Celine Dion - Avec Toi: The Very Best Of The Early Years (2013)

This two-CD set collects most of Celine Dion's essential recordings from her pre-superstar years, when she was a very young French singer, popular in Canada and France. This set starts with the heavily synthesized Euro pop of the 1988 Eurovision contest winner "Ne Partez Pas Sans Moi," which was the song that introduced the singer to international audiences, and is something of a milestone in her career. Many of the songs on this set are fair, and differ from the processed teen pop of the late 1990s because of the ever-present sincerity in Dion's voice. Highlights include the elegant ballads "Tellement J'ai D'amour Pour Toi," "Benjamin," and "La Voix Du Bon Dieu"; the shimmering "Avec Toi" and "Du Soleil Au Coeur"; and the anthemic "C'est Pour Vivre." Other songs almost make the mark, such as the dramatic "La Religieuse," but are marred by sometimes bizarre production, and, in this case, a truly off-putting bridge. Others are sing-song, nursery rhyme-type material, especially "Hymne a L'amitie" and the incredibly '80s sounding "Hello Mister Sam." This lightweight set isn't offensive by any means, but probably of interest only to the singer's most devoted fans. ~ Jose F. Promis, All Music