By JANE STEVENSON -- Toronto Sun
WHITNEY: THE GREATEST HITS
Whitney Houston
(BMG/ARISTA)

With this week's release of a double greatest hits CD, Houston may start making headlines more for monster record sales than her behind-the-scenes antics.

Divided along the lines of Cool Down (ballads like Saving All My Love For You and I Will Always Love You) and Throw Down (dance number remixes of songs including I Wanna Dance With Somebody), this is a greatest hits package that makes good listening sense.

While I probably won't ever listen to Cool Down, it does contain some rarities, like Houston's duet with Jermaine Jackson on If You Say My Eyes Are Beautiful, from his 1986 CD Precious Moments.

There's also two new duets. Toronto's own Deborah Cox fares better with Houston on Same Script, Different Cast than Enrique Iglesias does on the soppy Could I Have This Kiss Forever (Metro Mix).

As for Throw Down, you'll probably find yourself dancing in spite of yourself to It's Not Right But It's Okay (Thunderpuss Mix), Step By Step (Junior Vasquez Mix) and I'm Every Woman (Clivilles & Cole Mix).

As for two new dance songs, George Michael enriches Houston's If I Told You That while Q-Tip's Fine falls flat.

Rarities on the Throw Down disc are her 1988 Summer Olympics theme, One Moment In Time, and her much-talked-about version of The Star Spangled Banner at the 1991 SuperBowl.

Just try singing along to that.