Number 1's is Destiny's Child's compliation album that was released on October 25, 2005 by Columbia Records and Music World Entertainment.
Tracklisting[]
- Stand Up For Love (2005 World Children's Day Anthem)
- Independent Women, Part 1
- Survivor
- Soldier (featuring Lil Wayne & T.I.)
- Check On It (Beyonce featuring Slim Thug)
- Jumpin', Jumpin'
- Lose My Breath
- Say My Name
- Emotion
- Bug A Boo (H-Town Screwed Mix)
- Bootylicious
- Bills, Bills, Bills
- Girl
- No, No, No Pt. 2 (featuring Wyclef Jean)
- Cater 2 U
- Feel The Same Way I Do
Album Background[]
Following the release of their third album, "Survivor", Destiny's Child went on hiatus, allowing each member of the trio to release solo material.
As each member had success with their individual projects, questions arose by the public whether they would record again as a group; however, group members Beyoncé, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams reunited again to work on their fourth studio album "Destiny Fulfilled."
The album was released in late 2004 and the group further embarked on a worldwide tour Destiny Fulfilled... and Lovin' It the following year as part of its promotion.
During a concert that Destiny's Child had at the Palau Sant Jordi in Barcelona, Spain on June 11, 2005, Rowland announced to the audience that the tour would be Destiny's Child last together, revealing their formal disbandment.
It was announced that after their final North American leg, the group would part ways, with each member continuing their music career as a solo act.
During an interview, they explained that their disbandment was planned during the making of "Destiny Fulfilled" as they discussed their individual aspirations and realized that remaining as a group would prevent them in pursuing those interests; however, it was acknowledged that the album would not be their last album together.
On August 1, 2005, Rowland announced the release of a greatest hits album later that year during an interview with Billboard magazine. She said, "We're definitely going to record another song for our greatest hits album for our fans. We're still thinking about it because we want it to mean something."
Chart Performance[]
Critical Reception[]
Andy Kellman from AllMusic wrote in his review that "#1's" was formatted the same was as other music scores and anthologies packed for the holiday shopping season.
He further commented that its title should have been different and concluded, "the disc reaffirms that Destiny's Child released some of the biggest R&B singles of the late '90s and early 2000s."
Slant Magazine's Sal Cinquemani criticized the album's title as only four of the singles reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100. However, he praised Destiny's Child's "impressive output, which includes some of the most recognizable R&B hits of the past bling/celly/status-obsessed five years".
BBC Online's writer James Blake called the album "more than decent" and added that the group's success in the music industry was a notable reason for a greatest hits release; however, he argued that it was very soon to include songs from their final studio album, "Destiny Fulfilled" as it was released only eleven months before "#1's."
Pitchfork Media's Jess Harvell felt that it was a "smart" move not to arrange the songs on the compilation in a chronological order and felt it "has the odd knock-on effect of suggesting that their legacy may be based on a smaller body of work than imagined". Harvell finished the review by writing, "you can take #1's as pure product and not feel wrong for doing so".
Despite classifying its title as "misleading" and criticizing the new material, Houston Chronicle's editor Michael D. Clark wrote the album was "dolled up as beautiful and immaculate as" the members of the group and included their best singles from their four studio albums.
John A. Hanson of Sputnikmusic felt that the greatest hits album was released "at the perfect time" as many of the songs were released a long time ago and "they've lost the overplayedness, but its [sic] soon enough that they still have some sort of relevance". He concluded for the album, "[it] hits you with recognizable hit after recognizable hit, and they are all pretty much as perfect as contemporary R&B-pop gets".
Describing the album as a "masterclass in what happens when a great band comes together", Yahoo! Music's Hattie Collins wrote: "Despite the low-points, this is a Destiny's Child must have collection of classics from one of R&B's most significant talents".
A more mixed review came from Fiona Mckinlay from the website musicOMH who felt the album included many "skippable" songs and noted that the material from "The Writing's on the Wall" and "Survivor" were the collection's best.
She felt that the progress in the sound of the band was evident on #1's, but offered the opinion, saying: "As far as greatest hits albums go, Destiny's Child show themselves to be pretty ace, but still not quite the incredible force in R&B".
San Francisco Chronicle's Aidin Vaziri criticized the songs from Destiny Fulfilled and "Stand Up for Love" and concluded "surveying Destiny's Child's entire career on this set... it's obvious their hearts slipped away around the same time Beyonce's solo album sold its first million."