Camp, naff and brilliant - Grease 2 (Grease 2)

Member Name: FreeGarlicBread

Product:	Grease 2
Date:	14/10/08 (29 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Sing-a-long-ability, Michelle Pfieffer, appalling lyrics

Disadvantages: Maxwell Caulfield - he was better in Casualty

Trying to live up to the mega-selling Grease soundtrack was just as hard as the film trying to live up to its predecessor, Neither really succeeded, but that doesn't mean that this collection is a complete write-off. Far from it, there are many classics on here, often classic for all the wrong reasons, but a ton of fun all the same.

Maxwell Caulfield can't sing or act (at least, not in this film) so his solo number 'Charades' sounds like karaoke. His contributions to all the group efforts are a bit pants as well so let's swiftly move on to Michelle Pfeiffer. If any readers have seen 'The Fabulous Baker Boys' they will know that Pfeiffer can actually sing. Here her voice is less polished but still no worse than many of today's regular chart incumbants. She also gets the best solo song - the cult classic that is 'Cool Rider' - where she channels Debbie Harry with some aplomb (despite the appalling lyrics - "I'm looking for a dream on a mean machine". I mean, really...). She does OK on her torchy ballad as well, 'Turn Back The Hands Of Time', despite singing it dressed as a Christmas tree in the film.

The T-Birds are less cool here. Their big number 'Prowlin' is a load of bollocks frankly, with chief Bird Adrian Zmed struggling to hold a note. They do all aquit themselves on the genius 'Reproduction' though - a song laden with innuendo set during a Biology lesson, where the boys play the girls and the girls play the boys (neatly juxtoposing 'Summer Nights' from the first film). Even though it has nothing to do with the rest of the film it's very funny and a real highlight.

The Pink Ladies get their moment with 'Girl For All Seasons' which is sung very well by Lorna Luft et al. They also do well on 'Score Tonight', another innuendo song using bowling as a metaphor for shagging. Luft, clearly determined to remind everyone who her mother and sister are, belts out her two lines louder than everyone else put together, again adding to the comedy value.

Much has been made of the The Four Tops title track ' Back To School' being the best song. I disagree: it's catchy enough and sung well, but is too - well - professional. It doesn't have the sheer camp value and naffness that make all the others so great.

Summary: In short, this is a fun album you can sing to, laugh at, and then hide behind all your other CDs.