Brilliant free album

Regardless of cheese-slice takeovers, Cadbury plus Fairtrade is still an equation I’m very happy about. Add free music and I’m ecstatic. The Big Swap Songs promotion is part of Fairtrade Fortnight and in exchange for promising to use Fairtrade products you can download an eight-track album for free. If the cause wasn’t decent enough (whatever Cadbury’s motives), the music itself should persuade you: a collection of cover versions by The Big Ghana Band.

The stand-out is the transformation of Girls Aloud’s Sound of the underground, from pop standard to infectious international treasure but it’s followed by a dizzying calypso take on 80’s classic You spin me round and blow me if they haven’t done it again – is there nothing Ghanaian rhythms can’t turn to gold? Early-90’s indie (EMF’s Unbelievable*) gets the treatment too, and if Elbow’s One day like this lacks something of the original’s magnificence, slightly altered lines “It’s gonna be a beautiful day-o” and (seemingly) “Tro-tro those curtains wide” make up for this. These covers are book-ended with Paulo Nutini’s Pencil full of lead (I’m still not convinced) and Tinny’s swirling, dance hall-shuddering Zingolo. I’m not sure when an album last made me smile so much.

* Once used in an advert for Kraft Crumbles, conspiracy theorists.