Abbamania

1."Money, Money, Money" – Madness
2."Lay All Your Love on Me" – Steps
3."I Have a Dream" – Westlife
4."Chiquitita" – Stephen Gately
5."Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)" – Denise Van Outen
6."Voulez Vous" – Culture Club
7."Mamma Mia" – Martine McCutcheon
8."Dancing Queen" – S Club 7
9."I Know Him So Well" – Stepsread more

Description: Usually, any one of the following statements is enough to put fear into the hearts of even the stoutest of music buyers: "charity album", "a tribute to" and "as seen on TV". Putting these three statements together, therefore, should be a recipe for disaster. It's a testament to the enduring quality of Abba's music, and the talents of the artists represented here, that Abbamania works. Of course, only a lobotomised chimp could make a hash of an Abba song--although Denise Van Outen comes close--and as such there are very few duds on this collection. Culture Club, who know thing or two about classic po Usually, any one of the following statements is enough to put fear into the hearts of even the stoutest of music buyers: "charity album", "a tribute to" and "as seen on TV". Putting these three statements together, therefore, should be a recipe for disaster. It's a testament to the enduring quality of Abba's music, and the talents of the artists represented here, that Abbamania works. Of course, only a lobotomised chimp could make a hash of an Abba song--although Denise Van Outen comes close--and as such there are very few duds on this collection. Culture Club, who know thing or two about classic pop themselves, perform a storming version of "Voulez Vous". Steps, meanwhile, have contributed two songs: the fantastically aerobic "Lay All Your Love On Me" and the ballad "I Know Him So Well" from the tenuously-relevant musical Chess. The medley "Thank Abba For The Music", which was originally performed at the 1999 BRIT Awards by Steps, Cleopatra, B*Witched, Billie and Tina Cousins is also included, but the album's highlight is B*Witched's cover of "Does Your Mother Know"--a combination of electric guitars, techno beats and sugar-coated harmonies with a slight country twang. -- Robert Burrow ... (more) (less)