I will survive...housework (Housework Songs Vol.1)

Member Name: dakota196

Product:	Housework Songs Vol.1
Date:	05/04/06 (258 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: makes you WANT to do housework

Disadvantages: a few random rubbish songs

I stumbled across 'Housework Songs' at amazon and bought it as a tongue-in-cheek present for a friend who got married. But then I wanted to keep it! This two-cd box just has every song I'd ever want to sing along to while vacuuming, dusting or really even just sitting at my computer writing this. This cd is very diverse in terms of eras: from the Sixties e.g. Monkees and the Beach Boys via Diana Ross, Irene Cara and Tiffany to Katie Melua, Jamelia and Kylie Minogue.
It's also fairly diverse in music styles, as the above list shows although it's all pretty 'easy listening', or 'easy sing-along-able' as the case may be. Most of the songs are toe-tapping and upbeat, obviously to keep you moving with the housework, but some are slower (such as Katie Melua's 'The Closest Thing To Crazy', which is the strangest addition, I think). It was a grand idea to start with 'I Want To Break Free' by Queen since the song is impossible to listen to without singing along. On the other hand, it's a little strange to then jump to Ronan Keating - the eclectic nature of the album means, I suppose, that by trying to please everyone they may end up pleasing no-one, but as I said, the key theme tying them together is the all-important, upbeat singalongability.
I doubt I need to describe the tracks any more than that since they're all very well-known songs. This would also work pretty well as a sort of silly party/karoake cd, or for a road trip, and it works well on 'random' order on your cd player too.

Here's the list of tracks
CD 1
1. Queen - I Want To Break Free
2. Ronan Keating - Life Is A Rollercoaster
3. Bangles - Manic Monday
4. Aretha Franklin - Respect
5. Gloria Gaynor - I Will Survive
6. The Foundations - Build Me Up Buttercup
7. The Monkees - Daydream Believer
8. Roy Orbison - Oh, Pretty Woman
9. The Beach Boys - Help Me Rhonda
10. Hot Chocolate - You Sexy Thing
11. UB40 feat. Chrissie Hynde - I Got You Babe
12. Big Mountain - Baby, I Love Your Way
13. Madness - It Must Be Love
14. Spandau Ballet - Gold
15. Cutting Crew - (I Just) Died In Your Arms
16. Mike And The Mechanics - Over My Shoulder
17. Don McLean - American Pie
18. Lene Marlin - Sitting Down Here
19. Blondie - Sunday Girl
20. Mental As Anything - Live It Up
21. Cliff Richard - Wired For Sound
22. Wings - Silly Love Songs

CD 2
1. Kylie Minogue - Spinning Around
2. Irene Cara - Fame
3. Diana Ross - Chain Reaction
4. The Weather Girls - It's Raining Men
5. Cyndi Lauper - Girls Just Want To Have Fun
6. Phil Collins & Philip Bailey - Easy Lover
7. Tina Turner - The Best
8. Kenny Loggins - Footloose
9. Tiffany - I Think We're Alone Now
10. KC & The Sunshine Band - Give It Up
11. M People - Moving On Up
12. Donna Summer - Love's Unkind
13. Erasure - Take A Chance On Me
14. Spiller feat. Sophie Ellis-Bextor - Groovejet (If This Ain't Love)
15. Jamelia - Superstar
16. Joss Stone - Super Duper Love
17. Jean Knight - Mr. Big Stuff
18. Blue - All Rise
19. Leann Rimes - Can't Fight the Moonlight
20. Katie Melua - The Closest Thing To Crazy


********Cover
The cd cover is pretty minimalist it seems - anyone could have designed it on their laptop. It's a picture of a woman against a white background singing along using the hosepipe of a vacuum as a microphone. She want to be careful she doesn't switch that vacuum on or she'll be singing a different tune.
The sleeve inside has information on each of the songs and also tells you how you can get each song onto your mobile.

********Overall:
Love it. It's a happy mixed bag of undemanding Radio 2-ish songs, and FORTY-TWO of them, for goodness sake. Brilliant concept because I imagine it'll be really popular but probably none of the songs were that expensive for the record company to get hold of, and as I said the cover art is GCSE stuff (no disrespect to GCSE students), as is the TV ad, I've noticed. I would personally have like more disco and a bit less soft rock (and a lot less Cliff Richard) to do my housework to, but overall a good selection.

********Price etc:
I got it at amazon.co.uk for £12.99, but it's £11.99 at virginmegastores.co.uk and £14.99 at play.com (which has free shipping). I still think it's a bargain for a double cd.
It's produced by Virgin Records (2005).

Summary: A happy mixed bag of undemanding Radio 2-ish songs