AMG Review of Best of Al Stewart: Centenary Collection

All Music Guide

The 17 tracks that make up EMI's Centenary Collection are culled primarily from Al Stewart's post-1976 output, so fans looking for a generous slice of pre-Year of the Cat material should probably stick to more comprehensive fare like Rhino's two-disc Definitive Pop Collection or its single-disc Greatest Hits anthology. That said, many of Stewart's late-'70s works are on par with his early singles, so for every "You Don't Even Know Me" and "Carol" that's missing from this set, there is a "Time Passing," "Song on the Radio," or "On the Border," so as far as a quality period study goes, Centenary Collection, Rovi