Humphead Records puts together the two
Lee Ann Womack recordings that really brought her to the fore not only as an artist who could generate hit singles, but one who was able to offer stellar albums as well. 2000's I Hope You Dance offered a smash in the title track single, but her version of
Rodney Crowell's "Ashes by Now" proved the song timeless no matter the arrangement or production. It also featured the killer "Lonely Too" by
Bruce Robison, and
Buddy Miller's killer heartbreak tune "Does My Ring Burn Your Finger?" What the album proved more than anything else was
Womack's considerable depth as a singer who didn't sit quite so well with the cognoscenti in Nash Vegas, but country music fans liked her just fine. 2002's Something Worth Leaving Behind was another hot record. Along with the title track written by
Brett Beavers that served as the album's first single, it also contained one of
Gretchen Peters finest songs from the period in the heartbreakingly beautiful "I Saw Your Light." But
Womack was bucking the trend; rather than cement her notoriety with the latest batch from Music City's chart-topping songwriters, she opted instead to record two tunes by
Buddy's wife, songwriter
Julie Miller, in "Orphan Train" and the provocative prayer "I Need You." There was a smoking reading of
Hank Cochran's countrypolitain weeper "He'll Be Back,"
David Grissom's "Talk to Me," and
Angelo's awesome "You Should've Lied." For anyone who missed one or both of these the first time around, this is a necessary two-fer that deserves a place on any country music fan's shelf. ~ Thom Jurek, All Music Guide
