Customer Reviews

Now That's What I Call Music! 12

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(19)
2 star:		(10)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

Here are a few things I have noticed that YOU'LL FIND really interesting with the "NOW" collections (Please Read...):

1) The songs they choose as "hits" in NOW's CDs are NOT based on the Billboard Singles Charts but rather the ARC charts (aka: the actual Top 40 chart) because Billboard rates it's singles from 75% airplay and 25% sales of CD singles while ARC strictly follows 100% airplay. NOW will only consider a song on the CD if it has peaked within the Top 30.
Furthermore, the company that produces these "NOW" CDs have admitted to MTV (look for an article on mtv.com about NOW) that they put in some artists that people have never really heard about for promotional purposes. In other words, NOW is also used to introduce "not-so-hit making" new artists to people who are expecting SOLELY hit songs in hopes of interesting the buyers to those new artists.

Which leads to...

2) Every "NOW" CD has only 2/3 to 3/4 of their content to be ACTUAL HITS you hear on the radio. I'm sorry, but I have never really heard LL Cool J, Nas, Snoop Dogg, Dru Hill, Telepopmusik, Keith Urban, Chevelle, and Saliva on popular Top 40 radio stations. Songs I would have replaced with:

LL Cool J -> TLC "Damaged"/"Girl Talk"
Nas -> Missy Elliott "Work It"
Snoop Dogg -> Mariah Carey "Through The Rain"
Dru Hill -> 50 Cent "In Da Club"
Telepopmusik -> Lasgo "Something"
Keith Urban -> Shania Twain "I'm Gonna Getcha Good"
Chevelle -> Good Charrolette "The Anthem"
Saliva -> Avril Lavigne "Sk8er Boi"/"I'm With You"
...and possibly for so-so hits...
Kelly Rowland -> Ja Rule f/Ashanti "Mesmerize"
Vanessa Carlton -> Christina Aguilera "Beautiful"

I think these choices reflect the Late 2002-Early 2003 hits, the urban music trend, and a diversity in genres of music that could possibly fit in ONE CD.

3) It seems that NOW also EXCLUDES CERTAIN PATICULAR ARTISTS that I have noticed throughout the past 12 CD despite their HUGE hits! What about (throughout NOW's history)?

Ricky Martin
Christina Aguilera
TLC
Shania Twain
50 Cent
Ashanti
Avril Lavigne
Whitney Houston (in 1999)
Mariah Carey
Madonna
Alicia Keys
Craig David
and more...

I understand that so many songs can fit into one CD, and that 3 NOW CDs are released every year. BUT don't you expect that at least SOME OR AT LEAST ONE OF THEIR SONGS should be in NOW's history? (ESPECIALLY SINCE SOME OF THESE ARTISTS HAVE REACHED #1 WITH THEIR SONGS?!?!?)

Furthermore, if you guys are hoping or expecting Eminem on the NOW CDs...I highly doubt he will be on it, despite his HUGE SUCCESS, because of the harsh, "non-kid or teen" friendly lyrics. Take for example Eminem's "Cleaning Out My Closet"

4) Anyways (phew!)...as for considering to buy... Well, let me say this, if you are discovering that you don't like more than 3-4 songs on this NOW CD; DON'T BUY IT! Because it is not worth the ENTIRE price when you are skipping paticular songs of the CD, especially when song piracy....makes it tempting to make your "own" collection of hits..

I hope this review helps all of you out there! All my best!

