There have been numerous hits collections that really have made an artists career seem definitive, or somebody feel like there career could've used more improvement. That has been the same with so many of the younger female artists like Jessica Simpson, Beyonce', and Ashanti. Although they've tried to stretch themselves into so many positions as singers, actresses and other positions, they don't seem to really have the organic feeling of what great music is all about. For somebody like Gloria Estefan, she is somebody who has been through hell and back from a nearly fatal accident in 1989, to being told she couldn't have kids. She had beaten all those odds, and now a definitive hits collection shines out of Gloria's music.

The 2006 Essential Gloria Estefan is a very long, overdue definitive hits collection taht spotlights her longevity as the most successful crossover female Latin/Pop artists ever. The double album does a very good job at highlighting her career throughout 3 decades in the spotlight. The collection though is similar to other greatest hits records like Whitney Houston's 2000 hits collection, where one disc is all about the dance tracks and the other disc is all about her pop ballads. The collection here highlights her career very well, and includes all of her big hits from the classic covers Turn The Beat Around and Everlasting Love, to dance beats from the classic Conga, Mi Tierra and Heaven's What I Feel from the movie Dance With Me, all the way around her soulful ballads such as Music Of My Heart with N'sync and I See You Smile. All in all, the songs for the record have all been remastered very well, and highlight each song beautifully. The only disadvantage with the record is that the songs weren't in chronological order for each track, which makes it a bit confusing for those who haven't heard her music, or newcomers who don't own a Gloria Estefan album yet.