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Joe Dolan: "Joe's 90's" (Lime Records)

Sounds like the perfect parody: get the legendary warbler from Westmeath to perform straight-faced cover versions of songs by Britpop bands such as Blur, Pulp, Suede and Radiohead. Everyone will have a laugh, and Joe Dolan will enjoy a temporary revival of his career. Only one thing might stymie this plan, however, and that is the powerful voice of Mr Dolan, which, judging by the "heavier" tracks on offer here, could knock Ozzy Osbourne's metalloid whine into a cocked hat.

When you realise that the opening number, Pulp's Disco 2000, has actually been notched up a key or two to accommodate Dolan's prodigious range, you begin to suspect that the Mullingar Maestro could turn his tonsils to almost any tune he fancies. While Disco 2000 and the current single The Universal (originally by Blur) are triumphant tributes, Dolan's version of Reef's Place Your Hands is just a little too rock'n'roll for cabaret comfort, and his Westmeath accent constantly betrays his show-band roots.

Suede's Beautiful Ones sees Dolan mud-wrestling with lines like "smacked-up, cracked-up, 22, psycho for sex and glue". Just another Friday night in Mullingar, then. But when he gets to the chorus, oh, the joyful sound of a legendary belter getting high on his own undiminished talent. For old Joe fans, there are MOR originals such as Listen To Me and AOR standards like Rainbow's I Surrender, plus a creditable cover of Neil Young's Only Love Can Break Your Heart, sure to bring a tear to your granny's eyes. Joe's 90s is hardly OK Computer, but it certainly bends a few preconceptions.