Most Wanted (Hilary Duff album)

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Most Wanted
Compilation album by Hilary Duff
Released	August 16, 2005 (U.S.) October 31, 2005 (UK)
Genre	Pop/Rock
Length	49:07 (standard edition) 58:38 (Collector's Edition)
Label	Hollywood
Producer(s)	Hilary Duff (executive), Andre Recke (executive)
Professional reviews
About.com link All Music Guide link BBC Music (positive) link IGN (mixed) Aug. 16, 2005 Slant link
Hilary Duff chronology
Hilary Duff (2004)	Most Wanted (2005)	4Ever (2006)
Collector's Signature Edition cover
Most Wanted: The Collector's Signature Edition

Most Wanted is the fourth album and first compilation album by American pop singer Hilary Duff, released in North America on August 16, 2005 (see 2005 in music). It is Duff's most successful release in the United Kingdom.

[edit] Description

It comprises some of Duff's previous songs, remixes, and new tracks co-written and co-produced by Joel Madden, lead vocalist for Good Charlotte and Duff's then-boyfriend, and his brother Benji (also of Good Charlotte). John Feldmann, singer and guitarist in the band Goldfinger, also contributed to the album. Duff said on the music video show Total Request Live that Most Wanted was not meant to be a greatest hits album, but that her label had told her that it was time to release another album.

It is available in both standard and bonus versions. The standard version includes her famous hits, and three new songs. The bonus version, also known as the Signature Edition or Collector's Edition, includes four new songs, bonus packaging, and bonus material. The standard edition features a hidden track, a remix of "I Am". "The Getaway", "Mr. James Dean" and "Fly" were taken from Hilary Duff (2004); "So Yesterday" and "Metamorphosis" originated from Duff's debut album, Metamorphosis (2003). "Girl Can Rock" and "Our Lips Are Sealed" were not included on any of Duff's previous album releases, though the former was included on some non-U.S. editions of Metamorphosis.

[edit] Critical reception

Reviews were somewhat positive. Bill Lamb of About.com said the new songs are "easy to listen but break no new ground" and "give no specific direction", but that "The remaining bulk of this collection is strong. Hilary Duff is one of the most appealing of our current bumper crop of young female pop singers". He gave it four stars because he owned Duff's two previous albums.^[1] BBC Music wrote, "her voice has neither the spunk of Lindsay Lohan nor the power of Kelly Clarkson, and there isn't enough here to warrant a purchase if you're already the owner of her back catalogue. But if you're after your first taste of Duff-flavoured pop to listen to in the background as you do your homework, then this album can do no harm."^[2]

Other comments were more negative. All Music Guide, in a three-star review, said the new songs "sound a bit like leftovers" and that "While this isn't a terrible album by any means, it's not particularly a good one, since Duff's two pop albums have distinctive personalities that don't necessarily mesh together ... and are both more fun than this."^[3] Slant magazine gave it two stars, writing "Distilling Duff's sonic output down to one single disc isn't such a bad idea ... but apparently there aren't even enough bearable moments in Duff's recording career to fill one CD".^[4] A review from IGN called Most Wanted "[i]n the long run ... a filler album at best. The new songs that are served up still show Duff chasing trends rather than setting them and actively searching for her own voice and image. The remixes are decent enough, but nothing stellar".^[5]

[edit] Promotion and chart performance

In its first week of U.S. release the album sold nearly 208,000 copies, and it became Duff's second album to reach number one on the U.S. Billboard 200 album chart after Metamorphosis.^[6] It stayed at number one for a second week despite a 51% drop in sales,^[7] and the RIAA certified the album platinum for shipments of over one million copies in late September.^[8] Most Wanted spent thirty-five weeks on the Billboard 200, five of which were in the top twenty. To date, it has sold over 1.3 million copies in the U.S.^{[citation needed]}

Duff performing on the Still Most Wanted Tour in August 2005.

On the United World Chart Most Wanted debuted at number one.^[9] In Canada the album became Duff's third to debut at number one, doing so with first-week sales of 32,000 copies;^[10] it was certified two times platinum by the CRIA, for shipments of 200,000 copies, in December 2005.^[11] In Australia the album peaked at number three, becoming Duff's highest charting album,^[12] and the ARIA certified it platinum for 70,000 copies shipped.^[13] Most Wanted was Duff's first to reach the top forty on the UK Albums Chart: it entered at number thirty-one with 10,700 copies,^[14] and it was certified gold by the BPI for shipping 100,000 copies.^[15]

"Wake Up", the first single from Most Wanted, was released to U.S. radio and television in mid-July 2005.^[16] It received frequent play on Radio Disney^[6] and reached number twenty-nine on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, becoming Duff's highest peaking single on the chart. Though airplay for the song on CHR/Top 40 radio was extremely limited,^[12] its music video was a MTV Total Request Live staple for several weeks.^[17] The single reached the top ten in the UK (where it is her biggest hit), the top twenty in Australia and the top forty in Australia, though it failed to reach the top forty in Germany.^[12]

Video promotion for "Beat of My Heart", the second single, began in November. Its music video reached number one on TRL,^[18] and Most Wanted returned to the U.S. top forty during the same period. However, the single failed to chart on the Hot 100; Billboard magazine wrote "this is a kiddie anthem, plain and simple ... it is hardly a contender for contemporary radio."^[19] It was more successful than "Wake Up" in Australia, where it peaked inside the top twenty.^[12]

"Supergirl", the album's third U.S. single, was originally slated for full release as a single,^[20] but instead it was issued without as a video as a download-only single in February 2006. In the British Isles "Fly" was released as the album's second single in March 2006, and it reached the top twenty in the UK.