"NOW 12" is not in the same league as the great "NOW"s and the reason for that is because the album follows the steps of the prevois entries and never breaks any molds like "NOW 5" or "NOW 7" did. Yet the album still suceeds for the most of it because of some very good songs:
(1) Jay-Z feat. Beyonce Knowles "'03 Bonnie & Clyde" A-. It may not be as slammin' as "Crazy In Love", but is still a refreshing R&B track with Jay-Z's best lyrics since "Money Ain't A Thing"
(2) B2K and P. Diddy "Bump, Bump, Bump" B+. The artists combined with R. Kelly's writing and production make this a highly enjoyable urban dance tune that is just plain fun.
(3) Jennifer Lopez "Jenny From The Block" B. The song is alright despite its laughable material (J.Lo has no loyaties to the Bronx). A slick production and very appropriate running time are effective so that it never drags on.
(4) Nivea feat. Brian and Brandon Casey of Jagged Edge "Don't Mess With My Man" B+. This song worked much more than i had expected it to. Nivea's unique voice mends well with the Jagged Edge boys and the material has a certain impact to it.
(5) LL Cool J "Luv You Better" A. One of the best songs he's recorded in his 19 year career. Getting rid of the swears adds the to quality of the song as a heartfelt ballad and one of 2003's Ten Best Songs. A very successful experiment.
(6) Nelly "Air Force Ones" C+. This song is kinda fun,but "Hot In Herre" and "Dilemma" put it to shame. Theres just not much beneath the surface of this blatant product placement.
(7) Nas "Made You Look" B. Rather standard for Nas, yet the haunting background beat combined with his "razor tounged lyrics" keep it interesting to listen to.
(8) Snoop Dogg feat. Pharrell and Uncle Charlie Wilson "Beautiful" B-. This is a good song, but the beat and Pharrell keep it from it's full potential. The names promise much more than the song delivers.
(9) JC Chasez "Blowin' Me Up (With Her Love)" D+. JC just doesnt have the voice to work as a solo artist and the painful marhing band/hip-hop beat gives him nothing at all to work with.
(10) Justin Timberlake "Like I Love You" A. A bissful pop to rap transition with a supremley smooth voice and beat. The track is endlessly listenable and slick & cool. A must hear for rap, hip-hop and R&B fans. Just plain great.
(11) Telepopmusik "Breathe" B. Not a big hit by any means, but still a well made, intriging dance track. It's got some dream like qualities, even if they can't be fully deciphered.
(12) Dru Hill "I Should Be..." A. Dru Hill's return to the music scene (with Sisqo)created this touching, deep and trufull R&B track. It is able to sum up so much emotion and power with pirecing words that are so relevent.
(13) Kelly Rowland "Stole" A-. This is just as good as anything Beyonce has ever done. The story works so well because we have all had/seen somewhat similar experinces. Everthing pulls together for a powerful, thought inspiring track.
(14) Aaliyah "Miss You" A+. After her death or not, this is the best track she ever recorded. The material seems standard, but she makes it very touching and emotional. An utterly beautiful song that should effect everyone.
(15) Amanda Perez "Angel" B. An emotional song that just doesn't pack the power that tracks #13-14 have. Still good though and enjoyable.
(16) Vanessa Carlton "Pretty Baby" A-. The song may sound a little standard, but it is rather unique anbd original. The use images create a very pleasing track with certain relaxing charm and quality.
(17) Keith Urban "Somebody Like You" A. The maximum type of fun you can have with country music. His style, giutar skills and inspiring lyrics make this a good listen for anyone in need of a "pick me up" and demonstrates the rejuvenation of counrty music.
(18) Chevelle "The Red" B+. A well made rock track that packs some emotion, even if only a little bit. They just dont exaclty show why their better than the rest out there.
(19) Saliva "Always" B. Same as #18.
(20) 3 Doors Down "When I'm Gone" B+. Not a great rock song, but a good one that is catchy and rather different. 3 Doors Down may not be a very good group, but even they can pull of a good song every so often.
Bottom Line: ***. The album is far from a masterpiece, but manages to remain diverse and entertaining. If nothing else it shows what a relief the "Now That's What I Call Music!" series is to people in search of some great singles.

This has got to be the worst now cd. Anyone could listen to this and think they'd hit a dry spell or depression of some sort when it came to good music. Otherwise, how could these be chart toppers? My cousin bought this CD this summer, and we listened to it at her house. That's all I needed to hear. These are honestly very boring songs. Some of them I've never heard of before, and many could have so much better replacements. Stole, Miss You, Angel, and possibly Pretty Baby are really similar and get very boring. And why did they put a Keith Urban song on here? If they had to put a country song, they could have used I'm Gonna Getcha Good, which would be a little more liked. And "Breathe" by Telepopmusic, I've only heard that on a car commercial. There's two former Nsync members in a row, as though we didn't get enough when they were one group. Especially "Like I Love You". So. Annoying. Unless you really like to hear him wailing "Iii just wanna lo-o-ove youuuu baaaabe.." in his mickey mousey voice. If you do, I just don't understand you. What's for sure, there were better songs out there at the time to put on this CD.

