Tears Of Fire: The 25th Anniversary Collection
Sometimes itishard to be a woman. That, of course, is the central line in Tammy Wynette's signature song, and the message that she conveyed repeatedly over the course of her three-decades-long recording career. Wynette was uniquely suited to convey pathos with pluck. She, along with Loretta Lynn, pretty much defined country music from the female perspective from the late '60s through the '70s. But while Lynn presented a mostly amiable façade, Wynette was the more gripping and imposing artist. For starters, she possessed pipes that could tear your heart out of your chest.Tears of Fire(and what and excellent--and appropriate--title) gathers all her hits and a few oddities (1964's pre-flight "You Can Steal Me," her weird but captivating 1991 collaboration with the urban dance unit the KLF) in one three-disc package. Old fans will find this essential; the merely curious with a skewed outlook on the down-home diva based on "Stand by Your Man" will be stunned by how talented Wynette really was.--Steven Stolder