Establishing Great Music (Radio 1 - Established 1967)

Member Name: louanna8

Product:	Radio 1 - Established 1967
Date:	11/08/09 (46 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Some brilliant covers of old classics

Disadvantages: Few of the tracks are a let down

Radio 1 Established 1967 is a compilation album released in 2007 to celebrate 40 years of Radio 1 being on air. The album brings together 40 modern artists who have re-recorded hits from the last 40 years. Each artist has chosen a song that was released (or in some cases re-released) in any year from 1967-2007. Thus we the listeners are given a fantastic compilation album featuring everyone from Kaiser Chiefs to James Morrison to Kylie Minogue.

With 40 songs in total, spread over two discs, it would be nigh on impossible for me to go in to detail about each and every track. So instead I'll try to give an overall flavour of the album before picking my best and five worst songs.

All of the artists chosen by Radio 1 to celebrate its anniversary tend to fall into the indie-rock or pop genre. Given the type of music played by this radio station this works well and makes sure that the album appeals to regular Radio 1 listeners. All the artists and groups are young and can be found gracing the Top 40 today, there are no has beens here! I also like the fact that with the exception of The Fray, Gossip, Foo Fighters and Kylie all of the performers are British which is appropriate for something that is essentially a British institution. All in all I'm impressed that I am able to fight such a fantastic group of artists all on one album.

Because the album is celebrating 40 years we are allowed to experience a whopping four decades of music. This means covers of everyone from The Jimi Hendrix Experience to Elton John to David Bowie to The Cure to Mary J Blige to The Libertines and everything in between. I can't think of another album that offers such a wild range of music arranged in new and interesting ways. That really is the factor that makes this album, artists taking on songs outside of their usual genre and adding some of their own personality and style into them. However, that said there are some covers on here that really do not work and seem either boring or under rehearsed. Fortunately, that really is the minority of tracks and most are nothing less than brilliant.

My top tracks on the album are;
Kaiser Chiefs- Flowers In The Rain (The Move)
This is the first song on the album and a great way to kick things off. It is full of energy and the band have injected it with a good dose of their own style. The lead singers voice worked really well and I can listen (and dance) to this again and again.

Foo Fighters- Band On The Run (Paul McCartney & Wings)
I actually prefer this version to the original and can't believe what a great job the Foo Fighters have done with it. It begins slowly with simple guitar accompaniment before building up into the rock sound we know and expect from the Foo Fighters. A brilliant tune.

Kasabian-Too Much Too Young(The Specials)
Kasabian have done really well with this classic track. It is very different to their usual sound being much "lighter" sounding. They have also relaxed their rock leanings and there is a definite flavour of ska that was present in the original. My only problem with this is that at 2 minutes long it's just too short!

Editors-Lullaby(The Cure)
I'm a massive Cure fan but I think the Editors have pulled off Lullaby in an admirable way. They've created a good sense of drama and the vocalists voice is wonderfully deep. I like how they seem to be telling a story and put a lot of emotion into their performance.

And now for the not so good;
Amy Winehouse- Cupid (Johnny Nash)
I actually really like Amy Winehouse but this song is, in my opinion, just dire. It is slow moving and never really goes anywhere. To be honest, I found it to be a circle of monotony. Nothing happened and I wasn't in a rush to play the song again.

Girls Aloud- Teenage Dirtbag (Wheatus)
I know many people disagree with me but I think that Girls Aloud have spoilt a fantastic song here. Their voices do not fit well with the song and in some places expose how weak vocalists the girls actually are. A big disappointment.

In conclusion, the album contains many more hits than misses. The flashes of brilliance more than make up for some of the shoddy work on a few tracks. I'm glad I purchased this album (I say me but I actually liberated it from the depths of my younger brothers room) and would recommend anyone who is a fan of Radio 1 or British indie-pop in general to go out and buy it.

Summary: It's not perfect but it's pretty damn good.