Ultimate Kylie

Ultimate Kylie
Greatest hits album by Kylie Minogue
Released 22 November 2004
Recorded 1987–2004
Genre
Length 51:35 (CD 1)
69:26 (CD 2)
Label
Producer
Kylie Minogue chronology

Artist Collection
(2004)		 Ultimate Kylie
(2004)		 Confide in Me: The Irresistible Kylie
(2007)
Singles from Ultimate Kylie
  1. "I Believe in You"
    Released: 6 December 2004
  2. "Giving You Up"
    Released: 28 March 2005

Ultimate Kylie is the third compilation album by Australian singer and songwriter Kylie Minogue, released on 22 November 2004 by Parlophone Records. This collection superseded Kylie's 1992 Greatest Hits compilation and the 2000 compilation Hits+. The album contains work from all nine of her studio albums released at that point, plus two new tracks, "I Believe in You" and "Giving You Up". It was released with the Copy Control protection system in some regions. Ultimate Kylie was released in different formats, with most countries having the two-disc CD, while other countries included a bonus DVD, and a bonus digital download video of "Dancing Queen", a cover from 1970's Swedish group ABBA.

Ultimate Kylie received positive reviews from music critics, with many noting Minogue's best collection of hits in one album, but some said that some missing hits were disappointing. It was a success commercially, reaching the top ten in Australia, Germany and United Kingdom. The compilation was promoted through the Showgirl: The Greatest Hits Tour in 2005. After Minogue was diagnostised with breast cancer, she canceled the tour and was resumed with another leg in 2006. The album was re-released exclusively in Australia as a set consisting of two CDs and a DVD to coincide with her return to prominence and saw the album re-enter the charts at a peak of number seven.

Background

Ultimate Kylie is Minogue's second major "greatest hits" album (the first one being Greatest Hits). Although not her first hits compilation, Ultimate Kylie is notable as being the first album to include Minogue's Stock Aitken Waterman, Deconstruction and Parlophone Records recordings in one package. Advertisements for the album claimed it contained every single Minogue had released in the UK. These were misleading, as several of her charting singles were not included. The album contained two new songs, "I Believe in You" and "Giving You Up", which were recorded especially for the Ultimate Kylie release.

Other songs that were leftovers from the Body Language recording sessions were considered for inclusion on the album, however only one of those songs, "B.P.M." was released as the B-side to "I Believe in You". "Give Me a Reason" and "I'm Fascinated" are the songs that were thought to be included in this album but they did not make the final cut. Both were written by Kylie Minogue & "BiffCo". A track entitled "I Put a Spell on You" is also thought to exist. According to the EMI/Parlophone catalogue it is one of the classic jazz recordings from Kylie.

While working with Xenomania, Kylie recorded "Made Of Glass" which was released as the b-side to "Giving You Up". During those sessions, they penned a song named "Loving You". Although it was never properly recorded, a demo of the song was leaked in 2004 just after the release of Ultimate Kylie along with "Everything I Know", which was a demo recorded with the Scissor Sisters.

Release history

The singles that are missing are: from Kylie, "It's No Secret"; from Let's Get to It, "Word Is Out", "If You Were with Me Now", "Finer Feelings"; Greatest Hits, "What Kind of Fool (Heard All That Before)"; Kylie Minogue, "Where Is the Feeling?" and "Some Kind of Bliss" from Impossible Princess. Many of the singles that were released during her Stock Aitken Waterman and Deconstruction period were not included on the second CD to save room for her bigger hit singles that were produced during her releases with Parlophone. The Japanese release contained three bonus tracks: "Turn It into Love", "Can't Get Blue Monday Out of My Head" and "Slow" (Chemical Brothers Remix).

A DVD was simultaneously released under the same name, containing all the music videos of the CDs, with the exception of "Giving You Up" (which at the time had not been filmed). It also contains Minogue's performance at the 2002 BRIT Awards of "Can't Get Blue Monday Out of My Head": a mix of "Can't Get You Out Of My Head" and New Order's "Blue Monday". Early versions of the UK DVD are known to suffer from the DVD rot phenomenon, after a short period of time, where the playing surface becomes incredibly cloudy or forms a 'cracked' pattern. EMI UK have not publicly addressed this issue.

