Some k.d. lang fans argue that the Alberta-born crooner released her best work during the first 10 years of her career. Dressed in layers of thrift store finery, with stage moves that recalled the Tasmanian Devil, lang's quirky 'cow-punk' style made an unforgettable first impression. Sassy antics aside, her appeal was cross-generational, blowing audiences away night after night with an incredible voice and commanding presence. Lang's new release Reintarnationis a best-of anthology of her independent music from this period--from her self-released single, 1983's "Friday Dance Promenade" to material from 1989's Absolute Torch and Twang--as well as a smattering of lesser-known numbers from the Even Cowgirls Get The Blues soundtrack. The 20-song collection does a great job of mixing some of lang's hoe-down favourites ("Turn Me Round," "Hanky Panky," "Big Boned Gal") with gorgeous, open-throated ballads that showcase her singing and songwriting skills (with the help of co-producer/co-writer Ben Mink). Her performances in late '80s songs like "Diet of Strange Places," "Trail of Broken Hearts" and "Pullin' Back the Reins" were a preview of the vocal deftness that later launched her into superstardom, most notably via her moving cover of Roy Orbison's "Crying" years later. While one would hope for a handful of previously-unreleased tracks on this retrospective, alas, there's just one: a pleasant but harmless track called "Change My Mind" which was dropped 20 years ago, but later completed and recorded for this collection. The shortage of as-yet-unheard material is the only disappointment from this worthwhile collection. --Denise Sheppard
More from k.d. lang
Hymns of the 49th Parallel
A Wonderful World (with Tony Bennett)
Ingenue
Drag
Absolute Torch & Twang
Shadowland
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