Album Review

Various – Radio 1 Established 1967

• 17th Oct 2007

Radio One have been truly rinsing the fact that they’ve made it to 40 and people still listen, and one of their ways of celebrating was releasing a double disc CD of the most popular artists of now, singing songs from across the 4 decades.

It would be very difficult to pick a favourite track, because although I sounded sceptical about it, it’s a great CD, you can see one band’s talents merged with another, and hear some things you never thought you’d hear. Be that The Streets covering Elton John’s “Your Song”, Kasabian going all out and hitting the ska tops covering The Special’s “Too Much Too Young”, or even Girls Aloud murdering Wheatus’ “Teenage Dirtbag”. It is good, it’s well worth a listen and a giggle and a reminisce of all the songs you secretly love, by all the bands you secretly wish sung them originally (like McFly and “Town Called Malice” or Paolo Nutini “It Must Be Love”). It really is far too challenging to pick out a top track but for great similarity catch the Razorlight cover of Sting and The Police, and the Kasabian track, for genius listen to Maximo Park, The Klaxons and the Gossip tracks, and my favourite for sheer enjoyment and the fact that the original and cover are both so similar and close in time, yet so different, listen to The View covering “Don’t Look Back Into The Sun”.

Hopefully I haven’t ruined all the surprises on the CD, and normally I can pick out something I don’t like but it really has something to appeal to absolutely anyone that’s into music or has been across the 40 years that Radio One are so cleverly celebrating.

Look forward to the Radio 1 Live Lounge Vol. 2 out this Monday.