By 2000, Tom Jones had long transcended his 1960s “sex bomb” image. His career renaissance, partly ignited by the 1999 album Reload (featuring duets with The Cardigans, Stereophonics, etc.), carried into the new millennium. A compilation titled The Best of 2000 – though not an official major‑label album – likely refers to a curated collection of his late‑90s/early‑2000s singles, live cuts, or a region‑specific “best of” issued around that year. Alternatively, it could be a fan‑assembled or bootleg compilation capturing his 2000 tour highlights, TV appearances, or rare mixes.
Audiophile Tip: Load the FLAC into Spek (a spectral analyzer). A true lossless file will show frequencies reaching 22.05 kHz (Nyquist limit for 44.1kHz CD audio). A lossy-to-lossless transcode will exhibit a sharp cutoff around 16-18 kHz (typical of old 128kbps MP3s).
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In the vast landscape of the English novel, few works have balanced moral seriousness with sheer narrative exuberance as masterfully as Henry Fielding’s The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling (1749). Often hailed as the best novel of the eighteenth century and a cornerstone of the comic epic in prose, Tom Jones is not merely a rambling picaresque adventure but a sophisticated, architectonic exploration of human nature, society, and the elusive nature of virtue. Fielding’s achievement lies in his fusion of classical literary models with a modern, almost cinematic sense of plot, creating a work that is at once a philosophical treatise on goodness and a rollicking, bawdy comedy of errors. To argue for Tom Jones as “the best” of its era—and indeed a contender for any era—is to recognize its revolutionary narrative voice, its psychologically nuanced hero, its intricate yet propulsive structure, and its enduringly humane ethics.
The Birth of the Novel as a Moral Playground
Before Tom Jones, the novel was still finding its feet. Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe and Richardson’s Pamela offered realism and epistolary intimacy, but Fielding sought something grander: a “comic epic in prose.” He drew from Homer, Virgil, and Cervantes, but he grounded their epic scope in the alehouses, country estates, and London bordellos of mid-century England. The novel opens with the discovery of an infant in the bed of the benevolent, childless Squire Allworthy—a founding event that sets in motion a vast moral experiment. Allworthy represents abstract, often misguided, benevolence; his sister, the hypocritical Bridget, embodies secret sin; and the villainous Blifil, Allworthy’s nephew, is a walking catalog of pretended virtue.
Into this landscape falls Tom Jones himself: handsome, warm-hearted, impulsive, and sexually active. Fielding’s genius is to make Tom neither a paragon nor a rogue. He steals, lies, and fornicates, yet his motives are never malicious. When he helps the gamekeeper Black George’s starving family, or refuses to betray his lover Molly Seagrim, or risks his life for a stranger, Tom acts from spontaneous compassion. Fielding thus poses a radical question: Is a man who breaks society’s rules but follows his heart’s natural goodness better than a man like Blifil, who keeps every rule yet harbors envy, cruelty, and greed? The novel’s answer, delivered through its sprawling plot, is an emphatic endorsement of active, flawed virtue over cold, legalistic “prudence.”
The Architectonics of Plot: Symmetry and Surprise
One of the most compelling arguments for Tom Jones as “the best” is its structural brilliance. Fielding famously divides the novel into eighteen books, each prefaced by an introductory chapter in which the narrator—a persona as memorable as any character—discusses his craft. These chapters are not digressions but metafictional blueprints. The narrator compares himself to a “master-cook” who seasons his dish with wit, and to a “guide” who leads tourists through a vast country. The plot itself, however, is a marvel of cause and effect. The first six books establish Tom’s childhood and his banishment from Paradise Hall; the middle six books follow him on the open road, where he encounters a dizzying array of rogues, clergymen, soldiers, and innkeepers; the final six books converge on London, where all secrets are unveiled.
