Avril Lavigne – Greatest Hits

Sony Music Entertainment

Release Date: June 21st 2024

Reviewed by: Joshua Andre

Avril Lavigne– Greatest Hits (Amazon mp3/iTunes)

Track Listing:

  1. Sk8er Boi
  2. Girlfriend
  3. What the Hell
  4. Complicated
  5. Don’t Tell Me
  6. I’m a Mess (with Yungblud)
  7. He Wasn’t
  8. Losing Grip
  9. My Happy Ending
  10. Bite Me
  11. Nobody’s Home
  12. I’m with You
  13. When You’re Gone
  14. Bois Lie (feat. Machine Gun Kelly)
  15. Smile
  16. Love It When You Hate Me (feat. blackbear)
  17. Rock n Roll
  18. Here’s to Never Growing Up
  19. Keep Holding On
  20. Head Above Water

Throughout my entire life, I’ve always believed that Christian music was ‘good’ and that mainstream music was ‘bad’. That concept and paradigm was drilled into me when I was young (I’m not sure if it was by my parents or by the media); and it was around 2019 that I branched out and discovered that beauty of other types of music and that God can speak through them too. After all, he spoke through Balaam’s donkey thus He can do anything, right?

My journey of listening to mainstream music started with Rachel Platten (Wildfire and Waves), Cimorelli (Up At NightAlive and Sad Girls Club) and Carrie Underwood (specifically her 2018 album Cry Pretty). However, the journey of me consciously listening to mainstream music and liking it and being inspired by it was with Avril Lavigne’s 2019 album Head Above Water. To tell you all the truth, I hadn’t actively listened to Avril’s music when I was younger (apart from singles like “Complicated” and “Keep Holding On”, which both played on Hope 103.2 time and time again!) until Avril dropped the single “Head Above Water” in September 2018. And that was only because the song featured in my Release Radar Spotify playlist on particular week- and you can read the review I wrote of that single here! And thus, since that time, I had been eagerly awaiting Avril’s album Head Above Water (and you can read my glowing review of that project here!)- yet the fact remains. Would I have been excited for Avril’s comeback album had she not sung a ‘Christian’/‘worship’ song? If “Head Above Water” was a pop/punk/rock anthem rather than a soft inspirational ballad? Maybe, maybe not. Regardless; throughout the 6 years in-between albums (prior to Head Above WaterAvril Lavigne released in 2013!), Avril has had many a hardship. She has toiled, put the hard work and the effort in, written music not for the sake of doing an album, but as a way of healing while she was sick with Lyme Disease; and has come through the tunnel- through the other side of adversity- with much perspective and a different outlook.

Avril Lavigne’s tenacity, grit, and determination to inspire us all in the midst of trials and tribulations is what I admire about her, and it is this resolve shown in all of these 12 songs, that makes Head Above Water stand head and shoulders above quite a lot of albums from 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024- and certainly above any recent pop album that basically sings about sex, drugs, living for yourself and living in the moment. The album remains one of the most played albums in my family throughout the past few years. I won’t go into the details (because you can indeed read my review for a much more in-depth analysis!); but songs like the title track, “I Fell In Love With The Devil”, “Souvenir”, “Warrior”, “It Was In Me”, “Birdie” and “Tell Me It’s Over” still remain some of my favourite tracks from Avril ever. In fact, “It Was In Me” and “Warrior” are my personal highlights on an already near-flawless album- “It Was In Me” is a heartfelt, personal, honest and emotional rollercoaster of a piano ballad, where Avril relays to us that she no longer has the urge to chase after material possessions, but rather is awakened to the realisation that fulfilment, satisfaction and true happiness comes from within- by relationships with family, friends and with God. “Warrior” similarly is an inspirational melody and one of my favourite songs from Head Above Water. As we hear imagery aplenty; Avril highlights a battle with shields and swords in describing her battle with Lyme Disease, while also providing us with hope that the illness is not the end. Ardently crying out that ‘…I’m a warrior, I fight for my life, like a soldier all through the night, and I won’t give up, I will survive, I’m a warrior, and I’m stronger, that’s why I’m alive, I will conquer, time after time, I’ll never falter, I will survive, I’m a warrior…’. Avril even rerecorded “Warrior” in 2020 to lyrically focus it towards essential workers in light of COVID-19. Jon has blogged about Avril Lavigne in his series about most influential artists of all time; while he also reviewed Avril’s latest re-recorded album Let Go (20th Anniversary Edition). In July 2022, I reviewed Avril’s most recent studio project Love Sux– the complete antithesis of Head Above Water in every way (musically, lyrically, and thematically!). Avril also released a deluxe edition of Love Sux, and Jon will give his brief thoughts on the album later on this year in a special ‘retrospective’ reviews segment. But before that happens, let me quickly divulge my thoughts about Avril’s latest release. Greatest Hits is a collection of 20 songs from Avril’s storied and colourful career. In my opinion, these 20 songs aren’t enough and there are glaring omissions. But if there’s one album to listen to if you’re a casual Avril Lavigne fan, this is it.

All of the big hits are here. “Sk8er Boi”. “Girlfriend”. “Complicated”. “My Happy Ending”. “Bite Me”, “I’m with You”, “When You’re Gone”, “Smile”, “Love It When You Hate Me”, “Rock n Roll”, “Here’s to Never Growing Up”, “Keep Holding On”, “Head Above Water”, the list goes on. There truly is something for everyone on this varied track list. To be fair, I would have wanted songs like “Hot”, “Alice”, “Wish You Were Here”, “Let Me Go”, “Hello Kitty”, “Dumb Blonde”, “I Fell In Love with The Devil”, “Tell Me It’s Over”, “I Will Be”, and “We Are Warriors” all to be included- it’s only fair that all of her hits are here- but given that this is probably a label thing, these 20 are still pretty good.

Avril Lavigne as an artist will always be sentimental to me. I definitely have Avril to thank for me essentially liking mainstream music more and more. She has shown me that any type of music can have a message- and that God speaks through the unexpected. Love Sux, even though it is an album full of break-up songs and only a handful of inspiring ballads, is another winner for Avril and a timely reminder of her relevance in this industry. Love Sux, despite the expletives (which should really be expected at this point!), is on the whole lyrically and thematically quite confronting- and I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that I will check out Avril’s discography from here on out. With this greatest hits project, my sentiments and enjoyment for Avril and her music has only increased exponentially; so, thanks Avril for providing us with a stirring album in Head Above Water that has made me a fan; and a more-than worthy follow-up and return to pop/punk in Love Sux! Love Sux is a masterpiece from start to finish- it’s pop/punk at its finest and most raw. And with plenty of lyrical content that we all need to dwell upon and ponder… well I can’t wait to see and hear what is next in the future! Well done Avril! Maybe a Christmas album?

5 songs to listen to: Complicated, I’m with You, When You’re Gone, Keep Holding On, Head Above Water

Score: 4.5/5

RIYL: Taylor Swift, Skillet, Nickelback, Alanis Morissette, Olivia Rodrigo, Evanescence, Demi Lovato, Kelly Clarkson

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *