Shut up and Dance by Paula Abdul

When Paula Abdul debuted, she hit hard with her album Forever Girl, spinning out hits such as Straight Up and Opposites Attract. I think Paula's lable Virgin Records took advantage of that and Paula and company put out a record that held her fans over until a new album with new music was done!

I think Shut Up And Dance was a great cd, because it gave Paula's fans alternate mixes to her songs, and also the entire album puts each song into a different angle.

Shut Up And Dance I believe went gold, so it was enough to keep Paula in the light and only left her fans and radio and even MTV ready for more!

Track 1 starts out with a slamming remix of Cold Hearted, and unlike the original album version that Forever Your Girl had, this remix, which is the Quivering 12" Mix, has the little loveable rap that Paula did only on the single mix, but in this case she does in between the verses...here the bass is heavy and so is the drum beat...this song may be an 80's favorite, but I still feel that this particular remix can fit with today's standards. This version is great with effects, such as sounds travling from one speaker to the other and it really is a great one to put on when you simply want to dance!

Track 2 is the huge hit Straight Up, and this remix is called the Ulti-mix Mix...the sub title is a little redundant I feel, but as far as a remix goes, it even blew away the original 12" and house mixes! What is really cool, is that this album does not waste time either, Cold Hearted comes to an end and Straight Up automatically kicks in! There are neat vocal effects here too...such as a strong male vocal that sings Oh Yeah, unlike the original and also there are computerized vocals. There is a slight tease in the intro, because it starts then it stops and then it picks right back up, and very ready to get you dancing. I think Paula played around alot with this, since it was her first #1 hit, and this remix is very good musically too, hard hits, heavy drum beat, musically teases you, and heavy bass lines. My favorite part is the Just Jam It Lines that come up every so often.

Track 3 is a song that did not get a release from her debut, which is One Or The Other, and for not being a single, Paula did a great job remixing a non single. It slightly differs from her original mix, but musically it sounds the same as it did, with a slight heavier bass and alot of vocal effects. I always thought this song was almost Donna Summer like with a slight twist. If you have never heard the original, check out Forever Your Girl before playing this one, but even if you never hear the original, this is still a likeable song. The basis of this song, a man who thinks he can have his cake and eat it too, but Miss Abdul simply says I am not playing your two timing game! A very cute song!

Track 4 is Forever Your Girl. This does differ alot from its original form, this is the Frankie Foncett Remix. I like this because it really moves away from the original album/single mix. Here Paula tells her man that no matter what, she is forever his, and nothing can take her away. I always liked the male back up lead in this, because it was brilliant with him calling back to her, which was also on the original mix and single mix. This is almost a drum/vocal mix with slight keyboards and various instruments in between. I have always thought of this as a similar tune to Madonna's hit single Express Yourself...simply in lyric that is.

Track 5 is Knocked Out and this remix is the Pettibone 12" Mix. Shep Pettibone is known for his work with many artist and again Madonna comes into this mix, he worked with her on Vogue and various others afterwards. The story behind Knocked Out is, it was actually Paula's first single to be released from Forever Your Girl, but it failed. Then when Straight Up caught on, Virgin re-released the song, and Knocked Out became a top 10 hit for Abdul. The song was written by legendary pop/r&b singer Babyface and also a little liner note here, pop singer Pebbles does back ups on this dance classic. I would have to say this is one of my all time favorites by Abdul, lyrically it is playful and I also think it is one of her all time favorites too, due to the many remixes this song has. This song is basically the classic love at first sight....good enough to dedicate to that speical guy/girl.

Track 6 is the hit single The Way That You Love Me, and this is the House-A-Fire Edit. There is also a House-A-Fire remix on the original 12" mix record that came out, but a bit longer than this edited version, and I believe this was meant for radio to play when or if radio wanted an alternate mix of this song. This verison is very much all bass and light percussion. Nice remix and simply a great song about a person who feels richer by love, rather than those material things, sort of the opposite of Madonna's Material Girl. Alot of funk used in this great tune!

Track 7 is the all time classic from the 80's, Opposite Attract, which was the cute song we all loved, due to the use of a cartoon cat in the video by the name of M.C. Kat Skat....the remix is the 1990 Mix, since the year had rolled over, Paula and company just updated the song to fit the new decade. Yes my friends, our loveable M.C. Kat Skat is back to sing with his girl! The length of the song is a little too long, but also it is a play on a monster hit. It really differs from the two versions we knew on Forever Your Girl and the radio/video single mix. A piano plays and lots of heavy bass and also a lot of effects with instruments and vocals. Also, for those who have never heard this, this song is about how we all differ in a relationship and it takes a lot of humor effects in lyric...they will have you laughing and dancing at the same time! Great song for any couple who like to point out their differences.

Track 8 closes out the album, which is the medley mix, and it is just songs mixed into one song. Starting out with Straight up, working brilliantly into Knocked Out, then going into Opposites Attract, and in this you have the lp mix blend here, then keeping the songs moving, this song slides into the original Forever Your Girl, then using a line from the original 12" Mix, Paula goes into a break instrumentally, then we slide into another song that was not a single, called State Of Attraction...I am not sure why this is added,since this was also not a single, but maybe it was an incentive to buy Forever Your Girl, if you want the full song...and this was always a fave, and I am glad she added this cute song into the mix....and the House-A-Fire Edit remix of The Way That You Love Me comes back and then we slide into Cold Hearted the quivering 12" mix which goes back into a hard driven beat...at the end of the album, Paula closes out with a cute laugh!

Over all...a great album that followed a monsterous hit album and these alternate versions of these hit singles are a great thing to own in your Paula Abdul collection...also a great cd to own if you like to dance!