The album was promoted by the Showgirl: The Greatest Hits Tour. The album was repackaged and reissued in October 2006 in Australia only as the Showgirl Tour Special Edition. The repackaged version contains 2 CDs and 1 DVD, originally available separately. Parlophone has not announced any plans of a UK reissue, however, the version was made available online through such retailers as HMV as an import.

Reception

Critical response

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
About.com [1]
Allmusic [2]
PopMatters (8/10)[3]
Stylus (C)[4]
Yahoo! Music (8/10)[5]

Ultimate Kylie received a generally positive response from music critics. PopMatters gave it a positive review, saying: "Ultimate Kylie, which seems condensed even at its double-disc length, is one of the best collections of dance music available, even while including her ‘80s pop hits. It is enough to get her MP3s permanently out of my "guilty pleasures" bin" and gave the album an 8 out of 10 rating, which means that the album was of excellent status and "among the best work of the given artist, or among the best in the given genre". Stephen Thomas Erlewine from Allmusic gave it a very positive review, awarding it four and a half out of five stars. At first he said "There certainly hasn't been a shortage of Kylie Minogue hits compilations", but finished the album with a positive review and ending saying "it nevertheless gives all the hits, both big and small, in one place, which means that this not only makes this ideal for fans for all levels of dedication, it means that Ultimate Kylie lives up to its billing."

Jason Shawahn from About.com gave it a positive review, awarding it four stars out of five. He praised the album for its inclusion of two new songs, which he feels were "among the finest tracks that Kylie has recorded in years" and show her at her best. He later finished saying "but as far as providing the comprehensive Kylie, the folks at EMI have done a pretty good job." In a review for Stylus Magazine, Mark Edwards called the first disc "horribly naff" and full of "squeaky songs". The review also mentioned "every year or two she’ll release another pop gem, sell a squillion more calendars and finally retire as a multi-millionairess with a greatest hits compilation in every household. Because everyone loves Kylie, even if half of this album is terrible." Jaime Gill from Yahoo! Music gave it a positive review, saying "But why not accept it as merely the brand for a shiny double CD of brilliant pop tunes? If she disappeared tomorrow few would really care, but if songs like this did we really, really would."[5] In 2007, The Guardian included the album in their "1000 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die" list.[6]

Chart performance

In the United Kingdom, Ultimate Kylie debuted at number four, and peaking there, staying in for thirty-one weeks. The album was certificated 3x Platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), selling over 900,000 copies. In total the album has sold over a million copies in the UK. The album was released in the United States physically and digitally, however the album did not chart on the Billboard 200. The album debuted at number five on the Australian Albums Chart. The album stayed in the charts for forty-two weeks. The album was certificated 4x Platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), selling over 280,000 copies in the country.[7]

Ultimate Kylie had other success in other countries as well. The album managed to peak at number fourteen and thirty-five in Belgium (Flanders) and Belgium (Wallonia), being certificated Platinum there.[8] The album debuted at number forty-nine in Spain, and it eventually peaked at number thirty-four after fifteen weeks in the charts. The album was certificated Gold in the country, selling over 50,000 copies. The album also peaked at number eight on the Irish Albums Chart, and was certificated Platinum by the Irish Recording Music Association. After the success of the album, it was deemed Minogue's most successful compilation greatest hits to date.

Singles
"I Believe in You" (2004)
First single from album.
"Giving You Up" (2004)
Second single from album.
Problems playing these files? See media help.

"I Believe in You" was released as the first worldwide single from the compilation. The song was released in the UK on 6 December 2004, and was heard on radio stations from 19 October 2004. Jake Shears and Babydaddy from the Scissor Sisters are credited as co-writers and producers. "I Believe in You" reached the number two position in the UK behind "Do They Know It's Christmas?" by Band Aid and received generally positive reviews from music critics. In December 2005, the song gained Minogue her fourth Grammy nomination for the Best Dance Recording category.

