Wow, where do I begin? First of all this is by far THE worst dance compilation I have ever heard. I could of mixed this better on my computer. Better on my turntables. DJ Sammy needs to stick to what he is a little better at.... cliche dance songs for the masses. If there was at least some songs on the 2 cds worth playing again I would of given a higher rating. Do not buy this cd unless you like old songs and bad mixing.

Perhaps it was the excitement of the hype that I had built up for myself to purchase The Annual 2003 America. After all, there are several very hot titles on the track list, and you couldn't have picked a better DJ to mix the year's "Best" than DJ Sammy, who had a very big year in his own right. But upon listening to this 2CD set, I couldn't help getting that unfulfilled feeling, like the post holiday letdown of not getting QUITE what you wanted for Christmas. To begin with, while DJ Sammy was a wonderful choice to mix the American edition, his mixing was not quite what I had hoped. Oh don't get me wrong, his talent was blatently evident, and had I been listening to this on the radio or in a club I would have completely enjoyed myself. But when I purchase a CD, I want to have songs that I can use myself in my own mixes, and unfortunately many of the songs are mixed so tightly that there were no breaks, intro's or outtro's to be found. Some songs had vocals from the previous song still going several lines into the lyrics of the next song. Yes, beautiful for listening, but not so great for USE... Next complaint: some of the songs selected for this compilated were subpar. Like a sore thumb, Res' "They- Say Vision" sticks out as a major mistake, not because of the song itself, but because of the particular remix used (Robbie Rivera's Vox Part 2). Take a wonderful song like "They-Say Vision" and completely dismantle it with useless dub nonsense, and you've just destroyed one of the biggest hits of (and major reasons to purchase) the compilation. Major hits included are from Iio ("Rapture"), Daniel Bedingfield ("Gotta Get Through This" Catchy!), Mary J Blige ("Family Affair" Spanish Fly Remix), DB Boulevard ("Point of View" LOVE IT!), Mad'house ("Like A Prayer" better than the Madonna version), Narcotic Thrust ("Safe From Harm" overrated), 4 Strings ("Take Me Away"), Moby ("We Are All Made of Stars" DJ Tiesto Remix), Kosheen ("Hide U"), DJ Encore ("Walking In The Sky" inferior to "I See Right Through To You"), Ian Van Dahl ("Will I?" their best by far!), Dee Dee ("Forever," I'm bored as ever with this song) and Perpetuous Dreamer ("The Sound of Goodbye"). Other than that, you're looking at mainly "filler" material. When you're talking about a 26 song set, having half of the songs being "filler" is not a great ratio. Sometimes these filler tracks can be suprisingly satisfying, but in this case a breakout hit like that would be the exception rather than the rule. Tina Ann's "In My Dreams" is probably the "best of the rest." While DJ Tiesto can certainly create a mighty fine remix (Moby's "...Stars"), his own music is quite boring. Tiesto is deep, vocaless trance music, and "Flight 643" contained herein is a perfect example. I didn't mention Who Da Funk's "Shiny Disco Balls," Sophie Ellis Bextor's "Murder On The Dancefloor" or Amber's "Yes" among the "big hits" only because they were not hits in my own music world. However, each has generated major buzz in some circles, so perhaps these would entice you, the reader to buy. The Annual was not entirely devoid of merit, however. Some of the remixes were different, and thus somewhat fresh, such as the John Creamer & Stephanie K remixes of "Rapture" and "Hide U." While neither remix was necessarily better than the original track, each did have a fresh new spin. On the other hand, the Spanish Fly Remix of "Family Affair" and the DJ Tiesto remix of "We Are All Made of Stars" are far superior to their original versions. Oh yeah, there's a nice double-sided poster that comes with this CD. One side features the Ministry of Sound logo and the other is a photo of a large club crowd with the logo and "Global Dance Party" at the top. I guess if the music isn't quite enough to sell CD's, gotta throw in a little extra, eh? All in all, 3 stars outta do it.

-discodoc

I have heard most of the songs on the radio for several months now. If you want something good and new get the MOS The Annual 2003(Import) to get the newest and best.

My first impression of this CD was "Wow this is some old stuff!" Then I stopped and thought, isn't this great if I just want to think back about some HOT music that rocked dancefloors over the past 12 months, and mix in a few new gems like "The Way."

That being said, here is my recommendation:
1) For those who are not regular club goers, BUT don't get nearly enough dance music on your local radio station (for whatever REASON), this is a SURE WAY TO get the bangers (good songs) in one collection. Really, there is NOT one bad or lesser known song even... all of these 12" singles are still in my cases to pull out occasionally and play for my crowds.

2) For those of you who do frequent the clubs regularly, this may well be "past tense" music. This is a great way to still get the good flava of dance music into your system if you want to... IF however you are looking for less cheese and more of the newer stuff try MOS 2003 Import (B000077IB7), it MAY suit you better.

3) As far as DJ Sammy, the mix is flawless (as I have come to expect from MOS) and the variety is good to keep the mainstreamers happy and the non mainstreamers NOT unhappy.

4) As far as MOS. Not their most cutting edge stuff, BUT definitely one CD worth having in the CD changer.

OK...i cannot beleive DJ Sammy is mixing for Minestry of Sound. The Ministry, over the years had become a standerd for releasing quality music for clubbers and trance/house fans. This is a disgrace. First of all DJ Sammy's mixing abalities are highly questionable...I feel the order in which these tracks are arranged is totally out of whack! Secondly, the songs are old!!!..."Rapture"???, "Point of View"????, "Gonna get thru this"?????, "Hide U"?????, "We are all made of stars"????????????...ok all those songs are really good but i dont think there is even one noteworthy club that is currently playing this stuff...these tracks have moved off the dance floor!!...DJ Sammy needs to understand that!!!

DJ Sammy is the Justin Timberlake of the club world...you cant' see the talent but he still is rakin in the big bucks. O well thats the way of many things. The stuff on these 2 CD's is way to commercial. People who dont want to bother looking deeper or try a little harder to here better music should invest in this disasater of a release.

P.S.- My 16 year old little sister adores this CD and she is THE biggest fan of J-Lo. You put 2 and 2 together.