Now That's What I Call Music Vol.57 - Various Artists > Reviews > 57 volumes and still selling strong

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Definitely a cut above the rest
Lyrics	Sublime
Quality and consistency of tracks	A couple of weak links
How does it compare to the artist's other releases	Outstanding
Value for Money

Advantages:	Best tracklist for a while, great mix from all genres
Disadvantages:	A few bad tracks but everyone has different tastes !

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

I’ve been collecting the Now series for years, it’s always good to have music to look back on and remind you of things that happened around the time. The Now series has been the biggest compilation for twenty years and still makes number one and sells loads even after almost sixty volumes. Three volumes are released each year. Now 57 was released in spring 2004 and was no exception to the sales success set by its predecessors.

Personally I’d place Now 57 as one of the best Now’s for a while. I was really impressed when I first saw the tracklist. I won’t include the full tracklist as it is rather long but I’ll put a link at the bottom of the review!

There’s definitely something for everyone. From pop (Britney, Black Eyed Peas, Busted, Emma etc) to rock (Blink 182, Franz Ferdinand etc) to Dance (Motorcycle, Ferry Corsten, Ultrabeat, Special D etc) to Urban (Jamelia, N*E*R*D etc) to Jazz (Jamie Cullum’s fantastic live cover of Pharell’s Frontin’) and easy listening (Katie Melua, Norah Jones). The two CDs include plenty of number ones including Britney Spears – Toxic, Will Young – Leave Right Now, Busted – Who’s David, Ozzy & Kelly Osbourne – Changes and many more!

In fact there are probably only two or three songs on this 44 track compilation that I really dislike (Peter Andre, DJ Casper and Michelle McManus) and perhaps a few more I’m not bothered about. I’m sure others will dislike more but I can just about stand most of the tracks on this album.

The tracklist is really well put together and flows nicely. Plenty of new talent is on offer from artists such as Keane, Scissor Sisters, Snow Patrol, Alex Parks, Joss Stone to name but a few. These artists see their debuts slotted in amongst established artists which really gives the album a fresh feel.

As usual the artwork is visually stunning, very colourful and unique. The booklet provides artist/song info staying true to the series.

£14.99 for 44 tracks is a bargain and these CDs are perfect for a long drive, you can always skip or program out the odd track that may not be to your taste, and you never know, some of the tracks may even open your eyes to an artist you’ve previously overlooked or not heard of and may inspire you to give their albums a try! I know it’s worked that way for me in the past! I'd recommend to this anyone with as little as a slight interest in music.

Overall the now series continues to be of top quality and I’m looking forward to purchasing the 58th edition very soon!

Now 57 is available in all good record shops now.

CD1
1. Britney Spears – Toxic*
2. Kelis – Milkshake*
3. Jamelia -Thank You*
4. Kylie Minogue - Red Blooded Woman
5. Justin Timberlake - I'm Lovin' It
6. Enrique Iglesias feat. Kelis - Not In Love
7. The Black Eyed Peas - Shut Up
8. 2 Play feat. Raghav & Jucxi - So Confused
9. Beenie Man feat. Ms. Thing - Dude
10. Peter Andre - Mysterious Girl
11. DJ Casper - Cha Cha Slide
12. Girls Aloud – Jump
13. Boogie Pimps - Somebody To Love
14. Atomic Kitten feat. Kool & The Gang - Ladies Night
15. Emma - I'll Be There*
16. Sophie Ellis-Bextor - I Won't Change You
17. Scissor Sisters - Comfortably Numb
18. Deepest Blue - Give It Away
19. LMC vs. U2 - Take Me To The Clouds Above
20. Special D - Come With Me
21. Ultrabeat - Feelin' Fine
22. Motorcycle - As The Rush Comes
23. Ferry Corsten - Rock Your Body Rock

CD2
1. Will Young - Leave Right Now*
2. Katie Melua - The Closest Thing To Crazy
3. Norah Jones - Sunrise
4. Blue - Breathe Easy
5. Kelly Osbourne feat. Ozzy Osbourne - Changes
6. Blink-182 - I Miss You*
7. Busted - Who's David
8. Fountains Of Wayne - Stacy's Mom*
9. Franz Ferdinand - Take Me Out*
10. Alistair Griffin - Bring It On
11. Sugababes - Too Lost In You*
12. VS - Love You Like Mad
13. Joss Stone - Fell In Love With A Boy
14. FYA feat. Smujji - Must Be Love
15. N.E.R.D - She Wants To Move*
16. Jamie Cullum - Frontin' (BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge)*
17. Keane - Somewhere Only We Know
18. Snow Patrol - Run
19. Alex Parks - Maybe That's What It Takes*
20. Ronan Keating - She Believes (In Me)
21. Michelle - All This Time

*I’d personally recommend these tracks, they are my highlights of Now 57

More info can be found on the Now 57 official website at www.nowmusic.com