In the late 1990s, the music industry experienced an influx of bouncy, bubbly, blonde pop singers. Of course, there were Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera, who are still using their sex appeal to boost record sales. There was Jessica Simpson, who is now famous for being former boy band member Nick Lachey's not too bright wife. And there was also Mandy Moore, who was always in the shadow of Britney and Christina. She did have a pretty successful single called "Candy" from her first CD, So Real. Since we didn't hear much from Mandy for awhile, both she and her record company knew a new Mandy release had to be churned out, and soon. So in 2000, I Wanna Be With You, Mandy's second CD, was released.

It is obvious that I Wanna Be With You was released quickly in the hopes of conning people into buying it. The album is basically a rehash of Mandy's previous effort with a few new songs scattered throughout. It says the CD is a "Special Edition" but the features are just listening to the CD and downloading a screensaver, nothing exciting. I guess the record company figured people would have to buy this CD if they thought it was a special edition that would soon become unavailable. There is a poster of Mandy, so maybe that's what makes this "special." Anyway, on to the songs.

The CD begins with the title track, "I Wanna Be With You." The music relies heavily on synthesizers, but there are some other instruments like bass, guitar, and drums. Mandy sings in a low voice and is trying to sound like she is really in love. I find that the music drowns her out when I listen to it on my Discman, though. As you can tell by the title, this is a love song, and the lyrics aren't very original. "I try but I can't seem to get myself to think of anything but you" - you know the drill. This is an okay track that sounds like a lot of other pop love songs.

Next, we have "Everything My Heart Desires." The song begins with Mandy saying things like, "Come on, yeah, come on, unh." The music is upbeat with synths once again the main instrument. I do hear some keyboards in the background. The lyrics and music don't mesh well, and this sounds likes a dance remix of a slow song. The song is extremely repetitive, with the same lyrics repeated over and over for about three and a half minutes, although maybe Mandy wanted to stress the fact that her guy "has no missing parts." This is definitely not a great song.

The next track is called "Want You Back." Obviously, it's a song about wanting an old lover back after a breakup. The music is nothing groundbreaking, with a guitar and some synthesizers. When the song begins, you know it's not going to be good – "Last night I saw you/ The first time since we broke up." Mandy sounds okay, but her voice started to annoy me on this song. Of course, the lyrics are very cheesy. "If I say I want you back/ Would you turn around and say you want me too/ 'Cause I say I want you back/ This time I really mean it." Does Mandy often break up with this guy and say she wants him back? This is another lackluster track.

The fourth song is another love song, "The Way To My Heart." The music is a mix of synthesizers, guitar, and keyboards. "When you're close to me/ All that I do/ Is think about a way/ To make you stay/ With me." It sounds like Mandy is getting some payback for breaking up with the guy so many times in "I Want You Back" because in this song, she says, "I don't wanna lose you again." This is an okay song, but it sound like so many songs I've heard before.

This is where things get really bad. Track 5 is "So Real (Wade Robson Remix)." The original "So Real" was nothing great, but this remix is just plain awful. There are computerized voices and some funky synthesizers. The thumping music, digitized voices, and a guy (I assume Wade Robson) randomly saying "Come on" and grunting make this song sound pretty bad from the start. But it does get worse. After the first chorus, we are treated to an insipid rap by the same guy, and during the rest of the song, he pops up to grunt and say things like, "Do it girl." This is definitely one to skip.

Up next is "Lock Me In Your Heart," from Mandy's first CD, So Real. The song begins with a guy murmuring, "Mandy, Mandy, the sound of your voice is sweet like candy." Then Mandy begins singing about her fantasy lover. "There was a time when I was all alone/ Waiting for someone I could call my own/ I closed my eyes and dreamt you up one day." The song is pretty slow, and there are lots of whispering and "ooh"s throughout, like any pop song. This is not really a bad song, but it was already available on Mandy's first CD.

Continuing the pattern of recycling old tracks, the next song is "Walk Me Home", which is once again from Mandy's first CD. The song begins with a music box kind of melody and the chorus, which will be repeated many times. The lyrics are once again cheesy and annoyingly so. “I hold your picture next to my heart all the time/ Oh yeah baby/ You’re my dream come true/ So glad you’re mine.” The song seems way too long, too.

Up next is yet another track from So Real, “I Like It.” The song is cowritten by former Backstreet Boys member Howie Dorough, and it has a disco feel to it. Mandy’s voice sounds childish, and the lyrics are repetitive and cheesy. “You are the perfect one in my life/ You make me happy/ So very happy/ Don’t you know/ Don’t you know/ I like it/ I like it/ I like it/ I like, I like it/ I like it.” Sorry, Mandy, I don’t like it.

The next song is the title track from Mandy’s first CD, “So Real.” The song is exactly the same as it was on the first CD, so it’s obvious it’s only here to take up space. The music is very poppy, with synthesizers (a necessity in any pop song) and keyboards. The song is pretty catchy, but the background singers chanting “Baby, baby” continuously gets old fast. I do like this song, but this exact version was already available on her first album.

Unfortunately, Wade Robson got his hands on another of Mandy’s songs and remixed the hell out of it. The “Candy (Wade Robson Remix)” is next, and of course, “Candy” was a track from Mandy’s first CD. The synthesized techno beat does not work with Mandy’s sweet voice, and the results are disastrous. This is another one to skip over.

Finally, we have a song that was not on Mandy’s first CD, “Your Face.” The music is slow and beautiful and includes a piano, flute, violin, drums, and keyboards. Mandy’s vocals sound good, and this song is a masterpiece after listening to the previous track. The lyrics are pretty and heartfelt. “You are the face/ That heaven showed me/ When I needed someone/ Someone to love/ And stay/ You showed me/ The quiet kind of love/ Behind your face.” This is my favourite song on the CD and the reason this album gets 2 stars instead of 1.

The last track is a remix of a song on this CD, the “I Wanna Be With You (Soul Solution Remix).” This is thankfully not a Wade Robson remix, but it is still pretty bad. The song has a techno beat to it that does not work with the lyrics. It’s only about 5 seconds longer than the original version, but it feels much longer. This is a bad track to end the album with, and it should have been eliminated.

Overall, I think this CD should not have been released. Mandy should have recorded some more new material instead of including only 5 new songs plus awful remixes and some songs lifted entirely off of her first CD. I would recommend buying So Real and just downloading “Your Face” because it’s the only good new song.

Recommended: No