Over the past 5 years, we've seen the Now That's What I Call Music! series expand to the biggest hits collection in America, even bigger than the Totally Hits or Grammy Nominees packages, Now has sold well over 10,000,000+ of it's 12 volumes (plus a christmas collection) and became a household name in pop music. To be honest, i got tired after #5, the series is very predictable in it's choices and doesn't really shock anyone, but this one is just a better collection than others. What most of it's predecessor's failed to do, Now 12 offers a hint of diversity from just pop/rock format and even includes some mainstream rock and hip hop titles that are usually to hardcore for the series. Here's what i think:

1. "'03 Bonnie & Clyde" by Jay-Z (featuring Beyonce Knowles) 5/5 - I think they were right on the dot with this one. Why shouldn't this be included? It was a top 10 hit and it's still being played on some stations.

2. "Bump Bump Bump" by B2K (featuring P. Diddy) 5/5 - Another on the dot single. This #1 hit single is a very wise decision considering its the group's biggest hit to date and is still hot on the air waves.

3. "Jenny From The Block" by Jennifer Lopez 3/5 - A good top 10 edition. But why does Now leave out verses by Jadakiss & Styles? By the way, this is an outdated single, "All I Have" is currently topping the singles charts and is a bigger hit than this one.

4. "Don't Mess With My Man" by Nivea (featuring Jagged Edge) 5/5 - Perfect. A current hit that has spent 36 weeks on the hot singles chart and is still going!

5. "Luv U Better" by LL Cool J 4/5 - Slightly outdated hit from LL Cool J. Would've been better to add a more current hip hop hit like 50 Cent's "In Da Club" or R. Kelly's "Ignition (Remix)".

6. "Air Force Ones" by Nelly (featuring Kwjuan, Murphy Lee, and Ali) 5/5 - I love this track. It has Nelly and the Tics doing what they do best behind a kickin' beat. By the way, it was a top 10 hit and helped push Nelly's Nellyville album sales over 5 million.

7. "Made You Look" by Nas 2/5 - This was one of the biggest shocks to me. When i found out Nas was gonna be on a NOW compilation i flipped. Nas has been more pop lately but NOW? Why? And i just don't perticulary like this song, anyway. Also, it didn't even reach the top 20 so you can't really consider it a 'chart-topping' hit.

8. "Beatiful" by Snoop Dogg (featuring Pharell & Uncle Charlie Williams) 5/5 - A huge shock that Snoop would be on a NOW album as well. But i really love this song and Pharell's singing so i gave it 5 stars.

9. "Blowin' Me Up (With Her Love)" by JC Chazez 4.5/5 - I don't like *N Sync, but this track is too slick to avoid. This barely top 40 track for Chazez might not be that wise for NOW, but is still a slick track to play in the car or the dance floor.

10. "Like I Love You" by Justin Timberlake (featuring Clipse) 3/5 - Typical for NOW to put 2 *N Sync members back-to-back on the album. We all knew a Timberlake track would make it, but if they had to, why didn't they add "Cry Me A River" instead? It's newer and was a way bigger hit. By the way, Clipse is a pop group, i'm sorry, but anyone who performs with Justin Timberlake (including Nelly & Pharell) are pop artists.

11. "Breath" by Telepopmusik 1/5 - Okay, i understand it might have been a big dance hit, but it wasn't even played on pop radio at all. It didn't even crack the Top 100 hit singles chart, surely NOW could've found a better hit than this.

12. "I Should Be..." by Dru Hill 3/5 - A minor R&B hit for Dru Hill. Barely cracked the top 40, but has a nice vibe so a gave it 3 stars.

13. "Stole" by Kelly Rowland 5/5 - The brilliant debut single by Destiny's Child singer Kelly Rowland. A top 20 hit and a very nice addition to the chart.

14. "Miss You" by Aaliayh 5/5 - The best song on the album as far as i'm concerned. Aaliayh's now #4 hit single from her greatest hits+ package "I Care 4 U". RIP Babygirl.

15. "Angel" by Amanda Perez 5/5 - The new breakthrough hit for this hip hop influenced r&b talent. She somewhat reminds me of Alicia Keys (minus the piano). Good top 40 hit.

