Celine Dion is clearly a phenomenon. She tops the charts in France although she is not French, nor even European, but Canadienne. On this side of the Atlantic, she hosted a network TV special, solidifying her star appeal to North American audiences, and she received six separate music awards in Billboard magazine’s 1998 annual competition. Dion, however, is the kind of vocal artist who arouses strong feelings, pro and con. A New York Times critic has deplored what he called her "weepy bombast," but such comments have not cooled the ardor of her devoted fans. Most of them evidently feel that a little moist mascara is expected from any chanteuse worth her salt. This CD, which contains some of her early recordings, avoids any suggestion of excessive douleur and showcases instead her most winsome qualities. --Ed Killham