WE DON'T HAVE TO TAKE OUR CLOTHES OFF

Lil Chris

In which another eighties classic gets dusted down and handed over to a pop star looking to save his career. I bet if I visited Jermaine Stewart's grave, I'd probably hear a faint whirring sound coming from about six feet under the ground too. I've got the original version on my battered copy of Now 8 – look, there it is, between Mel and Kim and Jaki Graham. Ah yes, Showing Out… now there was a tune, but that's not the point here. The point is that Lil Chris has given this song a right royal battering and… and… oh God it hurts for me to say this… he's got away with it. I almost feel as though I ought to scrub myself down with bleach and burn the clothes I'm wearing for saying that, but he's stamped his personality all over the song and if you're going to do a cover version, you've absolutely got to make it your own otherwise there's no point doing it. His style of singing may sound like a small child that's been told to go to bed halfway through EastEnders (and it's certainly not for me), but the backing tune is fine - if you can get past the incredibly eighties guitar solo. For me though, there is one disappointment. In the original, Jermaine Stewart sang what sounded to me like "I'm not a piece of meat / Still you ate my brain". Either the words have been changed or Lil Chris is singing them correctly, but either way it's not the same without that line. I'm still going to recommend this, but I can't believe I'm doing so.

LOVE WILL TEAR US APART

Joy Division

Not really a lot I need to say about this one, except well done to the record company for re-issuing it, not only with its original cover design but with the original Factory Records catalogue number too. Nice to see Factory back in any shape or form. Now then, as you may know I'm not easily pleased when certain songs are given so-called "classic" status. I can't stand Bohemian Rhapsody, Imagine or Dancing Queen, and I'm willing to bet that Chasing Cars is probably going to join them too, which makes perfect sense to me as I can't stand that song either. However, as far as I'm concerned Love Will Tear Us Apart is one of the few classic songs that fully merits its status. Yes, it's melancholic, and Ian Curtis is singing about a relationship that's completely had it (his own, if I recall correctly), but there's just something about it. I can't really explain it, but whenever I hear it I feel as though I'm listening to something very, very special. The same also holds true for Transmission, Atmosphere and She's Lost Control amongst others, and it just goes to show that Tony Wilson had one hell of an eye for spotting talent. If you've never listened to Joy Division before, you're in for a treat. This song may be 27 years old, but it hasn't dated one bit.

ANARCHY IN THE U.K.

Sex Pistols

And here's another genuine classic. This one's even older (it's a 1976 vintage), and like the Joy Division single, it's lost none of its edge whatsoever. Right from the off, it roars like a Formula One engine and doesn't let up for a second until it's said what needs to be said and done what needs to be done. There's been very little polishing done to the finished article, which only makes the whole thing sound even angrier. Even today, it still sounds full of life and hopefully, this time round it'll do a bit better than its original chart placing of 38. It's got its original cover design (completely black) and the original catalogue number too (again, just like Joy Division), so that'll keep the collectors happy. Me, I'm buying it because it's a damned good song.