Jump5 - Shining Star

Reviewed by Tony Cummings

Listening to Jump5's rendition of Sister Sledge's "We Are Family" or Katrina & The Waves' "Walking On Sunshine" is like being locked in karaoke hell. Now look here, Jump5 were never musical heavyweights and squeaky voiced pre-teen pop is an easy target for wrinkly journos to lambast. Neither were Jump5 conveyors of spiritual profundity (hardly surprising as they were aged between 12 and 15 when they first launched onto the scene in 2001). But in the past we at least got some statements of faith as the glinty-toothed foursome made their choreographed way through Disneyland. But all that seems a long way from this release. Here, Jump5 sing banal and embarrassing covers of pop million sellers. To add insult to injury these wince-inducing tracks were actually compiled from the groups' previous CDs. 'Shining Star' they call this most pointless of compilations. A more accurate title would be 'The Worst Of Jump5'.