The Best is a CD set from the Russian group t.A.T.u. featuring hit singles, rare mixes, three previously unreleased tracks, a live concert, music videos and more. There are two versions of the set, one with only a CD, and another with a CD and a DVD. In Korea, the Deluxe Edition came with a poster. In the U.S., only the CD version was sold, and only in Best Buy stores. However, for U.S. online retailers, it was available, and for some by import from Korea. The Best was t.A.T.u.'s final release with the Universal Music Group label. Previously they went through Universal International.
The Best received generally positive reviews from music critics. Stephen Thomas Erlwine from AllMusic gave it four out of five stars. He concluding saying "since a little t.A.T.u. can go a long way, it's best to get all the big hits in one place; the rest of the record might still be filler even on a hits disc, but at least it has all the big songs, which The Best certainly does, and that should satisfy any listener who considers the Russian duo a guilty pleasure." However, he did say that the album was too early for a release.
Facts and missing songs
There were a lot of facts, misspelled words and other associated issues with the album. On the sides there is missing a dot in the t.A.T.u. logo. The song "Ya Soshla S Uma" was misspelled on the back cover. It was listed as "Ya Soshia S Uma". While "Nas Ne Dogonyat" was spelled as "Nas Ne Dagoniat". Both those versions are not the Russian edits. The album claims to have 3 unreleased songs, although in actuality, only "Null and Void" was unreleased. The other two songs were a remix and the previously released "Divine". The album lists "Divine" as an extended edit but it is the same version included as the b-side on the "All About Us" single release. The album was also going to include the track "Prostye Dvizheniya". However, for unknown reasons, it was not included. The cover does not list the videos for "Friend or Foe" or "All About Us ". However, these videos were included on the DVD.
Track listing
•: 2002 version, the edit used on the English counterpart of 200 Po Vstrechnoy, 200 Km/H in the Wrong Lane