The Hits--Chapter One

First they went platinum...Now they're going green. Your best loved music in its simplest form. 20 best-selling "Greatest Hits" & "Best of" collections now available in a new eco-friendly package. 1CD in card wallet packaging - no plastic, no booklet - just great music! Booklets are available online through a unique URL on the package.

OhmygodtheBackstreetBoysrule!!!!!! OK, with that out of the way, let's review The Hits--Chapter One, which is one-stop shopping for the hunky pop group's three American albums--their 1997 self-titled debut, 1999's Millennium, and 2000's Black & Blue. The first disc really shines with "As Long as You Love Me," "Quit Playing Games (With My Heart)," and "All I Have to Give," capturing the Backstreet Boys' essence: sunny pop under the influence of blue-eyed soul. "I Want It That Way," from the second album, is an undeniable classic, while "The Call" has a deliciously frenzied sexual urgency and a strong, danceable beat. But the other tracks are uneven with the oddball fan-appreciation anthem "Larger Than Life" surrounded by somber, predictable ballads. The new single, "Drowning," is same-old same-old: lazy moaning over a drum machine. The Hits--Chapter One might be an optimistic name for this '90s retrospective. The future is cloudy for chapter two. --Courtney Kemp