It was announced that "Giving You Up" will be released as the second and last single from the compilation. It was released as a single on 28 March 2005 in the UK. It peaked at six, giving Minogue another top ten hit and received mixed reviews from music critics. It featured "Made of Glass" as a b-side, a song that was leaked to the internet in December 2004. "Giving You Up" was written and produced with Xenomania.

Tour

In 2005, Minogue embarked on her first greatest hits tour, entitled Showgirl: The Greatest Hits Tour. This was based around the album's track listing, which included some non-single songs and unreleased songs ("Dreams" and "In Denial"). The tour was split into seven acts and an encore. Minogue's costumes and shoes were made by Manolo Blahnik, John Galliano, Julien Macdonald and Stephen Jones. Throughout the concert, Minogue had a total of eight costume changes. The performance on 6 May at Earls Court Exhibition Centre in London was filmed for DVD. Minogue was diagnosed with breast cancer after the European leg so was forced to cancel. She recovered over a year and on 11 November she resumed the tour under the name Showgirl: The Homecoming Tour. This featured new outfits and a change to the setlist. This was again divided into seven acts and an encore, with Minogue having eight costume changes. The breaks in between each act were lengthened and the dance routines from the previous tour were reworked to conserve her strength. The performance in Melbourne on 11 December was filmed for DVD.

Track listing

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Ultimate Kylie.

Disc one
No. TitleWriter(s)Producer(s) Length
1. "Better the Devil You Know" (from Rhythm of Love, 1990)
Stock Aitken Waterman 3:53
2. "The Loco-Motion" (7" Mix, from Kylie, 1988)
Stock Aitken Waterman 3:14
3. "I Should Be So Lucky" (from Kylie, 1988)
  • Stock
  • Aitken
  • Waterman
Stock Aitken Waterman 3:24
4. "Step Back in Time" (from Rhythm of Love, 1990)
  • Stock
  • Aitken
  • Waterman
Stock Aitken Waterman 3:04
5. "Shocked" (from Rhythm of Love, 1990)
  • Stock
  • Aitken
  • Waterman
Stock Aitken Waterman 3:09
6. "What Do I Have to Do" (7" Mix, from Rhythm of Love, 1990)
  • Stock
  • Aitken
  • Waterman
Stock Aitken Waterman 3:33
7. "Wouldn't Change a Thing" (from Enjoy Yourself, 1989)
  • Stock
  • Aitken
  • Waterman
Stock Aitken Waterman 3:14
8. "Hand on Your Heart" (from Enjoy Yourself, 1989)
  • Stock
  • Aitken
  • Waterman
Stock Aitken Waterman 3:51
9. "Especially for You" (with Jason Donovan, from Enjoy Yourself, 1989)
  • Stock
  • Aitken
  • Waterman
Stock Aitken Waterman 3:56
10. "Got to Be Certain" (from Kylie, 1988)
  • Stock
  • Aitken
  • Waterman
Stock Aitken Waterman 3:19
11. "Je Ne Sais Pas Pourquoi" (from Kylie, 1988)
  • Stock
  • Aitken
  • Waterman
Stock Aitken Waterman 4:01
12. "Give Me Just a Little More Time" (from Let's Get to It, 1991)
  • Edyth Wayne
  • Ronald Dunbar
  • Stock
  • Waterman
 3:06
13. "Never Too Late" (from Enjoy Yourself, 1989)
  • Stock
  • Aitken
  • Waterman
Stock Aitken Waterman 3:21
14. "Tears on My Pillow" (from Enjoy Yourself, 1989)
Stock Aitken Waterman 2:29
15. "Celebration" (from Greatest Hits, 1992)
  • Phil Harding
  • Ian Curnow
 3:57
Total length:
 51:35
Disc two
No. TitleWriter(s)Producer(s) Length
1. "I Believe in You"  
  • Shears
  • Babydaddy
 3:21
2. "Can't Get You Out of My Head" (from Fever, 2001)
  • Dennis
  • Davis
 3:49
3. "Love at First Sight" (from Fever, 2001)
  • Stannard
  • Gallagher
 3:57
4. "Slow" (from Body Language, 2003)
Sunnyroads 3:13
5. "On a Night Like This" (from Light Years, 2000)
  • Stack
  • Taylor
 3:33
6. "Spinning Around" (from Light Years, 2000)
Mike Spencer 3:27
7. "Kids" (Radio edit, with Robbie Williams, from Light Years, 2000)
 4:20
8. "Confide in Me" (Radio mix, from Kylie Minogue, 1994)
Brothers in Rhythm 4:26
9. "In Your Eyes" (from Fever, 2001)
  • Minogue
  • Stannard
  • Gallagher
  • Howes
  • Stannard
  • Gallagher
 3:18
10. "Please Stay" (from Light Years, 2000)
  • Minogue
  • Stannard
  • Gallagher
  • John Themis
  • Stannard
  • Gallagher
 4:04
11. "Red Blooded Woman" (from Body Language, 2003)
  • Douglas
  • Poole
 4:20
12. "Giving You Up"  
 3:30
13. "Chocolate" (Radio edit, from Body Language, 2003)
  • Douglas
  • Poole
  • Douglas
  • Poole
 4:01
14. "Come into My World" (Radio edit, from Fever, 2001)
  • Dennis
  • Davis
  • Dennis
  • Davis
 4:06
15. "Put Yourself in My Place" (from Kylie Minogue, 1994)Radio edit, Jimmy HarryHarry 4:11
16. "Did It Again" (from Impossible Princess, 1997)
  • Minogue
  • Anderson
  • Seaman
Brothers in Rhythm 4:14
17. "Breathe" (Radio edit, from Impossible Princess, 1997)
  • Ball
  • Vauk
 3:40
18. "Where the Wild Roses Grow" (with Nick Cave, from Murder Ballads, 1996)Cave
 3:57
Total length:
 69:26

