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Reflections (A Retrospective)
Greatest hits by Mary J. Blige
Released	December 1, 2006; (see release history)
Recorded	July 1992 – May 2006
Genre	R&B, soul, hip hop soul
Length	65:57
Label	Geffen
Producer	Bryan-Michael Cox, Sean "Diddy" Combs, Kendrick "WyldCard" Dean, Jerry Duplessis, Babyface, Kendu Isaacs, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Wyclef Jean, Mark Ledford, John Legend, Mark Morales, Chucky Thompson, Poke, J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League
Professional reviews
	Allmusic link; musicOMH.com link;
Mary J. Blige chronology

Reflections (A Retrospective) is a greatest hits album by American R&B singer Mary J. Blige, released in the United States on December 12, 2006 by Geffen Records. It wasn't certified by the RIAA but selling 731,000 (according to the December 2007 Billboard magazine issue) copies in the United States. The album has also sold an estimated 140,000 in the United Kingdom despite only reaching a peak of number forty—this was due to consistent sales of 40k+ over the Christmas weeks. As of May 25, 2008 worldwide sales are 1,381,375.

[edit] History

Reflections (A Retrospective) was originally scheduled for release in November 2005 with the title Reminisce... Until the Breakthrough before the decision was made by Blige and Geffen Records to delay the release in favor of the new studio album, The Breakthrough.^[1] New songs that were due to appear on Reminisce—"Be Without You", "One", "MJB da MVP", and "Can't Hide from Luv"—were all transferred to the new album and the release date for the greatest hits was rescheduled to the spring of 2006. However, due to the commercial success of The Breakthrough, the release of Reminisce never materialized. In October 2006, Geffen Records announced that the project would finally be released on December 4, 2006 in the UK and December 12, 2006 in the U.S., under the title of Reflections (A Retrospective).^[2]

[edit] New material

Although Reflections (A Retrospective) is a retrospective collection of songs, writer Bryan-Michael Cox, who co-wrote and produced Blige's record-breaking single "Be Without You", confirmed that the release would feature four new songs, which includes the single "We Ride (I See the Future)" as well as "Reflections (I Remember)", "You Know", and "King & Queen", a duet with John Legend. The new material was originally intended to be part of a repackaged version of The Breakthrough to be released towards late 2006, but was transferred to the greatest hits release instead.^[3]

Also although on the backcover of the album (UK/International editions) track #17: the hit single "One" with U2 although says on the backcover (Mary J. Blige and U2), it is actually a solo version with U2 singing the chorus. Mary also does the 1st bit of the song originally done by Bono. This solo version is exclusive to the greatest hits, the original version with U2 (Bono's vocals) is on "The Breakthrough"

[edit] Track listing

"Reflections (I Remember)" – 4:06
"We Ride (I See the Future)" – 3:57
"You Know" – 3:37
"King & Queen" (with John Legend) – 3:46
"No More Drama (Radio Edit)" – 4:27
"Family Affair" – 4:26
"Real Love" – 4:27
"No One Will Do" – 4:47
"Be Without You" – 4:06
"I'm Going Down" – 3:42
"911" (Wyclef Jean featuring Mary J. Blige) – 4:19
"Not Gon' Cry" – 4:50
"My Life '06" – 5:07
"Be Happy" – 5:38
"I'll Be There for You/You're All I Need to Get By" (Razor Sharp Mix) (Method Man featuring Mary J. Blige) – 3:41

[edit] International edition

"As" (with George Michael) – 4:41
"One" (solo version) – 4:20 (mislabeled as version with U2)
"MJB da MVP" (featuring 50 Cent) – 4:10

[edit] Charts

Chart (2006)	Peak position
Austrian Albums Chart	75
Dutch Albums Chart	12
European Top 100 Albums	80
Japanese Oricon Albums Chart	30
Swedish Albums Chart	23
Swiss Albums Chart	19
UK Albums Chart	40
U.S. Billboard 200	9
U.S. Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums	2

[edit] Release history

Region	Date	Label
Europe	December 1, 2006	Geffen
Australia	December 2, 2006
United Kingdom	December 4, 2006
United States	December 12, 2006
Canada	December 12, 2006
Japan	December 13, 2006
Brazil	January 31, 2007

[edit] References

^ "Mary J. Blige's Breakthrough Is Coming Out This Year After All". VH1. November 8, 2005. http://www.vh1.com/news/articles/1513267/11082005/blige_mary_j.jhtml. Retrieved 2007-11-15.
^ "Billboard Bits: Mary J. Blige, Saliva, iTunes Latino". Billboard. November 1, 2006. http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003346858. Retrieved 2007-11-15.
^ "Austin Eyeing Blige Duet For 'Ocean Drive'". Billboard. July 28, 2006. http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/search/google/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1002914641. Retrieved 2007-11-15.

[0] "Mary J. Blige's Breakthrough Is Coming Out This Year After All". VH1. November 8, 2005. http://www.vh1.com/news/articles/1513267/11082005/blige_mary_j.jhtml. Retrieved 2007-11-15.

[1] "Billboard Bits: Mary J. Blige, Saliva, iTunes Latino". Billboard. November 1, 2006. http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003346858. Retrieved 2007-11-15.

[2] "Austin Eyeing Blige Duet For 'Ocean Drive'". Billboard. July 28, 2006. http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/search/google/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1002914641. Retrieved 2007-11-15.

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