A recent review of Lenny Kravitz's greatest hits album contained a couple of Prince references.



Lenny Kravitz - Greatest Hits

***1/2



It's been five albums and more than ten years since the now dreadlockless Lenny Kravitz first made himself known to the world with his debut album and mantra 'Let Love Rule'. Taking Prince's 'Dirty Mind' (1980) as his most up-to-date inspiration, he is a singer/songwriter/producer for whom the word 'retro' could have been invented.



Things started brightly for the legendary ladies man with the critical acclaim of his debut and its follow-up, 'Mama Said' two years later. Ironically, he scored his first international smash when his repetitiveness was starting to grate. The Hendrix-esque 'Are You Gonna Go My Way' became his signature tune but was on his weakest album.



That was seven years ago and he seemed destined to end up in the obscurity of 'Where are they now?' features. That was until his song 'Fly Away', from the previously anonymous '5', appeared in a car commercial and became a worldwide hit last year.



Not placing these tracks in chronological order makes sense for this career assessment, as there has been virtually no artistic growth in a decade. His ideas are stuck firmly in the past and his albums blur into one another.



Although he seems comfortable on guitar-heavy fare like '60s cover 'American Woman', he is at his best on sumptuous ballads 'Heaven Help' and 'It Ain't Over Til It's Over'.



As for the one new song on this collection, the heartfelt 'Again' dips back into the well of his original inspiration, borrowing heavily from ballad 'Wherever U Go, Whatever U Do' on Prince's most recent album. Is he original? Never. Is he good at what he does? Certainly.