In 1998, it would have been a cheap joke to say that Mariah Carey had no other kind of hits than ballads, but in the ensuing decade she steadily remade herself into an R&B diva, obscuring if not quite erasing the well-mannered adult contemporary singer of the '90s. The Ballads attempts to turn back the clock by focusing just on those tunes. Of course, this concentration on middle of the road ballads is a side effect of label affiliation: The Ballads is a product of Sony, who had Mariah during the '90s, before the club R&B overshadowed these office-friendly hits, so it's easier for them to cobble together a comp of Carey at her most sentimental. And that's what The Ballads is: nothing but big love songs sung in a big voice. For fans who have missed this side of Mariah in the 2000s, this is a welcome reminder of what they used to love. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide Released January 2009, 18 tracks, including:
01- Hero
02- One Sweet Day (w/ Boyz II Men)
03- Vision of Love
04- Without You
05- Can't Let Go
06- Love Takes Time
07- I'll Be There (w/ Trey Lorenz)
08- Thank God I Found You - Make It Last Remix (w/ Nas & Joe)
09- Endless Love (w/ Luther Vandross)
10- I Still Believe
11- My All
12- The Roof
13- When You Believe (w/ Whitney Houston)
14- Anytime You Need A Friend
15- Always Be My Baby
16- Dreamlover
17- How Much (w/ Usher)
18- Reflections