Greatest Hits
In retrospect, the point at which Will Smith went too far was with 1999's "Freakin' It," on which, over samples from "Love Hangover" and "Rapper's Delight," he boasted of his movie earnings, defended himself against charges of being a "soft" rapper, and criticized his peers. It was hard to dispute any of his arguments (though the citation of the American Music Awards as an example of his superiority seemed a bit of a stretch), but the song also emphasized -- in the wrong way, as far as fans were concerned -- how far Smith had come from Philadelphia, and it flopped. After that, his movies and records had to struggle more for attention. All careers go through peaks and troughs, however, and this collection of Smith s musical high points makes the case for his popularity, dating back to the late-'80s days of DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince whose work is licensed from Jive Records for one-third of the tracks here. Not all of the early duo's hits are included, but the signature ones, particularly the breakout "Parents Just Don't Understand," are. In a sense, this is Smith at his most appealing, using rap to create novelty records that reveal the comic sense that later would light up movie screens. He remains engaging through solo hits like "Men in Black" and "Getting' Jiggy Wit It," even if he already seems to be starting to believe his press clips. By this point, the musical career has become an appendage of the movie career, and movie stardom begins to inform the raps culminating in the defensiveness of "Freakin' It." Along the way, however, there is some clever writing, always put across by Smith s expansive personality, which enabled him to swim against the current of contemporary rap at least for a time. ~ William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide
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Greatest Hits
- UPC:
- 696998707627
- Label:
-
Columbia
- Released:
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11/26/2002
- Rating:
-
0
- Disc:
-
1
- Genre:
-
Music
| | Title | Time |
Preview
|
| 1 | Girls Ain't Nothing But Trouble | 4:48 |
|
| 2 | Parents Just Don't Understand | 5:13 |
|
| 3 | A Nightmare On My Street (Single Version) | 7:37 |
|
| 4 | The Fresh Prince Of Bel Air (Theme From NBC's The Fresh | 4:18 |
|
| 5 | Summertime | 7:11 |
|
| 6 | Just Cruisin' | 4:00 |
|
| 7 | 1,000 Kisses (Radio Edit) | 5:45 |
|
| 8 | Men In Black | 3:47 |
|
| 9 | Gettin' Jiggy Wit It | 3:49 |
|
| 10 | Miami | 3:18 |
|
| 11 | Freakin' It | 3:59 |
|
| 12 | Will 2K | 3:56 |
|
| 13 | Wild Wild West | 4:06 |
|
| 14 | Nod Ya Head (The Remix) | 3:45 |
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| 15 | Just The Two Of Us | 5:16 |
|
Credits »
Hula - Producer
Anas Allaf - Digital Editing
Craig Burbidge - Digital Editing
David Campbell - String Arrangements
Rob Chiarelli - Producer
Rob Chiarelli - Engineer
Rob Chiarelli - Mixing
Rob Chiarelli - Remix Producer
Steve Churchyard - String Engineer
The Fresh Prince - Producer
Pete Harris - Producer
Jazzy Jeff - Producer
Joe the Butcher - Engineer
Tony Maserati - Mixing
Benny Medina - Executive Producer
Greg Pagani - Remix Producer
Herb Powers - Mastering
Sauce - Producer
Sauce - Vocal Producer
Arty Skye - Engineer
Richard Travali - Mixing
Chris Trevett - Engineer
Ken Ifill - Engineer
Michael Lavine - Photography
Commissioner Gordon - Mixing
Aimee MacAuley - Art Direction
Kevin Crouse - Engineer
Poke - Programming
Poke - Producer
Poke - Executive Producer
Poke - Drum Programming
James Lassiter - Executive Producer
Will Smith - Main Performer
Michael Goods - Engineer
Bryan Golder - Digital Editing
James Cruz - Mastering
Rob Fusari - Producer
Ann Carli - Executive Producer
John Shrive - Engineer
Reisig - Photography
Mark Wilson - Producer
Chandler Bridges - Digital Editing
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