Cledus T. Judd will be the first one to tell you he didn’t set out to reinvent the music of Ray Stevens. What he did do is enlist the help of country stars to record a fitting tribute. Keith Urban plays guitar on “Gitarzan,” Charlie Daniels duets on “Shriner’s Convention,” and Stevens himself guests […]
The secret of Lyle Lovett is that it’s hard to tell what the secret is, in much the same way that the title of this record is funny, although it’s hard to put a finger on why. But it’s probably enough to say that Lovett is among the planet’s most rewardingly consistent songwriters, […]
On the surface, it’s a punch line: 66-year-old crooner attempts a Tony Bennett return to cool by covering Van Halen and the Killers in big band style. But maybe because of his hit songwriter’s ear or his five young daughters, Paul Anka’s interpretations (here and on 2005’s “Rock Swings”) aren’t campy — they’re insightful. […]
Only 18 months after his ambitious solo double-disc, “Both Sides of the Gun,” Ben Harper returns with his eighth studio album and his best in years. Recorded with the Innocent Criminals at the end of a long world tour, “Lifeline” is a gorgeously underproduced, laid-back, acoustic-based soul/rock album whose minimalist vintage feel recalls Van […]
Even more so than her arresting 2005 indie debut, “Arular,” M.I.A. comes off as a globetrotting activist on sophomore effort “Kala,” draping myriad Third World sounds over club-happy beats. She’s a revolutionary leading a class war on “Paper Planes” and pounding the door of a Hummer on “Bamboo Banga,” all while disguising a political […]
On Casting Crowns’ third studio album, the Georgia-based band demonstrates the musicality and insightful songwriting that have made it an instant Christian music sensation. Frontman Mark Hall has a gift for penning songs that avoid cliches and platitudes, instead thoughtfully examining the complexities of living a Christian life. He does so again on such […]
One of this year’s more auspicious debuts is by 22-year-old Emily King. The New Yorker delivers a soulful collection of songs that resonates as much from her skill as an observant storyteller as from her tasty melange of R&B, hip-hop, folk, jazz, rock and pop. Writing since the age of 16 and influenced by […]
Chicago’s Vee-Jay never had the cachet of Chess, the cultural influence of Motown or the longevity of Atlantic, but from its start in 1953 to its financial ruin in 1966, it was one of America’s most artistically varied black-owned labels. This four-CD set tells the musical story. In the ’50s, Vee-Jay was a powerhouse […]
