It's trite, but Paul Oakenfold's 2006 effort could be a contender for dance album of the year, if the year were 1997.
That may be fine for his hardcore fan base, but it's strange to think the man who was on the edge of mainstream dance music for so long isn't offering the next big thing anymore.
Making this even more frustrating is the fact that albums of new productions are rare from the man -- mix CDs make up most of his discography -- so one would think A Lively Mind would be a grander statement, especially with its "you get to look inside my busy head" title.
Dropping these expectations, and the expectation that the star-studded and smart guest list is going to bring the innovation, the album is satisfactory, and even exciting in parts.
Two electro stompers -- one with actress Brittany Murphy on sex kitten vocals -- pass by before the album loosens up and finds an exciting groove with the disco-fabulous "Sex 'n' Money," featuring vocals from Pharrell Williams.
Williams' minimal vocals might as well have been a sample of anyone with a cool falsetto, but unbelievably, the legendary Grandmaster Flash's contribution is even smaller.
The two other tracks of note are instrumentals.
"Praise the Lord" gets campy and offers a Latin-flavored beat with a Duane Eddy-styled guitar, while "Save the Last Trance for Me" is an epic track that builds to a shuddering climax, something Oakie excels at.
Some serene, wide-angle numbers toward the end help a lot, making this safe album easier to recommend to the longtime trance addict.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Faster Kill PussycatIan Green, Paul Oakenfold | Paul Oakenfold, Brittany Murphy | Play | 03:14 | 7 MB | 26 MB |
| 2 | No CompromiseIan Green, Cliff Magreta, Paul Oakenfold | Paul Oakenfold, Spitfire | Play | 03:45 | 8 MB | 30 MB |
| 3 | Sex 'N' MoneyIan Green, Paul Oakenfold, Pharrell Williams | Paul Oakenfold, Pharrell Williams | Play | 05:58 | 13 MB | 47 MB |
| 4 | Switch OnIan Green, Paul Oakenfold, Ryan Tedder | Paul Oakenfold, Ryan Tedder | Play | 04:06 | 9 MB | 33 MB |
| 5 | AmsterdamIan Green, Paul Oakenfold | Paul Oakenfold | Play | 05:40 | 12 MB | 44 MB |
| 6 | The Way I FeelScott Cutler, Ian Green, Paul Oakenfold, Anne Preven, Ryan Tedder | Paul Oakenfold, Ryan Tedder | Play | 05:25 | 12 MB | 41 MB |
| 7 | Praise the LordIan Green, Paul Oakenfold | Paul Oakenfold | Play | 04:13 | 9 MB | 32 MB |
| 8 | Save the Last Trance for MeIan Green, Paul Oakenfold | Paul Oakenfold | Play | 07:49 | 17 MB | 64 MB |
| 9 | Not OverIan Green, Paul Oakenfold, Ryan Tedder | Paul Oakenfold, Ryan Tedder | Play | 08:50 | 20 MB | 73 MB |
| 10 | VulnerableIan Green, Paul Oakenfold | Paul Oakenfold, Bad Apples | Play | 05:55 | 13 MB | 48 MB |
| 11 | Feed Your MindIan Green, Cliff Magreta, Paul Oakenfold | Paul Oakenfold, Spitfire | Play | 02:56 | 6 MB | 25 MB |
| 12 | Set It Off | Paul Oakenfold, Grandmaster Flash | Play | 04:17 | 9 MB | 36 MB |
| 62 mins | 142 MB | |||||
| 62 mins | 503 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bad Apples | Primary Artist |
| 2 | Scott Cutler | Composer |
| 3 | Grandmaster Flash | Composer, Primary Artist, Producer, Vocals |
| 4 | Ian Green | Composer, Producer, Programming |
| 5 | Cliff Magreta | Composer |
| 6 | Brittany Murphy | Primary Artist, Vocals |
| 7 | Paul Oakenfold | Composer, Primary Artist, Producer, Vocals |
| 8 | Anne Preven | Composer |
| 9 | Joseph Saddler | Keyboards |
| 10 | Spitfire | Primary Artist |
| 11 | Ryan Tedder | Composer, Primary Artist, Vocals |
| 12 | Pharrell Williams | Composer, Primary Artist, Vocals |
![Hypnotized (Markus Schulz Mix) [Single] - Paul Oakenfold - Tiff Lacey](https://photos.eruce.com/thumbs/40b/32b/8a0/ec5/295/1dc/3190de42939f44553aeb91bb04495641_250x250.jpg)
Brittany Murphy
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |