Emmylou Harris
Issue #25
Heartaches & Highways: The Very Best of Emmylou Harris (Rhino)
By Katie Hasty
Published: September 1st, 2005 | 4:49pm
Documenting Emmylou Harris' contributions to music is no easy task. To package a career musician of more than 30 years who has collaborated with countless other artists, spanned a number of genres and eras, and experienced and traveled a number of heartaches and highways, seems hardly possible. But Rhino makes their attempt with 20 songs in less than 74 minutes, without failing to include Harris' biggest country hits.
Harris found her beginnings with Gram Parsons, and so Heartaches appropriately launches with "Love Hurts." From there, country classics like "Born to Run" mingle with her chart-toppers, like the Dolly Parton-and-Linda Ronstadt collaboration "To Know Him Is To Love Him."
The latter half of the disc showcases Harris' crystal voice, poignant timing, and cross-genre versatility, with bluegrass, folk, gospel, and even indie-pop (with the soft-rock "Here I Am") infused in the mix. Her breathtaking cover of Gillian Welch's "Orphan Girl" (from Wrecking Ball) is a gorgeous segue to the end of the collection, a brand-new song, "The Connection," warning that she's not ready to quit any day soon.
Sadly, the constraints of the album allow few of her more eclectic collaborations, like her famous "Evangeline" contribution to The Band's
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Emmylou Harris' official Web site
Emmylou Harris' Myspace page
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