A lovely, sugary piece of easy-pop, with a nice flute, some subtle strings, fingersnaps and terrific lyrics. "We were swinging oh so nice/bubbly pink champagne on ice"...plus a few "la la la doobie doobie doo"s for good measure.

Considering the number of songs P5 recorded, they have made very few ballads. It's a shame, because Maki's voice is so beautiful in slow, dramatic songs. 'The Awakening' is the first song on 'Romantique '96' (after a short opening-collage) and it still amazes me because it's such a strange way to start an album. I think it's the most beautiful melody Konishi has ever written.

For those not yet ready for France Gall/Serge Gainsbourg quite yet. This is Elinor Blake's (aka April March) English language version of "Laisse Tomber Les Filles" written by Gainsbourg and made famous by Gall. I prefer this meatier version to the France Gall original but it did get me to go out and purchase my first France Gall CD. The CD also contains a French language version of the same song.

A superb instrumental, featuring a nice organ sound and the sublime twangy guitar of Johnny Johnson. I believe Johnny has now left the Flaming Stars (who are led by Max Decharne, once of Gallon Drunk), which is a shame - he is a masterful guitarist. This is a rather dramatic, moody track, opening gently and building up nicely with fast strummed guitars. While I doubt this is deliberate, the overall effect is reminiscent of some of the tracks on Morrissey's guitar-heavy 1992 album 'Your Arsenal'. Anyway, like much of the band's other material, this is a nice hybrid of 50s and 90s styles.

This is such an amazingly beautiful version of this song. It was originally done by Nina Simone, but Jeff's cover makes it sound like an entirely different song. His voice is incredibly captivating, especially on this live track.