It’s difficult to think of the ‘80s as a great time for chilled music, until you look more closely at chillout compilations that feature inspiring Balearic moments like Chris Rea’s ‘Josephine’. Incidentally that very track appears on the third CD of this collection, following a gargantuan mix of ‘Madam Butterfly’ from Malcolm McLaren. There are some quite adventurous choices here that definitely fall into the ‘guilty pleasures’ category – ‘Shattered Dreams’ from Johnny Hates Jazz, anyone? – but when you have stone cold classics like the extended mix of The Cure’s ‘Lovesong’, The Human League’s ‘Human’ and Fiction Factory’s ‘Feels Like Heaven’, it’s difficult to argue with the overall result. And that’s before I even mention the ten minute version of Blondie’s ‘Rapture’…
4 out of 5
Reviewed By Ben Hogwood
