Music » Box Set Music

This is the first attempt to consolidate all of Sir Elton's hit singles, from three labels, in one collection. It once would've required at least four CDs to own the best stuff here. Many think the legendary performer was at his best in the early to mid-'70s, and the incredible string of singles that ran from 1970's "Your Song" through 1977's "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word" remains mighty impressive. But in retrospect, as they're presented here, '80s hits like "I'm Still Standing" and "Sad Songs" add much to an already amazing legacy. Three Disney tunes, the lush "The One," and two from Songs from the West Coast, which was hailed as a return to those '70s golden days, represent the later years. Collectively, these tracks reinforce the notion that, despite Michael Jackson's later proclamations, John was once the closest thing post-'60s music had to a genuine king of pop, respected by hipsters and the mainstream alike. --Bill Holdship

Release Date: 2001-02-06, Audio CD, Decca Broadway

In 1976 a young Toronto musician released a fun and lively record called Singable Songs for the Very Young. The artist was a fellow called Raffi, and in the liner notes he wrote at the time that "there are very few good children's records." True as that was in the '70s, Singable Songs became the No. 1 bestseller in its field and set the standard for today's greater volume of high-quality material. The Singable Songs Collection reissues the classic Singable Songs for the Very Young and its superlative successors, More Singable Songs and Corner Grocery Store, as a set. Raffi's exhilarating acoustic musicality and sense of humor shine brightly through. Single-digit-age kids and their parents will get a kick out of these silly, educational, and joyful songs, which range in subject matter and tone from shared peanut-butter sandwiches and instrumental ragtime to standards like "Goodnight, Irene." --Paige La Grone

What once seemed Queen's greatest liabilities--a preening flamboyance and pompous, overwrought theatricality--have ironically become their most enduring charms in a gray, postmodern pop-music landscape. While it eschews the glammy, pre-punk hard rock of live faves like "Stone Cold Crazy" and "Tie Your Mother Down" for the band's more quirky club-beat string of latter-day hits, this 51-track triple-CD anthology goes a long way toward documenting the true dimensions of the band's music and fame. Some songs may not be instantly familiar to American fans because of yet another irony: just as their U.S. fortunes waned during the punk and new wave era, the band was exploding into true international superstars. Thus, there may be a sense of discovery here, whether of latter-day Queen material or solo work by Brian May and Freddie Mercury, whose duet on "Barcelona" with diva Montserrat Caball? transcends boundaries of both time and genre. A previously unreleased live performance of "The Show Must Go On" featuring Elton John on vocals is also included. --Jerry McCulley

This retrospective includes all of the essential Bad Company hits from the original band's 1970's heyday, plus unreleased material and four new tracks recorded in 1998.
No Track Information Available
Media Type: CD
Artist: BAD COMPANY
Title: ORIGINAL BAD COMPANY ANTHOLOGY
Street Release Date: 03/23/1999
Domestic
Genre: ROCK/POP

With 41 tracks drawn from nine record labels, the two-disc Essential Willie Nelson is impressive in its breadth. Disc one is simply superb; it begins with 1961's "Night Life," recorded for the obscure Bellaire label, and moves on to several of Nelson's early 1960s Liberty recordings, an overlooked gem recorded for Monument in 1964 ("I Never Cared for You"), a cherry-picked selection of his RCA and Atlantic sides, and finally his mid-1970s hits for Columbia (where he found his greatest chart success, beginning, in 1975, with the No. 1 single "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain"). Disc two, however, is hit-or-miss. Classics like "On the Road Again," "Pancho & Lefty," and "Nothing I Can Do About It Now" are offset by such lesser material as "To All The Girls I've Loved Before" (recorded with Latin pop star Julio Iglesias), the phoned-in "City of New Orleans," and the sounds-better-on-paper "Highwayman" collaboration with Johnny Cash, Kris Kristofferson, and Waylon Jennings. (Just because they all made it to No. 1 doesn't make them "essential.") Nelson's two best albums of the 1990s, Across the Borderline and Teatro, are represented by a paltry two songs. The disc ends with collaborations with U2, Lee Ann Womack, and Steven Tyler and Aerosmith (the previously unreleased "One Time Too Many"). None is particularly worthy of a best-of collection. Still, while it doesn't quite live up to its billing, the Essential Willie Nelson offers an excellent career overview of one of country music's true legends. --David Hill

Release Date: 2000-09-12, Audio CD, Bmg / Elvis

This two-CD box contains all 41 recordings Johnson made, including 12 alternate takes, and each cut remains a classic. This set's release in 1990 caused quite a stir, selling more than 500,000 copies, and, on the basis of endorsements from Eric Clapton and Keith Richards, introduced a great number of rock fans to Delta blues. Amazingly, Johnson built his enormous legacy on the strength of just two recording sessions: the first session, in November of 1936, produced among others "I Believe I'll Dust My Broom," "Sweet Home Chicago," "Cross Road Blues," and "Walkin' Blues," making it perhaps the most influential single session in blues history. --Marc Greilsamer

The true Flaming Lips geek will already know about this landmark sonic experience that features 4 discs created by the band to be played at one time on 4 different boom boxes. Get your ghettoblasters and have a party! © 1997 Warner

Boston Baroque and Martin Pearlman recorded a splendid set of the Brandenburg Concertos on period instruments in 1993 and 1994. Made entirely in the US, these snappy, crisply articulated, and fluent performances rely heavily on the talents of violinist Daniel Stepner (who doubles as one of the two solo violists in Concerto No. 6). Among the highlights are the joyous finale to Concerto No. 4 and the superb cembalo cadenza in No. 5, played by Pearlman. Along with outstanding sound, there's a winning sense of freshness and discovery in these performances. --Ted Libbey