16. "Pretty Baby" by Vanessa Carelton 3/5 - I never cared for the track myself. A barely top 40 hit from the piano singer/songwriter. Would've been smarter to add a hit from a newer talent like Lucy Woodward ("Dumb Girls"), Stacy Orrico ("Stuck"), or even Michelle Branch's duet with Santana ("Game Of Love").

17. "Somebody Like You" by Kieth Urban 5/5 - Outdated? Yes, but it is probably the biggest hit he will ever had. Spent 37+ weeks on the Billboard Hot Country Tracks (6 of which at #1), but didn't even crack the top 40 of the Hot 100 Singles Chart. However, i love the song and the video.

18. "The Red" by Chevelle 3/5 - I don't even know who Chevelle is. I know their a rock band, but this wasn't pop. It was a big mainstream rock hit, but not pop.

19. "Always" by Saliva 4/5 - Another nearly nameless rock single, but not pop. Saliva isn't all that good anyway.

20 "When I'm Gone" by 3 Doors Down 5/5 - A perfect ending. This top 10 hit single is new and probably one of the biggest hits from the compilation.

Some suggestions for Now 13:

"In Da Club" by 50 Cent
"Ignition (Remix)" by R. Kelly
"Dumb Girls" by Lucy Woodward
"Stuck" by Stacy Orrico
"All I Have" by Jennifer Lopez featuring LL Cool J
"Girlfriend" by B2K
"Cry Me A River" by Justin Timberlake
"Get Busy" by Sean Paul
"I'm With You" by Avril Laveinge
"Excuse Me Miss" by Jay-Z
"The Anthem" by Good Charlotte
"American Life" by Madonna
"Bring Me To Life" by Evansensce

Oh well, even if these suggestions don't make Now 13, they will probably make Totally Hits 2003!

I thought that out of all the NOW cds, NOW 12 was 2nd best behind NOW 9. It has a vatiety of songs by different artists and wasn't boring. Some songs, however, didn't appeal to me so I never listen to them but I love 3 Doors Down. They are easily the best group on the cd. I look foward to NOWs 13+ !!! I love Legolas!

When the NOW CD's first came to the USA, they had great hits by various artists in all genre's of music but now they seem to concentrate on hip-hop too much while ignoring other big hits by alternative or straight pop artists. My suggestion is to skip this CD if you only like a couple songs. My number one pet peeve is to buy CD's just for one song and waste your money. I usually rely on NOW to give me all the hits but the past few CD's have not been up to NOW standards. Could NOW be outsold soon by the folks at Totally Hits? Maybe one day if they keep this up. Thanks!

The Now series is fighting a losing battle to CD burners. And instead of Now trying their hardest to make their CDs better and better, they have almost thrown in thw towel, spitting out another collection of overprocessed hits. Sales have been decreasing more and more and so has the quality of the songs. No thought to vibe was put into the CD at all.

Hip-hop and R&B dominate the CD, taking 14 out of the 20 spots. But most of them shouldn't be there. Keith Urban and even Vanessa Carlton stick out like sore thumbs around the other tracks. And of course, a couple rock song (at an all time low of 3) are tacked on to the bottom. By now, if you have the whole series, you have wasted about [alot] of your money which could be used to get a CD burner, so you can't pick and choose your mix. Pass on Now 12.

The Good:
Aaliyah - Miss You (the best track)
Kelly Rowland - Stole
Vanessa Carlton - Pretty Baby
Snoop Dogg feat. Pharell - Beautiful

The bad:
LL Cool J - Luv U Better
Nivea - Don't Mess With My Man
JC Chavez - Blowin' Me Up (With Her Love)

The UGLY:
Jennifer Lopez feat. Jadakiss - Jenny From Da Block (by far the worst track)
Saliva - Always
B2K - Bump, Bump, Bump
Telepopmusik - Breathe

The rest are pretty medicore.....

Wow, this was a horrible mix of bad chart-toppers and other songs I've never heard of in my life that aren't much better...