Japanese edition

Showgirl Homecoming special edition

Charts

Chart (2004–05) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[9] 5
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[10] 15
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[11] 14
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[12] 35
Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[13] 17
Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[14] 37
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[15] 24
German Albums (Official Top 100)[16] 10
Greek Albums (IFPI)[17] 9
Irish Albums (IRMA)[18] 8
Italian Albums (FIMI)[19] 42
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[20] 39
New Zealand Albums (Recorded Music NZ)[21] 33
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[22] 18
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[23] 34
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[24] 23
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[25] 19
UK Albums (OCC)[26] 4

Year-end charts

Chart (2004) Position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[27] 42
UK Albums (OCC)[28] 27
Chart (2005) Position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[29] 38
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[30] 82
Chart (2006) Position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[31] 40

End of decade chart

Country Position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[32] 82

Certifications

Region Certification Sales/shipments
Australia (ARIA)[33] 4× Platinum 280,000^
Austria (IFPI Austria)[34] Gold 10,000x
Belgium (BEA)[35] Platinum 50,000*
Ireland (IRMA)[36] 3× Platinum 45,000x
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[37] Gold 50,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[38] 3× Platinum 900,000^
Summaries
Europe (IFPI)[39] Platinum 1,000,000*

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone
xunspecified figures based on certification alone

