How To Be Happy All the Time CD Reviews!

Real People Review "How to Be Happy All the Time"
(Starred reviews taken from CD Baby, an independent CD vendor.)

Monique & Mary with Their New, "Blessed Heavenly Light" CD's.

a wolf in sheep's clothing...except nude
Reviewer: Ian Grout

listening to this cd for the first time is a lot like finding a razor blade in your hallowe'en candy...and liking it. arieff's saccharin sound masks an incredibly astute world view. think ultra-modern tom lehrer. i have not played this for anyone who didn't love it. the only complaint that i have is that, with a running time of just over 21 minutes, there is not enough of a good thing.

Reviewer: Alan

I bought the CD on the evidence of Gun Control Solutions, a rip-roaring intelligent punk anthem that truly deserves to be heard. The rest of the album is more theatrical, almost Rocky Horror in places, but always the lyrics are tellingly funny, and the vocal almost whimsical... like a displaced Blondie..."swingin' Sesame Street pop"? actually not a bad description - my kids certainly loved it too! I would have given it 5 stars if only it had a few more songs, but I'm sure the next CD will address that short-fall.

Extreme Cabaret - Rachel has invented a new genre
Reviewer: Jath.com
One look at the cover of this CD and it's clear Rachel Arieff is not only attractive, but she's more than a bit twisted and willing to do just about anything for a laugh. And laughs are what "How to Be Happy All the Time" is full of, from her "Gotcha" musical rip on a hubby's knack at surfing for online porn, to a scathingly funny take on motherhood ("Have a Baby"). Don''t be fooled by the wacky sense of humor. Rachel is an excellent keyboard player and she has a voice that's innocently welcoming, with just a hint of sex appeal. I've already listened to this CD about 10 times and I don't imagine I will ever grow tired of it.

Hi Rachel! I met you last night (we traded CD's) and I have to tell you-
your CD is the best thing I've heard in ages! I had to drive to Valencia
this morning (not fun) and I laughed so hard that I almost got in a wreck...
Let me know when you do a show or something- you are my new idol! My # is
(***) ***-**** byeeeeee!!!
-gere f. [Gere Fennelly, keyboardist for Redd Kross]

Speaks to a generation...
Reviewer: Robin GD Jones

Rachel Arieff, on her latest CD, has now achieved what she has been working for her whole career... to become the comic voice of an entire generation!In such songs, as "Have A Baby" she seems to be saying, "I speak for you, trailer trash party mother, for I am you, trailer trash party mother." And yet, you ask, can she really be the comic voice of an entire generation with just one CD? And I answer, yes, for her CD comments on not just the concerns of many, but the concerns of all. Songs like "Smoking Grandma" speak to a group of people who just want "Grandma" to watch her "Smoking" habit. And that's a pretty big group of people. And who is this generation Rachel speaks to? Why it's you and me mister! And that fella to your left. The one in the baseball cap with the two beer cans strapped to either side...

Reviewer: John Skipp, NY Times bestselling novelist

If Tom Lehrer and Charles Bukowski morphed together into one REALLY HOT GURL, that gurl would be Rachel Arieff. Her new album -- HOW TO BE HAPPY ALL THE TIME -- is fucked-up, dysfunctional fun at its finest. I love this record so much that I'm buying another copy for my teenage daughters, because everything they need to know about the horror of living is right here: HEARTBREAKINGLY HILARIOUS, AND TRAGICALLY DELICIOUS!

A chocolate coated cyanide pill
Reviewer: Richard Rushfield, Contributing Editor, Vanity Fair

Rachel Arieff is like a cyanide pill coated in a delicious chocolate and cognac bonbon; her precise and deadly wit, which eviscerates contemporary down-at-heel society, is masked in the most delightfully sugar coated of disguises. HOW TO BE HAPPY ALL THE TIME, is the unlikely title of what will become a battle cry for set upon, disillusioned artistes, struggling to keep their dreams in tact while bleak reality crushes in. It is a mesmerizing thrill to watch Arieff's perky, dizzy, boozy lounge singer persona try to maintain her stage smile while seeing all too clearly the horrors that surrounded her as she tries to sashay and shuffle through her "Hollywood Shitbox" dream-palace or drown her sorrows with the perfect solution, "Have a Baby" Fight on, brave Arieff, with a boa around your throat and a dazed smile plastered across your face, you need never fear.

What a catchy, repellent song ["Have A Baby!"]. It made me laugh, and it made me think. Damn you for making me think! - Patton Oswalt

"Omigawd, Cher would love this. I've got to buy this for Cher!" -Cher's assistant, 2002

What is that on your coffee table? Give me one. -Angelyne

Hi Rachel -- I spent last weekend with your Dad at Arnold Cramer's third and latest wedding in Jacksonville. Dave asked me to review your CD --Just what you need, another critic! -- and offer some advice. By the way, I know why Dave and Arnold have remained such good friends ever since their juvenile delinquent days on 45th Street: Dave never shuts up and Arnold is practically deaf. They get along well and are about as much fun to watch as an octopus trying to make out with a set of bagpipes.

In a nutshell, about the CD your Dad gave me, you need better material.

I didn't find your stuff very funny. Neither did Rhonda, who is a great critic. She's always criticizing me. The best thing was that we didn't have to pay $10 for the CD. Your old man gave it to us free, although we offered to pay.

Your delivery is great! Your CD cover picture is stunning, but most of your material sucks.

Sorry, but I promised Dave I'd be honest.

-Frankie Cannelloni, Ann Arbor, MI

BUY A CD from Rachel!