Fielding’s great innovation is the “retrospective revelation”—what later critics would call the “well-made plot.” Early events that seem random (a lost muff, a chance meeting at an inn, a stolen bird) return with crushing significance. The pocketbook that Tom gives to a beggar turns out to belong to his unknown mother. The quarrel over a partridge at an inn foreshadows the revelation of his parentage. By the final book, every thread is tied: the foundling is revealed as the son of Allworthy’s sister and a clergyman’s son; Blifil’s treachery is exposed; Sophia Western, the novel’s heroine of wit and chastity, is finally united with Tom. This is not the episodic looseness of Don Quixote but a clockwork mechanism disguised as a joyous ramble. As Samuel Taylor Coleridge noted, the plot of Tom Jones is one of the three most perfect ever devised—along with Oedipus Rex and The Alchemist. tom jones the best of 2000 eacflac vtwi top
The Narrator: A Moral Companion
No discussion of the novel’s excellence can ignore Fielding’s narrator. He is urbane, learned, ironic, and deeply opinionated. He addresses the reader as “you, my good reader” and admits to manipulating our sympathies. He defends Tom’s flaws while condemning hypocrisy. He interrupts the action to discuss the nature of charity, the definition of a “great man” (which he scathingly redefines as a successful villain), and the proper use of wit. This narrator is the ethical spine of the book. He does not preach; he reasons. He invites us to laugh at Tom’s sexual escapades but also to question why we forgive Tom more readily than we forgive a woman who does the same. Indeed, the novel’s treatment of female sexuality is complex and uneven: Sophia is idealized as chaste and spirited, while Molly and Lady Bellaston are satirized or condemned. Yet the narrator’s self-awareness—his acknowledgment that readers “might be scandalized” by Tom’s affairs—shows Fielding’s sophisticated understanding of how fiction shapes morality.
Moreover, the narrator’s voice creates a democratic intimacy. He calls us “the reader” not as a passive recipient but as a co-adventurer. He warns us when a chapter will be dull, promises excitement ahead, and even apologizes for the novel’s length. This playful contract between author and audience was revolutionary. It broke the illusion of realistic transparency and instead made the act of reading a shared, conscious, and joyful labor.
Virtue in Action: Fielding’s Ethical Revolution
Tom Jones is often mistakenly reduced to a “comedy of forgiveness” or a mere celebration of high spirits. In truth, Fielding is a moral philosopher of considerable depth. He was a magistrate, a founder of London’s first police force (the Bow Street Runners), and a man who had seen cruelty and corruption firsthand. His ethics are anti-Puritan and anti-Jansenist. He rejects the idea that human nature is depraved. Instead, he argues that “prudence”—which for Blifil means selfish calculation—is not virtue. True virtue, embodied by Tom, is a disposition to do good, even when it leads to trouble. Tom’s worst mistakes occur when he lacks prudence: he nearly fights a duel, he sleeps with women he cannot marry, he is duped by villains. But his heart is never wrong. In contrast, Blifil is prudent but evil; Allworthy is good but naive; the squire Western is a buffoon but an honest one.
Fielding’s great moral insight is that virtue must be active, not passive. It cannot be merely abstaining from sin (Richardson’s Pamela) but must be the energetic pursuit of justice, kindness, and love. When Tom, at the novel’s climax, refuses to betray his friend Nightingale even to secure his own happiness, he demonstrates that goodness is not a state but a choice—often a costly one. The novel’s famous conclusion, in which Tom is forgiven and married to Sophia, is not a sentimental reward but a philosophical statement: a society that punishes genuine goodness while rewarding hypocrisy is corrupt. By restoring Tom, Fielding argues for a world where intention and action are weighed together.
Cultural Legacy and Contemporary Relevance
To call Tom Jones “the best of 2000” (if that phrase meant best of the millennium) is to recognize its influence on every subsequent novelist who blends humor with moral inquiry. Dickens’s David Copperfield and Great Expectations owe their orphan heroes and labyrinthine plots to Fielding. Thackeray’s Vanity Fair adopts Fielding’s omniscient, ironic narrator. Joyce’s Ulysses recreates Homeric parallels in a modern Dublin, just as Fielding recreated epic journeys in rural England. Even television and film—from The Simpsons to Fleabag—use the comic-epic structure of a flawed but lovable protagonist navigating a hostile world.
More urgently, Tom Jones speaks to our own age of moral absolutism and performative virtue. In a culture quick to condemn human imperfection, Fielding’s insistence on weighing the whole person—flaws, passions, mistakes, and all—is refreshing. He asks us: Would you rather live next to a warm-hearted adulterer or a cold-eyed saint? Is a man who cheats on his taxes but saves a drowning child worse than a man who pays his taxes but evicts a widow? These questions have not aged. The novel’s critique of hypocrisy, its defense of sexual pleasure, and its suspicion of those who claim to be “virtuous” without ever risking a mistake remain radical. By 2000, Tom Jones had long transcended his
A Flawed Masterpiece
No honest assessment can ignore the novel’s limitations. Its treatment of women, while progressive in some ways (Sophia is intelligent, courageous, and she refuses Tom until he reforms), is often reductive. The sexual double standard is glaring: Tom’s affairs are comedic; Molly’s are scandalous. Fielding’s casual anti-Semitism (the character of the lawyer Mr. Dowling) and class biases also jar modern readers. Yet these flaws are the stains of their time, not the essence of the work. The essence is a belief that human beings, despite their appetites and errors, are capable of growth, redemption, and genuine love.
