Jessi Colter

An Outlaw...a Lady: The Very Best of Jessi Colter is a long-overdue full-length compilation of Colter's most popular recordings of the 1970s and '80s. Among its 18 tracks are nine of her ten Top 50 country hits, including two licensed from RCA Victor, "Suspicious Minds" and "Under Your Spell Again," both duets with her husband, Waylon Jennings. (A third RCA hit with Jennings, "Storms Never Last," is presented here in Colter's solo recording of the song for Capitol.) The country Top Ten medley of the 1952 country hits "Wild Side of Life/It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels" (the two songs conveniently have the same melody) is another duet with Jennings, and then there is the number one country/number four pop signature song "I'm Not Lisa" and its number five country follow-up, "What's Happened to Blue Eyes," plus the down-chart country hits "It's Morning (And I Still Love You)," "Without You," "I Thought I Heard You Calling My Name," and "Maybe You Should've Been Listening." The collection is filled out with key album tracks such as "You Mean to Say," a third RCA licensing, from the breakthrough album The Outlaws, "You Ain't Ever Been Loved (Like I'm Gonna Love You)" from I'm Jessi Colter, "Here I Am" from Jessi, and "You Hung the Moon (Didn't You Waylon?)" from Diamonds in the Rough. The result is an excellent overview of Colter's recording career that emphasizes both her sensitive way with a heartbreaking ballad and her facility with more up-tempo material. ~ William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide