Westlife

I have a dream, a song to sing
To help me cope with anything
If you see….

I heard this song playing on the radio a few days back. It brought back wonderful memories to my mind. Memories about the times when the only English songs I had listened to were party tracks like Who let the Dogs out, the Vengaboys, Escape, Un Dos Tres, Living la vida loca, It's my life et all. One day, out of the blue, I thought of buying an audio cassette of any random English Songs and listen to it for a change.

I happened to pick out the album ‘Turnaround’ by Westlife, and I am so glad I picked that one. I’ve listened to that cassette for atleast a 100 times before it finally broke a couple of years ago. Each and every song is amazing. Struck gold with the first cassette!

Now, many people will say Westlife is not that famous a band. They are not that great. Many people wouldn't even have heard them apart from songs like 'My love'. But for me it’s never about famous. It doesn’t really matter that the thing that I like must be famous. Also, it’s not necessary to like what everyone likes! Infact, I prefer Westlife songs over other famous Boybands like Blue, Backstreet Boys, MLTR, Boyzone etc.

I’ve listened to every song that Westlife has sung and everytime I listen to them, I get a different feeling. The feeling that no other song can give. I can very much relate to the lyrics, they are the best!

Many people feel, the problem with a lot of Westlife songs is that they are not original compositions. I still feel that Westlife has done a good job with them too. It’s not that I am in favour of remixes or something, but sometimes the same song in a different way, feels good. Infact, I’ve liked the Westlife version of ‘Uptown Girl’ more than the Billy Joel one. There are people who hate Guns and Roses for remaking the ‘Knocking on Heavens Door’, but what’s the problem if they have done a great job. Infact, if you search for it on you tube, firstly you’ll get the GnR version.

Also, Westlife have a lot of original compositions, some of which went unnoticed, yet were pretty amazing. These songs have helped me cope up with some of the dullest moments in life till now, during the tough times. They continue to be special for me. I am still looking for the ‘Turn around’ cassette in every music store I visit. The day I’ll get that one, it will remain with me for life.

In the end, I would like to mention a list of the best Westlife songs that I feel every music lover should listen to:

• Home
• On my Shoulder
• Fool Again
• If I let you go
• World of our own