REVIEW: War Child Records—Help (2) (2026)
The best charity compilation ever made?
Of all the charity compilations down the decades, none had quite the impact of the original War Child compilation Help back in 1995. It rallied support from so many of the biggest name artists of the era, it was a no-brainer purchase day 1, pulling together everyone from Oasis, Stone Roses, Radiohead, Portishead, Suede, Massive Attack, Blur, Paul Weller, The Charlatans & The Chemical Brothers, Manic Street Preachers, Orbital, Boo Radleys and a load more across the 20-tracks.
Although War Child has put out a few more over the years (including the pretty decent Help—A Day In The Life in 2005, destination for the still exclusive Radiohead track I Want None Of This), the concept has been on the back burner for a long time. Thanks to the supreme efforts of Jame Ellis Ford, we now have this ambitious ‘sequel’, featuring 24 artists, mostly throwing in unheard new tunes that fans will want to get their hands on. One of these was announced at the last minute—an exclusive 7” single featuring a typically spirited 2025 live version of Oasis’ Acquiesce—something that will instantly boost sales no end, given their popularity right now.
The impressive thing about Help (2) isn’t so much the roster, but the quality of the tunes they have all contributed. On the original, the standard was pretty inconsistent. While there were stunners like Radiohead’s Lucky and Portishead’s Mourning Air (both two years ahead of their eventual release), and Suede’s excellent Shipbuilding cover, the Macca-and-Weller Come Together, there were plenty of inessential inclusions: like the rubbish take on Love Spreads and a gentle Noel-sung Fade Away, or sub-b-side quality tunes like Eine Kleine Lift Music (Blur), Time For Livin’ (The Charlatans), Oh Brother (The Boo Radleys), or some tossed off cover versions (Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head, Dream A Little Dream).
Help (2)’s general standard is consistent start to finish, and the artists have shown up with songs people are going to want to have. I’m no Arctic Monkey’s apologist, but even I can tell Opening Night is one of their better tunes in some years—and that’s an opening shot that sets the standard that others keep on following. Damon Albarn probably writes two songs before lunchtime most days, but he’s shown up with Flags, ably assisted by Kae Tempest and Grian Chatten. Quite honestly, it’s better than most of the tracks I’ve heard on the new Gorillaz album.
The new incarnation of Black Country New Road also deliver one of their better tunes of late. I liked last year’s third album, but it did occasionally careen off the road into a tree, whereas Strangers plays it straight, leaning into their melodic strengths very pleasantly indeed. Now, I’ve probably heard more Sunday Morning covers than you’ve had hot dinners, so if I was James Ford, I maybe would have politely suggested to Beth Gibbons to pick something less done to death, but then again, it’s Beth. She can do what she likes. And of course she nails it, though the guy playing the acoustic guitar has the buzziest strings I think I’ve ever heard on a recording.
Similarly, Lilac Wine has been covered plenty over the years, and no-one will ever do it better than Jeff Buckley, so, again, I could live without this. But! Between Beck and Arooj Aftab, they do the song justice. I certainly wasn’t expecting Depeche Mode to show up and deliver a great version of 1964 folk song Universal Soldier from Buffy Sainte Marie. I’d never heard the original, and the way they do it makes it all their own, so you wouldn’t suspect it wasn’t one of their originals. Either way, an inspired inclusion, especially given the intent of the project. Another worthy cover comes from Beabadoobee, who turns in a sweet version of Elliott Smith’s unimproveable Say Yes. Unlike some of the other covers, this one hasn’t been done to death, so hearing it again is a sign of good taste, rather than just picking a standard.
I wasn’t blown away by Big Thief’s rather uneven Double Infinity album, but it would have been improved considerably had Relive, Redie been on it, so fans will be delighted with this inclusion. The legion of Geese fans will also be eagerly tuning in to see what Cameron Winter’s Warning is like—an original song penned by the man himself. Set against a stark string backing, it’s nothing like anything he’s done before, but still full of his characteristic drama. When you hear him playing with sonic possibilities like this, who knows where he’ll end up. It’s still the right side of experimental.
Pulp’s resurgence continues here, with Begging For Change, with easily one of the rockiest numbers they’ve ever come up with. It’s no tossed off b-side, either. I can hear why they didn’t include it on More, but in this context, there’s an urgency and spiky vitality that bodes extremely well for whatever they decide to do next. Another band taking the opportunity to throw in something completely different is Wet Leg, whose Obvious is easily the sweetest song they’ve ever come up with, playing it straight, with none of the usual off kilter menace and shenanigans they’re famed for. They apparently used to be quite folky once upon a time, so maybe Rhian dipped into the song pile to deploy this now, and in doing so is completely reconfiguring our understanding of what they’re capable of, because this is a truly lovely tune, with an affecting vocal.
English Teacher also show up with something soft and sweet on Parasite, sounding very much like a band taking a step forward from their initial batch of songs. And having Graham Coxon adding his brilliantly eccentric guitar to the mix is also a fun bonus. He can make anything sound better with his wiry wonkiness. Carried My Girl from Bat For Lashes also fits the vibe perfectly here, as does Anna Calvi’s Sunday Light. Even if you don’t have a specific interest in specific artists included here, the sequencing and the consistency of the mood really makes it work as something you can happily listen to front to back—like a radio station that fits the songs to a mood.
There’s way too much on this collection to cover everything here, but hats off to James Ellis Ford and his army of helpers for putting this one together. It’s one thing getting all these artists to commit and contribute to the album, but it’s a real measure of the craft that has gone into it that even the artist’s you’re not that into still manage to deliver something highly worthwhile. If the aim was to make the best charity compilation ever, job done.
