Annual 2004, The - Various Artists

...third, is a special 'Bonus Annual Anthems' CD, that showcases a number of dance anthems from the past. There are also different mixes of classic tunes to give a different perspective on them. There are sixty-three tracks, that's why there has to be three separate CD's.

The box and cover is fantastic, as are most of Ministry of Sounds compilation releases. It is kept very simple, just the classic Ministry of Sound emblem and the name ...
...appears on the back in red, pink and black lettering. This is very neatly done but the font may be too small for some people to read. The design on the separate CD's and their cases is even more simple. This is definetly a plus side of the Minstry.


Disc 1

1. Angel City feat Lara McAllen - Love Me Right (Oh Sheila)
2. Ian Van Dahl - I Can’t Let You Go
3. Jurgen Vries feat Shena - Wilderness
... more

I am a huge fan of dance and trance, as well as house, hip hop and even the odd song from the likes of the sugababes, britney and christina. So as you can tell, I like a wide range of music and open to pretty much any genre. I buy most of the albums that Ministry of Sound release, because they are normally the first ones out. They also tend to pick the hits, both in the charts and in the clubs, for next year better than other compilations.

This compilation album has been out for quite a while now and I bought it last year. It cost me £14 at the time. Although it is named the 'Annual 2004' it was released in 2003. This is how Ministry of Sound work, they name their albums on year ahead. I have listed all of the tracks that appear on the compilation, 63 in total, and I will discuss a few of the tracks in more detail.

There are three CD's that make up the album, the first two are named CD one and CD two. The third, is a special 'Bonus Annual Anthems' CD, that showcases a number of dance anthems from the past. There are also different mixes of classic tunes to give a different perspective on them. There are sixty-three tracks, that's why there has to be three separate CD's.

The box and cover is fantastic, as are most of Ministry of Sounds compilation releases. It is kept very simple, just the classic Ministry of Sound emblem and the name of the album appear on the box. The track listing appears on the back in red, pink and black lettering. This is very neatly done but the font may be too small for some people to read. The design on the separate CD's and their cases is even more simple. This is definetly a plus side of the Minstry.

Disc 1

1. Angel City feat Lara McAllen - Love Me Right (Oh Sheila)
2. Ian Van Dahl - I Can’t Let You Go
3. Jurgen Vries feat Shena - Wilderness
4. Tomcraft - Loneliness
5. Benny Benassi Presents The Biz - Satisfaction
6. Divine Inspiration - The Way (Put Your Hand In My Hand)
7. Love Inc - You’re A Superstar
8. DJ Sammy - The Boys Of Summer
9. The Lost Brothers - Cry Little Sister (I Need You Now)
10. Yomanda - You’re Free (Synth Mix)
11. Michael Woods’ Warrior feat Imogen Bailey - If U Want Me (Antillas Remix)
12. Azure - Sunset
13. Tomcraft - Brainwashed (Call You)
14. Steve Murano - Passion
15. Plastic Boy feat Rozalla - Live Another Life
16. Agnelli & Nelson feat Aureas - Holding Onto Nothing
17. Warrior - X
18. Marcella Woods - Love Shines Through
19. Saint feat Suzanne Dee - One In A Million
20. Public Domain - Make the Connection
21. The Space Brothers - One More Chance

Disc 2

1. Milk & Sugar feat Lizzy Pattinson - Let The Sun Shine
2. Linus Loves feat Sam Obernik - Stand Back
3. Junior Jack - E Samba
4. Room 5 feat Oliver Cheatham - Make Luv
5. Jason Nevins presents U.K.N.Y. feat. Holly James - I’m In Heaven
6. Bhangra Knights Vs Husan - Husan
7. Lee-Cabrera feat Alex Cartana - Shake It (Move A Little Closer)
8. Deepest Blue - Deepest Blue
9. Layo & Bushwacka! - Love Story Vs. Finally (Tim Deluxe New Vocal Mix)
10. Justin Timberlake - Like I Love You (Basement Jaxx Vocal Mix)
11. Wayne Wonder - No Letting Go (Al B Rich Club Mix)
12. Kurtis Mantronix Presents Chamonix - How Did You Know
13. UD Project - Summer Jam (DJ F.R.A.N.K’s Summer Mix)
14. Boogie Pimps - Somebody To Love (Salt Shaker Remix Club Mix)
15. Seelenluft - Manila
16. Ritmo Dynamic - Calinda
17. Kujay Dada - Young Hearts
18. Hughes & Spier - Idiot Box
19. Myko - Paradise (A Greek Salad Mix)
20. Bent - Stay The Same (Planet Funk Remix)
21. Alex Gold - Electric Places

Disc 3

1. Fatboy Slim - Right Here Right Now
2. Basement Jaxx - Romeo
3. Roger Sanchez - Another Chance
4. Moloko - Sing It Back (Boris Musical Mix)
5. Shakedown - At Night
6. X-Press 2 feat David Byrne - Lazy
7. Paul Johnson - Get Get Down
8. Bob Sinclar - I Feel For You
9. Static Revenger - Happy People
10. Bob Marley Vs Funkstar De Luxe - Sun Is Shining
11. Sneaker Pimps - Spin Spin Sugar (Armands Dark Garage Mix)
12. Azzido Da Bass - Dooms Night (Timo Maas Remix)
13. Rui Da Silva feat Cassandra - Touch Me
14. iio - Rapture (Riva Mix)
15. Chicane feat Bryan Adams - Don’t Give Up
16. Delerium feat Sarah McLachlan - Silence (Airscape Remix)
17. Paul van Dyk - For An Angel (PvD E-Werk Club Mix)
18. Agnelli & Nelson - Everyday, Every Moment, Every Time
19. Atlantic Ocean - Waterfall (Original Netherlands Mix)
20. Push - Strange World (2000 Remake)
21. Public Domain - Operation Blade

My favourite tunes and tracks, are those which most people will probably go for. Ian van Dahl's, 'I can't let you go', is yet another gem of a song. Although their songs do tend to stick to a certain theme, there are some really good mixes around. 'The Way', by Divine Inspiration, is one of those tunes that you can never really get tired of, how ever many times you hear it. The Antillas mix of, 'If you want me', is fantastic. I absolutely love it.

There are some absolute classics to be found on the additional CD. These extra tracks make the album a must for lovers of dance music. Roger Sanchez's beatiful tune 'Another chance' is one that I love hearing even now. It has that longevity about it and even in another 10 years it will still chill you out. The obvious one is, 'For and angel', by that man Paul van Dyk. I love this tune, because it has such a blend and change of direction. It really captures a mood. There is also, 'Rapture', which is a quality little tune that never goes amiss at a party.

There are a lot of poor tracks on the compilation, that are just put on to fill up space. I do think they help to give more of a contrast to the album but they can also take the edge off of it. I have in mind tracks such as 'Satisfaction' and those by DJ Sammy and Boogie Pimps. I would categorise they as more Pop songs, because they are targeted at the wider audience. The real stinker on the album has to be, 'No letting go'. Even if you mix it, it's still a reggae/pop song. This should never have made the album in my view. There is one disappointing mix of, 'Delerium'. I think that Airscape take the edge of the track and make it difficult to enjoy.

I would reccomend that you go out and buy this if you love dance because there are a lot of good tracks. If you only like some of them, you can always give other tunes a chance to grow on you. I find that tunes I didn't like at first, can turn into some of my favourites as long as you are patient. There is also a chance that if you like Pop songs there is something here for you too. This is a great compilation and can be found for as little as £12.99 on the internet from Amazon. I saw it in HMV for £16, they do charge ridiculous prices so the internet is probably best.

 

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