The replacement for an identically titled disc released just five years prior, the 2006 version of
The Ultimate Luther Vandross swaps out some of the earlier cuts contained on the 2001 version in favor of later material, such as "Dance with My Father" and he and
Beyoncé's version of "The Closer I Get to You." What's baffling is that it leaves out some major hits in favor of a pair of previously unreleased tracks (including the
Jimmy Jam and
Terry Lewis-produced,
Chic-sampling "Shine"), both of which are front-loaded in the sequence. So, bizarrely enough, the disc has a funny way of catering toward completists as well as slightly less serious fans who stopped buying
Vandross albums after 1998's
I Know. Though this is the best single-disc compilation available in the U.S. (as of 2006, at least), you really need something more extensive, such as Epic/Legacy's The Essential Luther Vandross, a two-disc set released in 2003. ~ Andy Kellman