Single Releases 22/10/07

Did Leona Lewis, or perhaps more pertinently Simon Cowell, make the right decision by waiting almost a year to follow up her X-Factor winning single? Only time will tell. Having said that, Bleeding Love doesn't sound like the kind of song that's exactly worth waiting all that time for.

In a sense, Amerie shows her how to do it this week with the wonderful Crush. It's even better than the Jennifer Page Crush. Not that there is anything else in common with that song other than the title!

I do like that Kings Of Leon new one. Which makes their credit chart up to two (Molly's Chamber obviously being the other one). Which is a start is it not?

That Freemasons feat Bailey Tzuke track is quite a good one too (I know, what is up with me this week?). Even finding out it was written by Alanis Morissette didn't put me off it. Which is something is it not?

How nice of Amy Winehouse to get arrested just before Mark Ronson's Valerie gets a release. It's better than the Zutons, but then what isn't?

McFly are getting boring. Mutya Buena, meanwhile, just keeps on coming up with new ways of staying boring. Newton Faulkner almost gets a "not bad" for All I Got...but i'm not that crazy.

Single Releases 16/07/07

Despite the fact that I'm' falling out of love with Lily Allen to some degree, I do enjoy her collaboration with Mark Ronson on Oh My God. Horns maketh the music, that's what I say. It's joyous in a way that the Kaiser Cheifs are no longer.

If you want my opinion on Joss Stone's new single, I think that my album review said all that needs to be said.

Well Thought Out Twinkles by the Silversun Pickups is quite the hidden gem. Check it out.

Jarvis Cocker is as relevant as ever on Fat Children. It's quite the song too. Not destined to see him top the charts of course, but in some cases chart positions can take a back seat.

Someone please explain the point of Biffy Clyro.

Nothing Changes Around Here say The Thrills. Well that just about sums it up. The Thrills are the sort of band that everyone sort of likes without ever really being able to say why. They're not bad, but in the final analysis they're not that good either.

I like the Victorian English Gentlemens Club, and their new single La Mer / Stupid As Wood is the kind of thrash noise stuff you'd expect from them. Not the best thing they've ever released but still something I enjoy.

In one of those regular "drunk on a Saturday night" moments I caught the video to XX Teen's Darling on MTV. Very funny video, but the song just seemed to be sub-par Young Knives to me.

Elvis Perkins is quite the talent. While You Were Sleeping is quite the tune. Ace, is how I would describe it.

Amy MacDonald is getting a lot of hype at the moment in certain places. Given the sheer ordinariness of Mr Rock And Roll, I fail to see quite why.

Version - Mark Ronson

Girls Aloud release a cover version as a single, the cool brigade cries foul that manufactured artists doing old songs are what is killing the industry. Mark Ronson releases an album of cover versions, and the whole thing is cool. Still that's another rant for another day. ;-D

Version is indeed eagerly anticipated and what's clear is that for the most part that anticipation is not only lived up to, but surpassed.

It's difficult to know where to start when recommending the best tracks. You should have already heard the Smiths cover (Stop Me) which is just genius, the version of Britney's Toxic, which is even more playful and funky than the original and the cover of Radiohead's Just which in some ways shows that if Thom Yorke put his mind to it his version of "experimental" wouldn't have to be so dull.

There's plenty more to enjoy as well. Ronson brings out the best vocal performance we've had yet from Lily Allen on the cover of the Kaiser Cheifs Oh My God, whilst Ronson also proves that he had more than a little to do with Amy Winehouse's renaissance on Back To Black with a great Mowtown-esque version of the Zuton's Valerie. It also works well with the original vocalists as well as Maximo Park's Paul Smith contributes to a snazzy version of Apply Some Pressure.

In fact the only one that doesn't really work at all is Kasabian joining Ronson on a version of L.S.F. But that just goes to prove that whilst Ronson might be a musical genius, not even he is quite up to the task of making Kasabian something worth listening to. (Or as thisisfakediy.co.uk put it "not even genius can polish a turd").

It might seem a little bizarre to be trumpeting an album of cover versions as one of the best of the year so far, but believe me that's not over-stating matters in the slightest. This is a must-have album every step of the way.