Album credits

References

  1. ↑ About.com review
  2. ↑ Allmusic review
  3. ↑ PopMatters review
  4. ↑ Stylus review
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Gill, Jaime (16 November 2004). "Kylie Minogue - Ultimate Kylie". Yahoo! Music. Archived from the original on 7 October 2008. Retrieved 20 September 2013.
  6. ↑ "Artists beginning with M (part 1)". The Guardian (Guardian Media Group). 20 November 2007. Retrieved 20 September 2013.
  7. ↑ "ARIA Charts - Accreditations - 2004 Albums". Aria.com.au. Retrieved 2012-01-12.
  8. ↑ http://www.ultratop.be/nl/certifications.asp |title=Ultratop Belgian Charts |publisher=ultratop.be |date= |accessdate=2011-08-17
  9. ↑ "Kylie Minogue – Ultimate Kylie". Australiancharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
  10. ↑ "Kylie Minogue – Ultimate Kylie" (in German). Austriancharts.at. Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
  11. ↑ "Kylie Minogue – Ultimate Kylie" (in Dutch). Ultratop.be. Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
  12. ↑ "Kylie Minogue – Ultimate Kylie" (in French). Ultratop.be. Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
  13. ↑ "Top 40 Albums - 01 / 2005 - Hitlisten". Hitlisten.nu. Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
  14. ↑ "Kylie Minogue – Ultimate Kylie" (in Dutch). Dutchcharts.nl. Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
  15. ↑ "Kylie Minogue: Ultimate Kylie" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
  16. ↑ "Kylie Minogue – Ultimate Kylie". Officialcharts.de. GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 7 September 2013.
  17. ↑ "IFPI Greece - Top 50 Albums (Week of January 30 2005)". IFPI Greece (IFPI Greece). Retrieved 3 May 2013.
  18. ↑ "GFK Chart-Track Albums: Week 48, 2004". Chart-Track. IRMA. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
  19. ↑ "Kylie Minogue – Ultimate Kylie". Italiancharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  20. ↑ "Kylie Minogue's Oricon Chart History". Oricon Style (Japan: Oricon Inc.). Retrieved 27 December 2012.
  21. ↑ "Kylie Minogue – Ultimate Kylie". Charts.org.nz. Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
  22. ↑ "Kylie Minogue – Ultimate Kylie". Norwegiancharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
  23. ↑ "Kylie Minogue – Ultimate Kylie". Spanishcharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
  24. ↑ "Kylie Minogue – Ultimate Kylie". Swedishcharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
  25. ↑ "Kylie Minogue – Ultimate Kylie". Swisscharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
  26. ↑ "Kylie Minogue | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart Retrieved 27 December 2012.
  27. ↑ "ARIA Charts - End of Year Charts - Top 100 Albums 2004". Aria.com.au. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
  28. ↑ "UK Yearly Best Selling Albums (1999-2009)" (PDF). British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  29. ↑ "ARIA Charts - End of Year Charts - Top 100 Albums 2005". Aria.com.au. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
  30. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten 2005". Ultratop. Retrieved 26 January 2015.
  31. ↑ ARIA End-of-year Charts 2006
  32. ↑ 2000s Decade Charts Albums. Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). PDF.
  33. ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2006 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association.
  34. ↑ "Austrian album certifications" (in German). IFPI Austria. Retrieved 9 November 2012.
  35. ↑ "Ultratop − Goud en Platina – 2009". Ultratop & Hung Medien / hitparade.ch. Retrieved 9 November 2012.
  36. ↑ "Irish album certifications". Irish Recorded Music Association.
  37. ↑ "Spanish album certifications – Kylie Minogue" (PDF) (in Spanish). Productores de Música de España. Select the "Chart", enter ' in the field "Year". Select ' in the field "Semana". Click on "Search Charts"
  38. ↑ "British album certifications". British Phonographic Industry.
  39. ↑ "IFPI Platinum Europe Awards – 2004". International Federation of the Phonographic Industry.

External links

  1. ^ Hunter Felt Ultimate Kylie 1. PopMatters. 2004. Retrieved 7 Jan. 2006.
  2. ^ Stephen Thomas Erlewine Ultimate Kylie 2. Allmusic. 2004. Retrieved 7 Jan. 2006.
  3. ^ Jason Shawahn Ultimate Kylie 3. About.com. 2005. Retrieved 7 Jan. 2006.
  4. ^ Mark Edwards Ultimate Kylie 4. Stylus Magazine. 2004. Retrieved 7 Jan. 2006.