Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Compiled in association with the NME, 1 Love is the second benefit album from the War Child charity organisation, following 1995's Help, which raised over a million pounds to help fund projects in war-torn Bosnia. On that occasion, 20 artists were asked to each record a track on the same day, the results comprising roughly half new material and half covers; for this album, the 16 artists were asked to cover a No 1 hit from the past 50 years, and given a deadline of 4 September, exactly seven years from the original Help recording day.
Only two acts – Oasis and the Manic Street Preachers – return from the original Help line-up; and while it's a little unfair to compare the two albums, few of the present generation's efforts are as impressive as such Help highpoints as the Charlatans' version of Sly Stone's "Time for Livin'" and Sinead O'Connor's "Ode to Billie Joe". The closest 1 Love comes to that standard is probably the Prodigy's menacing take on the Specials' "Ghost Town", which stirs howling wind, horror-movie organ and samples of the original's sardonic brass interjections into a sinister downtempo groove. Theirs isn't the only radical reworking here, but it's certainly closer to the heart of the matter than Jimmy Eat World's ponderous alt.rock version of the Prodigy's own "Firestarter"and Oasis's Grinch-style "Merry Christmas Everybody", sung in a miseryguts slouch by Noel Gallagher. Elbow's "Something in the Air" is much better, a lo-fi garage reading borne along by a primitive drum pulse. Feeder's version of "The Power of Love" is decent enough too, with its intimate vocal set to a jazzy trip-hop groove, while Muse attack "House of the Rising Sun" in characteristically overwrought manner. Starsailor's "All or Nothing" likewise bears the impression of their heavy touring schedule, its stadium-seasoned epic rock sounding more like U2 than the Small Faces.
Others are less imaginative, though competent: the Manics' "Out of Time", Stereophonics' "Nothing Compares 2 U" and Faithless and Dido's "Dub be Good to Me" are all faithful to the originals; but Badly Drawn Boy and Jools Holland drain away all the life from "Come on Eileen". With synth strings and pizzicato harp tripping lightly over a garage shuffle, Ms Dynamite and the Reelists' "Back to Life" is the best of the urban cuts, though More Fire Crew's tiresome hip hop take on Gabrielle's "Dreams" offers so little competition, the best thing about it is the original's sampled hook. The egregious Darius offers a live acoustic version of "Pretty Flamingo" that simply demonstrates how successfully he has excised from his voice every last vestige of individuality since his idiosyncratic acappella reading of "Hit Me Baby One More Time" cemented his reputation. Couldn't he just have re-done that?
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments