''Best Of, Volume One'' is American

new-age New Age is a range of spiritual or religious practices and beliefs that rapidly grew in Western society during the early 1970s. Its highly eclectic and unsystematic structure makes a precise definition difficult. Although many scholars consid ...

musician Ray Lynch's only

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one Performing arts#Performers, performer or by several performers. If the recordings are from ...

, combining tunes from his independently released material with his later

Windham Hill Windham Hill Records was an independent record label that specialized in instrumental acoustic music. It was founded by guitarist William Ackerman and Anne Robinson (née McGilvray) in 1976 and was popular in the 1980s and 1990s. The label was ...

recordings. The compilation also includes three new compositions – "Ralph's Rhapsody", "The Music of What Happens", and a remix of Lynch's first single, " Celestial Soda Pop". The album peaked at number 19 on

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

's "Top New Age Albums Chart".

Reception

Carmel Carrillo of ''

The Baltimore Sun ''The Baltimore Sun'' is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the U.S. state of Maryland and provides coverage of local, regional, national, and international news. Founded in 1837, the newspaper was owned by Tribune Publi ...

'' gave the album two stars out of five, praising Lynch's combination of "synthesized and classical styles" but criticized the three new tracks, commenting that they are "disappointing compared with his better-known works from previous releases." Carrillo especially criticized the "Celestial Soda Pop" remix for being "too techno for many New Age devotees." Meanwhile, Steve Huey of Allmusic gave the album 4.5/5 stars, claiming that the album is "the perfect introduction to Lynch's brand of lush, ambient electronic music."

Track listing

''Best Of, Volume One'' includes the following tracks.

Personnel

All music composed, arranged, and produced by Ray Lynch except ''The Oh of Pleasure'' which is co–written with Tom Canning. * Ray Lynch – Keyboard instrument, keyboards * Mel McMurrin – sampled voices * John Gregory – violin improvisations * Tom Canning – Prophet 5 keyboards * Geraldine Walther – viola * David Kadarauch – cello * Julie Ann Giacobassi – oboe and English horn * Glen Fishthal – trumpet, flugelhorn and piccolo trumpet * Timothy Day – flute * David Krehbiel – French horn * Daniel Kobialka – violin * Nancy Severance – viola

Charts

References

{{Ray Lynch 1998 greatest hits albums Ray Lynch albums Windham Hill Records compilation albums