Duff embarked on a Canadian-only concert tour in 2005, titled the Most Wanted Tour, and she later went on the Still Most Wanted tour in July 2005; the tour came to the British Isles in April 2006.

[edit] Track listing

[edit] Standard version (U.S./UK)

1. "Wake Up" (Dead Executives, Hilary Duff) – 3:38
2. "The Getaway" (James Michael, Julian Bunetta) – 3:37
3. "Beat of My Heart" (Dead Executives, Duff) – 3:09
4. "Come Clean" (remix 2005) (Kara DioGuardi, John Shanks) – 3:44
5. "Mr. James Dean" (Duff, Haylie Duff, Kevin DeClue) – 3:29
6. "So Yesterday" (Lauren Christy, Charlie Midnight, Graham Edwards, Scott Spock) – 3:35
7. "Metamorphosis" (Midnight, Andre Recke, Duff, Chico Bennett) – 3:28
8. "Rock This World" (remix 2005) (Ty Stevens, Midnight, Denny Weston Jr., Duff) – 3:58
9. "Break My Heart" (Dead Executives, Duff) – 3:21
10. "Fly" (DioGuardi, Shanks) – 3:43
11. "Girl Can Rock" (remix 2005) (Midnight, Weston Jr.) – 3:04
12. "Our Lips Are Sealed" (Terence E. Hall, Jane M. Wiedlin) featuring Haylie Duff – 2:40
13. "Why Not" (remix 2005) (Matthew Gerrard, Midnight)
14. Hidden track: "I Am" (remix 2005) (Diane Warren)

[edit] Charts

[edit] Credits

• Juliana Bunetta - producer
• Dean Butterworth - drums
• Chris Cox - remixing
• Dead Executives - bass, guitar, Producer
• Kevin DeClue - producer, mixing
• Haylie Duff - producer, mixing, vocals
• Hilary Duff - liner notes, executive producer, vocals
• Fruit - vocals (background)
• Allen Hessler - assistant engineer
• Jay Landers - executive producer
• Stephen Marcussen - mastering
• Charlie Midnight - producer
• Monique Powell - vocals (background)
• Andre Recke - executive producer
• Jeff Rothschild - mixing
• Eric Sarafin - mixing
• John Shanks - producer, mixing
• Joel Soyffer - mixing
• Denny Weston, Jr. - producer

[edit] Notes

1. ^ Lamb, Bill. "Most Wanted - Hilary Duff". About.com.
2. ^ Kraines, Talia. "Albums - Hilary Duff, Most Wanted". BBC Music.
3. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Most Wanted - Hilary Duff". All Music Guide.
4. ^ Cinquemani, Sal. "Hilary Duff - Most Wanted". Slant. 2005.
5. ^ D., Spence. "Hilary Duff - Most Wanted". IGN. August 16, 2005.
6. ^ ^{a b} Whitmire, Margo. "Duff Is 'Most Wanted' On Billboard Album Chart". Billboard. August 24, 2005.
7. ^ Whitmire, Margo. "Duff Set Remains 'Most Wanted' At No. 1". Billboard. August 31, 2005.
8. ^ ^{a b} "Gold and Platinum Database Search". Recording Industry Association of America. September 21, 2005.
9. ^ "United World Chart - Albums - Week 35 / 2005". media traffic. September 3, 2005.
10. ^ Kuebler, Martin. "Duff is 'Most Wanted' on Cdn. charts" Jam! Music. August 24, 2005.
11. ^ ^{a b} "Gold & Platinum Certification - Audio Certifications". Canadian Recording Industry Association. December 2005.
12. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i j k l m n} "Hilary Duff". MARIAH-Charts.com.
13. ^ ^{a b} "ARIA Charts - Accreditations - 2005 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association.
14. ^ Music Week. November 12, 2005.
15. ^ ^{a b} "Certified Awards - Duff Hilary, Most Wanted, Gold". January 13, 2006. British Phonographic Industry. January 13, 2006.
16. ^ Jeckell, Barry A. "Duff Finalizes 'Most Wanted' Track List". Billboard. July 12, 2005.
17. ^ "The TRL Archive - October 2005". popfusion.net.
18. ^ "The TRL Archive - November 2005", "The TRL Archive - December 2005". popfusion.net.
19. ^ "Billboard single reviews: Destiny's Child, Nickelback". Billboard. November 20, 2005.
20. ^ Vineyard, Jennifer. "Hilary Duff Puts Everything On Hold To Do Nothing". MTV News. November 9, 2005.

[edit] References

• Credits