Robert Palmer – Collected (2xLP, Music On Vinyl)

Robert Palmer's Collected gathers the shape-shifting highlights of a solo career that ran for around three decades, tracing how he moved between soul, reggae, pop, funk and slicker rock without ever sounding boxed in. That range is the point here: this set pulls together major singles with deeper cuts, so it works as more than a straightforward hits package.

Palmer started out in the 1960s and built his solo name after Vinegar Joe, developing a style that could be suave one moment and gritty the next. Collected follows that arc from early signatures like “Sneakin' Sally Through the Alley” and “Every Kinda People” to the cool, new-wave edge of “Johnny and Mary,” then on to the MTV-era run that made “Addicted to Love” unavoidable. It also leaves room for his wider musical world, including “Some Like It Hot” from The Power Station and his later hit collaboration with UB40 on Bob Dylan's “I'll Be Your Baby Tonight.”

What makes this compilation especially useful is how clearly it shows Palmer as an interpreter as well as a star: a singer with deep roots in blues, soul and Caribbean rhythms who kept updating his sound as pop changed around him. If you know only the immaculate image and the big 1980s videos, this is a broader and more satisfying introduction.

Features

• 2xLP, 180g, Music On Vinyl
• Gatefold sleeve
• Includes insert