," is included, along with selections dating back a decade.

The sexy "Confide In Me" from 1994's self-titled CD finds Kylie cooing her lines to great success, while the introspectiveness of "Did It Again" and "Breathe" from her critically-acclaimed 1997 album "Impossible Princess" add ballast to the disc and prove that the pop starlet can indeed write substantial lyrics when she looks deep within.

Selections from her 2000 album "Light Years" also add sizzle to the fire. "Spinning Around," lucrative songwriter Kari Dioguardi's first hit, established Kylie as a dancefloor maven to outstanding success, as did the anthemic "On a Night Like This." These tracks clearly set the stage for tracks like "Love at First Sight" and "Come Into My World" from 2002's "Fever." The latter track is included here in its far superior radio version that won her a Grammy last year for Best Dance Recording.

"Kids," a left-field rock record with Robbie Williams and the bittersweet "Please Stay," propelled by Spanish guitars and bubbly production, suggest that "Light Years" was a project that the US should not have missed out on. Furthermore, the ever catchy "Slow" and the radio version of "Chocolate" from 2004's extremely underrated "Body Language" album throw further entertainment into the mix.

The disc closes with "Where the Wild Roses Grow," her morbid mid-nineties collaboration with Aussie rocker Nick Cave that concludes with his murdering her that still continues to raise eyebrows.

Although the capricious nature of the US music industry has caused Kylie Minogue to have a puddle of success in comparison to the rainstorm she continues to receive overseas, the reason for it has nothing to do with the quality of her music. "Ultimate Kylie" proves that repeatedly with its smorgasbord of solid tunes. If you have ever been even slightly interested in any of her music before but have never shelled out any of your hard-earned dollars, this is the definitive place to begin.
"