1.'03 BONNIE & CLYDE, Jay-Z f. Beyonce ((B-))
~Pretty decent song, but gets boring if you listen to it too many times~

2. BUMP BUMP BUMP, B2K f. P.Diddy ((A))
~One of the very few good songs on this CD!! Kinda old, though~

3. JENNY FROM THE BLOCK, Jennifer Lopez ((C))
~Mediocre, way overplayed and quite repitive and annoying after awhile~

4. DON'T MESS WITH MY MAN, Nivea f. Brian and Brandon Casey ((A-))
~Good dance song and I like her voice~

5. LUV YOU BETTER, LL Cool J ((D+))
~Good basic beat, but proves to be boring and slow~

6. AIR FORCE ONES, Nelly ((B+))
~Good song, but I'e heard it so many times it's gotten annoying~

7. MADE YOU LOOK, Nas ((D))
~I've never listened to the entire song, it's too boring))

8. BEAUTIFUL, Snoop Dogg f. Pharrell and Uncle Charlie Wilson ((F+))
~This is one of the most annoying songs I've ever heard, I hate Pharrell's voice~

9. BLOWIN ME UP WITH HER LOVE, JC Chasez ((C-))
~I used to hate this song, but it kinda grows on you~

10. LIKE I LOVE YOU, Justin Timberlake ((B))
~Good dance song~

11. BREATHE, Telepopmusik ((F-))
~Does this even qualify as a song?~

12. I SHOULD BE, Dru Hill ((C-))
~Never listened to the whole song, it's boring~

13. STOLE, Kelly Rowland ((F))
~I hate this song, good message but doesnt sound good~

14. MISS YOU, Aaliyah ((B-))
~Beautiful voice, but kinda slow and boring if you don't appreciate Aaliyah~

15. ANGEL, Amanda Perez ((B+))
~Beautiful voice, beautiful song, just kinda boring~

16. PRETTY BABY, Vanessa Carlton ((C-))
~Just not a fan of her work~

17. SOMEBODY LIKE YOU, Keith Urban ((C))
~Not a country music fan, but it's alright~

18. THE RED, Chevelle ((C))
~It's ok, somehow dissapointing, more potential~

19. ALWAYS, Saliva ((A))
~Great song, best on CD~

20. WHEN I'M GONE, 3 Doors Down ((B+))

~Good~

And the average is probably around a C. It's ok, but there's not many good songs, they're alright. Save your money!

now 12 has songs that i have heard a lot and some that i only have heard once in a while. I have been listening to the cd since i got it at 4:30 on tuesday. The only thing that has been buging me is that the song that should of not been on the cd is justin timberlake's "like i love you" it should have been "cry me a river". i still think that now 10 is still the best. this is how i have rated each song on now 12

1. jayZ/Beyonce-'03 bonnie and clyde 4/5
2. B2K/P. Diddy- bump bump bump 5/5
3. jlo- jenny from the block 5/5
4. nivea- Don't mess with my man 5/5
5. LL Cool J- love u better 5/5
6. nelly- air force one 4/5
7. nas- made you look 4/5
8. snoop dogg- beautiful 5/5
9. JC Chasez- blowing me up 3/5
10. justin timberlake- like i love you 3/5
11. telepopmusik- breathe 4/5
12. dru hill- i should be 5/5
13. kelly rowland- stole 4/5
14. aaliyah- miss you 5/5
15. amanda perez- angel 3/5
16. vanessa carlton- pretty baby 5/5
17. keith urban- somebody like you 5/5
18. chevelle- the red 5/5
19. saliva- always 4/5
20. 3 doors down- when i'm gone 4/5

Is it just me, or do people not reliaze that this CD sucks. I mean come on! Actually, I was going to bootleg this CD, but at about the 12th song...I just said "Nah!" Now, your 12th edition of your series suffers from filler! Seriously, if I was to ask someone if they've heard of "Luv U Better", "Breathe", "I Should Be", or "Made You Look", they would be like WHAT?! You listen to techno still!!! No, I don't listen to techno. I listen to pop, hip-hop, r&b, and a bit of rock. Later on in life, you'll look on the back of this CD, and you will only know 2 or 3 of the songs on here. Really, Now 12 is an opposite of a TH complication. On Now 12, the crappy songs are at the beginning and the ending has all of the good tracks (there are only about 2 or 3). And still, some of the good songs are filler! The only songs on this entire complication I will remember are "Miss You", "Stole", "When I'm Gone", and maybe "Angel". The rest is either crap or filler.

GO GET NOW 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, and later 18+. NOW 12 SUCKS!!!