Customer Reviews

Help: Bosnian Relief

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

An excellent and underrated compilation of songs (some previously released, some not) released to benefit Bosnian children in post-war Bosnia. Believe it or not, in my opinion, there is not a bad song on this album. High points include the Stone Roses' somewhat overlooked "Love Spreads" from their second album, the sultry "Mourning Air" from Portishead, the dramatic "Shipbuilding" from Suede, and the never disappointing Charlatans deliver "Time for Livin'." Okay, this reflects my musical taste. Maybe you, as a subjective listener, will find a lot of things wrong with this collection, but I found myself able to listen to everything on the CD and love it. The BEST song on the collection, without a doubt, is the remake of "Dream a Little Dream" by Terry Hall with Salad. If you are unfamiliar with Salad, and chances are good that you are because their albums have never been released in the U.S. (I had to jump through fiery hoops to get my Salad albums), you should really give them a listen. Salad's vocalist, Marijne, has a fantastic voice... not to be missed, but sadly, most Americans are unaware! Another highlight is Sinéad O'Connor's rendition of "Ode to Billy Joe." It is nothing fantastic (and not really one of my favourite songs nor is it Sinéad's best work), but Sinéad does deliver in a distinctively haunting voice that lends the song a bit more drama and depth. Manic Street Preachers also contribute a version of "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" which helped pave the way to my reluctantly becoming a Manics fan.

This CD features a few decent songs, but they are not something you can't live without. Radiohead's "Lucky" is the only true standout (I bought this CD just for that track), but now that it's also available on "Ok Computer", there is no real reason to buy this CD. In hindsight, I probably should have bought the single version of this CD since it also has a really cool instrumental track by Portishead not featured here.

Serach lights is my favorite Levellers song. The raindrops version of the Manics is the first recording they did after Richey disappeared. The whole album is great. Trust me you will listen to it for years!

Help has some of the best artists in the British music industry, such as Oasis, Radiohead, Blur, and the Charlatans, among others. It even has a cover of "Come Together" performed by Noel Gallagher, Paul McCartney, and Paul Weller. A definite must-have. Tracks like Fade Away and Lucky make this really worth the money.

Sinead O'Connor's haunting, powerful version of "Ode to Billy Joe" is the standout track on this excellent compilation. "Dream a Little Dream" is also quite good, as are tracks from Blue and Manic Street Preachers. An excellent compilation.

This CD is simply cool, I like every single song in it