[.ca] Wow

The perfect guilty pleasure:
When Bananarama released "Wow!" in 1987, it was to be their final album with founding member Siobhan Fahey. Although their fans couldn't have predicted this disappointment upon the release of the album, "Wow!" did signal that something had irreversibly changed in the band's music; while their trademark unison vocals were still as recognizable as ever, they had transformed into a super-slick dance pop trio, something attributed to the presence of famous English producers Stock-Aitken-Waterman (Rick Astley, Samantha Fox, Dead or Alive and so on). "Wow!" became Bananarama's best-selling album. The reason for that success is quite easy to understand: "Wow" is a collection of simply irresistible songs, a perfect blend of pop and dance that matched instantly memorable melodies to energetic dance beats. Songs like "I heard a rumour" (one of the band's finest songs), "Love in the first degree", "I want you back" and "I can't help it" deservedly found themselves at the top of the charts around the world and forever secured their place in the trio's repertoire. Other tracks like "Bad for me", "Some girls" and the album's only ballad "Once in a lifetime" were just as effective, especially the latter. "Wow!" cemented Bananarama's place in history as the female band with the most hit singles in the history of the U.K. (a record that has yet to be beaten 21 years later). However, one might argue (and many have) that the band unfortunately lost most of its former edge in the process. Gone were the social messages of past songs such as "Robert de Niro's waiting", "In a perfect world", "Rough justice", "King of the jungle" and "Hooked on love"; most of all, the new songs were sorely missing was the poignant emotional urgency of "Cheers then", "Dance with a stranger", "A trick of the night", "Wish you were here" and "Through a child's eye". Always unfairly accused of being a generic fluffy pop trio, it's as though Bananarama finally decided to just let it be and to live up to their reputation. The material here may be catchy as a deadly virus, but it's also lightweight to the point of meaninglessness. While this doesn't have to be a problem as such (hey, it's Bananarama after all!), one has to admit that something was lost in the process. The subsequent departure of Fahey seemed to signal the end of an era, and the band eventually became more and more of a generic dance act with each subsequent album (although some, like "Drama" and "Please yourself", were still pretty good). However, taken for what it is (instead of judging it for what it's not), "Wow!" is an essential component of the band's history and repertoire, if only for its amazing singles. They mastered the formula to perfection on this album, something that can't simply be attributed to the producers that they worked with (the trio co-wrote every song with the exception of "Nathan Jones", a Supremes cover that they totally made their own). Label this album under the "ultimate guilty pleasures" file, and enjoy it for what it's worth ! This remastered edition features many bonus tracks and remixes, some of which will be of interest to the group's fans (especially "Amnesia"). The sound quality is excellent, and the liner notes are very minimal but interesting. It is unfortunate, however, that this new edition of the album offers a totally different version of "Strike it rich"; not only are the arrangements very different from the original, but this version is also significantly shorter and ends halfway through on an abrupt and botched fade-out. Many fans have voiced their concern over this questionable decision, and I will add my voice to theirs...

• I Can't Help It
• I Heard a Rumor
• Some Girls
• Love in the First Degree
• Once in a Lifetime
• Strike It Rich
• Bad for Me
• Come Back
• Nathan Jones
• I Want You Back
• Clean Cut Boy (Party Size) \o*\c
• Mr Sleaze \o*\c
• Ecstasy (Wild Style) \o*\c
• Nathan Jones \oPsycho 7" Edit\c\o*\c
• I Want You Back \oSingle Version\c\o*\c
• Amnesia (The Theme from the Roxy\c \o*\c
• Nathan Jones \oSingle Version\c\o*\c