When Britney released ‘…Baby One More Time’ at the tail-end of the last century, few would have predicted that she’d still be around today. Sure, it quickly became obvious that the track – reportedly rejected by TLC – was one of the great pop singles, but the history books are littered with the remains of stars that instantly light up the charts only to burn up just as fast. Despite some filler-heavy albums, Britney has always been something else, and this compilation perfectly captures the career of one of the best singles artists of the last ten years.

Where her 2004 Best Of, My Prerogative, was let down by some needless inclusions, unsatisfying sequencing and under-written new material, the 18-track Singles Collection is as lean as the star herself after a couple of months on the road. Better still, it features the best singles from the Blackout and Circus albums, which salvaged Britney’s career as a pop artist in the face of a personal breakdown. The only possible quibble is having newbie ’3′ tacked on the start rather than the end – ruining the otherwise chronological tracklisting – but in the grand scheme of things that matters not-a-jot.

Running from ‘…Baby One More Time’ to ‘Radar’, you get a single-disc timeline that shows a progression in style and substance from school uniform-wearing pop ingénue to sultry motorik saucepot. There’s an argument that the 65-minute run-time should have been extended to include a few more songs, but in the main it’s the slowies that have been dropped, and that’s no bad thing. Of course, there’s little you can say about the songs themselves that hasn’t already been said. Hits like ‘Toxic’ and ‘Oops!… I Did It Again’ proved their cultural cachet by featuring in Doctor Who and John & Edward’s most magical moment respectively. Even the oft-forgotten ‘Stronger’ boasts two stone-cold classic pop moments: the lyrical inversion of her debut hit (“My loneliness ain’t killing me no more”) and that sound drop-out at two-and-a-half minutes that teases before the chorus slams back in.

Britney’s voice has long been a source of contention, but while the debate about the value of a lip-synced live concert continues to rage, this compilation underlines her worth as a distinctive pop singer, at least on record. She certainly doesn’t have the pipes of contemporaries Christina or Shakira, let alone the likes of Mariah or Whitney, but as last year’s X Factor finalists showed, it’s not as easy as it looks to make these songs sound as good as they do here.

And there’s nothing that sounds out of place. The thematic muddle of wedging a coming-of-age ballad (‘I’m Not A Girl…’) between two slabs of sexed-up hip-pop (‘Slave 4 U’, ‘Boys’) looks dodgy on paper, but sounds perfect in the listening. Best of all is the double-header of ‘Everytime’ and ‘Gimme More’, where you get Brit’s best ballad jammed up against a throbbing robopop thriller that’s rightfully survived her infamous VMAs performance. The only arguable weak link is the Madonna-featuring ‘Me Against The Music’, but in this context what once looked like a respectful passing of the baton now seems like an unconditional surrender of pop Queendom to its rightful heir.

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Britney Spears’ The Singles Collection opens at #22. The sub-par showing is due to two factors. This is Spears’ second compilation (2004′s Greatest Hits: My Prerogative reached #4). And greatest hits sets simply don’t mean as much in the iTunes era. “3,” the album’s new song, rebounds from #8 to #7 on Hot Digital Songs. It’ll top the 1 million mark in paid downloads next week.

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Well that’s way, way, way better than I was expecting tbh. Anyway, congrats Britney.

Update:

“3″ rises 2 spots from #8 to #6 on Billboard hot 100. 3 has currently spent 6 weeks in the top 10 on the BB Hot 100.

Celebrate Britney’s reign as the QUEEN OF POP for 10 years (& counting)! The Singles Collection out today!- Jivemusic

Physical Copies
The Singles Collection CD (worldwide): Nov. 10
The Singles Collection CD (UK/Europe only): Nov. 24

The Singles Collection Box Set + DVD (worldwide): Nov. 24

International Only CD + DVD (worldwide): Nov. 10
International Only CD + DVD (UK/Europe only): Nov. 24
“International Only CD + DVD” will include original 17-song track list, plus the single, “I’m Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman.” See above for official international CD cover.

Exclusive Britney.com Edition-Direct To Consumer (worldwide): Nov. 24
“Exclusive Britney.com Edition-Direct To Consumer” will include the physical box set + DVD, PLUS a digital version of the “3″ music video. All countries will be able to order this online via Britney.com.

Digital Downloads
The Singles Collection-Digital Standard (US): Nov. 10
The Singles Collection-Digital Standard (Mexico/Australia/New Zealand/Canada): Nov. 9
The Singles Collection-Digital Standard (UK/Europe): Nov. 23
“The Singles Collection-Digital Standard” version will include original 17-song track list, plus the single, “I’m Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman.” iTunes will be the only digital retailer in the US with this 18-track version.

The Singles Collection-Digital Deluxe (US): Nov. 10
The Singles Collection-Digital Deluxe (Mexico/Australia/New Zealand/Canada): Nov. 9
The Singles Collection-Digital Deluxe (UK/Europe): Nov. 23
“The Singles Collection-Digital Deluxe” version will include the original 58-song track list from the box set but will NOT include music videos.

Digital 45s (US): Nov. 10
Digital 45s (Mexico/Australia/New Zealand/Canada): Nov. 9
Digital 45s (UK/Europe): Nov. 23
“Digital 45s” will be available on iTunes in groups of two, same paired groupings as the box set.

