Elly Roberts reviews
Various: Howzat
Distributed by
Warner Music UK Ltd
- Cat.no: WSMCD222
- Released: October 2005
- Rating: 8/10
- Format: 2-CD set
Cricket has never been my game, but this CD has bowled me over.
Following-on from the England Ashes victory, the wide-ranging tracks are the
perfect companion for further celebrations. With the ‘Return Of The Urn’ comes
this fun-packed double disc. A rousing collection of anthems, old-skool
rock and new classics, this is definitely guaranteed to raise the roof at
any party.
I still get stumped by the complicated laws of the game, but there’s nothing
complicated about this excellent collection.
Consulting a cricket-mad friend, he recognised some of the songs, with the
rest down to more than a little artistic licence. Nevertheless, it’s a
strong compilation to please both older and younger generations.
Characteristically, it opens with cricket match anthem Jerusalem which
normally rallies the troops into action as they take to the field. Other
favourites around the grounds are God Save The Queen and the England
Chant.
TV and radio make regular use of opening themes such as Soul Limbo
by Radio 4’s Test Match Special (recently picked by Boris Johnson MP as one
of his Desert Island Discs, and Channel 4 have adopted Mambo No.5 as
their intro-outro. We all know there’s a cricket reference on 10CC’s Dreadlock
Holiday... "I don’t like cricket, I love it", which is used for
Sky’s presentation of Twenty 20 matches.
As the face of cricket is changing from a supporter’s angle, with crowds
becoming more partisan and vocal , they’re bringing an new atmosphere to
the level of support, so the likes of The Farm’s All Together Now,
Ian Dury’s Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick and Sherbet’s Howzat
are making increasing inroads into the fans’ repertoire.
If play soundtracks were ever needed then imagine Kevin Pietersen blasting
a yorker to the slips using Aussie outfit Jet’s Are You Gonna Be My Girl?
Clubbers can also get rock overdoses courtesy The Killers’ awesome classic
Somebody Told Me, Thin Lizzy’s The Boys are Back In Town, House
Of Pain’s Jump Around and Slade’s Cum On Feel The Noize.
A great compilation whether you’re a cricket fan or not.
The full list of tracks included are :
Review & concert pics copyright © Elly Roberts, 2004-2010.
