Singles

The Ordinary Boys, Lady Sovereign - Nine2Five

Georgie O'Toole 22/05/2006

Rating: 3/5

Fish and chips. Black and white. Ant and Dec. Some things just go together. The ordinary boys and Lady Sovereign? You'd have thought wonky-seaside ska and lyrics from 'hip hop's biggest midget' (her words, not mine) would work as well as white socks and sandals; by which I mean not at all.

Amazingly though, this reworking of Lady Sovereign's original 'Nine2Five' (which failed to make waves on its first release) manages to work spectacularly well. With vocals from Jay-Z's latest protégée that are rather entertaining if you nurture your inner 10 year old, and reality TV's premier export (after his girlfriend, of course), Lady Sovereign and Preston Ordinary Boys' tribute to the hassles of celebrity life is in equal parts charming and pretentious. Whether it's your cup of tea or not is questionable, but this single is guaranteed to get under your skin and have you humming 'la la la la....' from nine to five.

Why does it work? I have absolutely no idea. It really shouldn't. It defies all logic, but it will certainly prolong The Ordinary Boy's celebrity status and up the profile of Lady Sovereign.