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*New single “3” impacts radio 10/5
*Video directed by Diane Martel (Pussycat Dolls, Ciara) impacts 10/19
*Robust TV and online advertising campaign to support
**Major digital fan initiatives to support Singles Collection
*Multiple re-airings of MTV’s Britney Spears: For the Record timed with release
*Cover of December issue of Elle Magazine
*Wrapped sold-out second leg of tour at the end of September

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Source + bigger version of the artwork

The artwork for the standard edition for the Singles Collection has been released. Cutie pie. For once they didn’t *oops * it up.

Picture courtesy of Britneysweden.se

Source + bigger version of the artwork

Also, both the Ultimate Fan Box ($99.98) and standard edition ($13.98) of The Singles Collection are now available for pre-order on Amazon. Reasonable pricing or not? Either way, pre-order now if you want it!

SINGLE: Baby One More Time
B SIDE: Autumn Goodbye

SINGLE: Sometimes
B SIDE: I’m So Curious

SINGLE: (You Drive Me) Crazy (The Stop Remix)
B SIDE: I’ll Never Stop Loving You

SINGLE: Born To Make You Happy
REMIX: Kristian Lundin Bonus Remix

SINGLE: From the Bottom of My Broken Heart
B SIDE: Thinkin’ About You

SINGLE: Oops!…I did It Again
B SIDE: Deep In My Heart

SINGLE: Lucky
B SIDE: Heart

SINGLE: Stronger
B SIDE: Walk On By

SINGLE: Don’t Let Me Be The Last To Know
REMIX: Hex Hector Radio Mix

SINGLE: I’m A Slave 4 U
B SIDE: Intimidated

SINGLE: Overprotected
REMIX: JS16 Remix Radio Edit

SINGLE: I’m Not A Girl, Not Yet A Woman
B SIDE: I Run Away

SINGLE: I Love Rock n Roll

SINGLE: Boys, The Co-Ed Remix featuring Pharrell Williams
B SIDE: Boys (Album Version)

SINGLE: Me Against the Music
REMIX: Passengerz vs. The Club

SINGLE: Toxic
REMIX: Bloodshy & Avant’s Intoxicated Remix

SINGLE: Everytime
REMIX: Above & Beyond Club Mix

SINGLE: Outrageous
REMIX: Junkie XL’s Dancehall Mix

SINGLE: My Prerogative
REMIX: Armand Van Helden Remix

SINGLE: Do Something
REMIX: Thick Vocal Mix

SINGLE: Someday
B SIDE: Mona Lisa

SINGLE: Gimme More
REMIX: Oakenfold Remix

SINGLE: Piece of Me
REMIX: Bloodshy & Avant’s Boz O lo Remix

SINGLE: Break The Ice
REMIX: Kaskade Remix

SINGLE: Womanizer
REMIX: Kaskade Remix

SINGLE: Circus
REMIX: Tom Neville’s Ring Leader Mix

SINGLE: If U Seek Amy
REMIX: Crookers Remix

SINGLE: Radar
REMIX: Bloodshy & Avant Remix

SINGLE: “3″
REMIX: TBD

DVD
15 clips de Britney

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01. 3
02. Baby One More Time
03. (You Drive Me) Crazy (The Stop Remix!)
04. Born To Make You Happy
05. Oops!…I Did It Again
06. Stronger
07. I’m A Slave 4 U
08. I’m Not A Girl, Not Yet A Woman
09. Boys (The Co-Ed Remix) featuring Pharrell Williams
10. Me Against The Music featuring Madonna
11. Toxic
12. Everytime
13. Gimme More
14. Piece Of Me
15. Womanizer
16. Circus
17. If U Seek Amy
18. Radar

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Not 100% sure if this is real or not so let’s just wait.

Britney Spears “The Singles Collection”
In Stores November 24
New Song “3″ Goes to Radio September 29

New York, NY – In celebration of the 10th anniversary of her debut on the music scene, Jive Records is releasing Britney Spears The Singles Collection on November 24. To launch the special package a brand new single entitled “3,” which Britney recently recorded with hitmaker Max Martin, will go to radio Tuesday, September 29.

There will be two configurations of The Singles Collection; an ultimate fan box set and a standard version.

The ultimate fan box set version of The Singles Collection will contain all 29 of her singles, including the new song “3.” Each disc will be packaged in its own slip sleeve case with original artwork, and will include an additional b-side or a remix of the track. The collection will include a DVD featuring all of Britney’s videos in chronological order. The ultimate fan box set will also include a special booklet featuring iconic images and fun facts about each track.

The standard version of The Singles Collection will contain 17 of her chart topping favorites along with the new song “3,” all on one CD.

During her 10 year career, Britney has had 5 albums debut at the #1 spot on the Billboard Top 100 Album Chart, as well as 23 Top 40 hits on the Billboard Pop Singles Chart. Worldwide, Britney Spears is one of the top-selling artists of the last decade, constantly topping charts with her albums  …Baby One More Time (1999);  Oops!… I Did It Again (2000); Britney (2001); In The Zone (2003); Blackout (2007) and Circus (2008). Worldwide she has sold over 63 million albums.

Britney Spears is currently touring in support of her most recent studio album Circus. “The Circus Starring Britney Spears” tour which started in her home state of Louisiana in March 2009.

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OMG. * reads *