Conclusion: The Joy of the Journey
Why is Tom Jones the best? Not because it is perfect, but because it is alive. It has the energy of a country dance, the intricacy of a sonata, and the moral seriousness of a sermon—yet it never preaches. It invites us to laugh at a man hiding in a woman’s closet, then turns around and moves us with a scene of fatherly forgiveness. It respects the reader’s intelligence while never forgetting that reading should be a pleasure. In an age when novels are often grim, or ironic, or purely commercial, Tom Jones stands as a monument to what fiction can do: entertain us profoundly while making us better thinkers about character, society, and our own flawed hearts.
To read Tom Jones is to embark on a journey with a guide who is wise, funny, and forgiving. By its end, we have not only solved a mystery but also confronted our own prejudices about virtue. And we have laughed—genuinely, loudly, and often. That, perhaps, is the highest achievement of the comic epic in prose: to make us wiser and happier, simultaneously. For that reason alone, Henry Fielding’s Tom Jones remains not just the best novel of the eighteenth century, but one of the best companions a reader could ever find.
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A Soulful Compilation: "Tom Jones - The Best of 2000"
As a long-time fan of the legendary Welsh crooner Tom Jones, I was excited to dive into his "The Best of 2000" collection. This compilation, released in the new millennium, offers a curated selection of Jones' most iconic hits, and I'm pleased to report that it delivers.
Sound Quality: 9/10 The EAC (Exact Audio Copy) rip ensures a precise and accurate transfer of the audio from the original sources, while the FLAC (Free Lossless Audio Codec) format guarantees that the music is presented in its purest form, without any loss of quality. The result is a crisp, clear, and detailed soundstage that does justice to Jones' powerful, soulful voice. Comparison:
Track Selection: 8.5/10 The compilation boasts an impressive 16 tracks, including some of Jones' most beloved hits like "It's Not Unusual," "Delilah," and "Sex Bomb." You'll also find a mix of his earlier, more traditional pop stylings and later, more contemporary efforts. While some fans might quibble with the tracklisting, I appreciate the diversity and representation of Jones' extensive discography.
Value: 9/10 At an affordable price point, this compilation offers excellent value for fans looking to own a comprehensive collection of Tom Jones' greatest hits. The lossless audio quality and meticulous packaging (in this case, VTWI top - likely referring to a high-quality CD or digital release) make it a worthwhile investment for anyone seeking to experience Jones' music in its best possible form.
Overall: 8.8/10 "The Best of 2000" is a satisfying and enjoyable compilation that showcases Tom Jones' incredible vocal talent and enduring appeal. Whether you're a longtime fan or just discovering his music, this collection provides a great introduction to his remarkable body of work.
Recommendation: If you're a fan of Tom Jones or classic pop music, I highly recommend adding "The Best of 2000" to your collection. With its exceptional sound quality, diverse track selection, and affordable price, it's a great way to experience the soulful sounds of this legendary artist.
Comparison: For fans of similar artists like Engelbert Humperdinck, Andy Williams, or Dean Martin, "The Best of 2000" offers a comparable listening experience. However, Jones' distinctive voice and emotive delivery set him apart, making this compilation a standout in the genre.
Note: The keyword appears to combine Tom Jones’s album The Best of Tom Jones (circa 2000), the high-fidelity ripping notation EAC (Exact Audio Copy) and FLAC (Free Lossless Audio Codec), alongside the cryptic tags “vtwi” and “top.” This article interprets “vtwi” as a likely typographical or categorical tag (e.g., “Vault Top Weekly International” or a user-defined rank) and addresses audiophile search intent.
Below is a proposed structure for a long-form compilation that fits the EACFLAC VTWI Top spirit. It groups tracks rather than listing strictly by chart order, giving listeners a narrative arc.
Disc 1 — The Hits and Early Classics
Disc 2 — Soul, R&B, and Reinvention
Disc 3 — Later-Career Gems and Covers
Disc 4 — Live Performances, Rarities, and Collaborations