Bridge Over Troubled Water was one of the biggest-selling albums of its decade, and it hasn't fallen too far down on the list in years since. Apart from the gospel-flavored title track, which took some evolution to get to what it finally became, however, much of Bridge Over Troubled Water also constitutes a stepping back from the music that Simon & Garfunkel had made on Bookends -- this was mostly because the creative partnership that had formed the body and the motivation for the duo's four prior albums literally consumed itself in the making of Bridge Over Troubled Water. The overall effect was perhaps the most delicately textured album to close out the 1960s from any major rock act. Bridge Over Troubled Water, at its most ambitious and bold, on its title track, was a quietly reassuring album; at other times, it was personal yet soothing; and at other times, it was just plain fun. The public in 1970 -- a very unsettled time politically, socially, and culturally -- embraced it; and whatever mood they captured, the songs matched the standard of craftsmanship that had been established on the duo's two prior albums. Between the record's overall quality and its four hits, the album held the number one position for two and a half months and spent years on the charts, racking up sales in excess of five million copies. The irony was that for all of the record's and the music's appeal, the duo's partnership ended in the course of creating and completing the album.© Bruce Eder /TiVo

Produced by Rick Rubin, Johnny Cash’s legendary American recordings are not only among his major musical statements, but also its moving final will. Released in November 2002, American IV – The Man Comes Around is the last volume of the collection that was released while Cash was still alive (He passed away 10 months after its release). Using the famous “cover” recipe, Johnny Cash managed in this record to turn other musicians’ compositions, sometimes recent work, into his own unique style. Nine Inch Nails, Depeche Mode, and Sting are all covered, and when listening to Cash’s rendition of their songs it is sometimes difficult to recall their original versions. As usual, Rubin’s work on the soundboard is devoted to Johnny Cash’s voice. Caught it its last whispers, the voice is haunting, yet never morose.Indeed, the voice is key in “American IV”.  The material can bring chills (the video clip of Hurt is deeply moving and, after listening to the track, Trent Reznor proclaimed “It’s like I have lost my girlfriend. This song doesn’t belong to me anymore…”), Give My Love To Rose evokes a sadness that is a strike at the heart, and I Hung My Head expresses an innocence that is profoundly tender. Even when he deals with the classic repertoire of country music, many that he recorded in the past (Sam Hall, Give My Love To Rose, I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry, Streets of Laredo, Danny Boy) the Man in Black brings to his interpretation the sorrow and sensitivity of his dying condition, always with grace and dignity. A sad yet festive funeral, the record includes many featured guest artists: Fiona Apple and Nick Cave sing, John Frusciante of the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Marty Stuart strum their guitars, old partner Cowboy Jack Clement pulls out his dobro, Joey Waronker abandons Beck and Air to join in the rhythm section, and Benmont Tench brings in an array of keyboards including an organ, harmonium, Mellotron, vibraphone and even a Wurlitzer. Music lovers from all over the world recognized what a masterpiece American IV – The Man Comes Around had been created, and its reception led it to be a gold record, which was Johnny Cash’s first in thirty years. © Marc Zisman/Qobuz

Eva Cassidy's life story hasn't been made into film … yet. Her love of schmaltzy repertoire and refusal to be pigeonholed as one type of singer made attracting label interest difficult, but she finally made her debut recording in 1992. By the mid-'90s, Cassidy was building a buzz in the Washington, D.C., music scene (despite her hesitancy about performing live and, in general, singing as a career), only to be derailed by a cancer diagnosis. In May 1996 she self-released her second album, Live at Blues Alley, just as the cancer returned and spread through her bones and lungs; six months later Cassidy died at the age of 33. But thanks to a BBC DJ playing her version of Judy Garland's ageless hit "Over the Rainbow" (from Songbird, a posthumous 1998 compilation), Cassidy became a hit in the UK in 2000—Songbird would eventually go six times platinum in the U.K. and gold in the U.S. For its 25th anniversary, Live at Blues Alley, whose original purpose was just to give Cassidy something to sell at gigs, has been digitally remastered by Robert Vosgien (who mastered the original album) from the original mixes. The sound, which was always surprisingly good for a live album recorded in a small Georgetown club, seems audibly improved by the fresh tweaks. While Cassidy's voice and instinctual gift for phrasing allowed her to sing almost anything well, her fondness for popular (read: overexposed) older repertoire like Irving Berlin's "Cheek to Cheek" and T-Bone Walker's "Stormy Monday" mixes with slightly more adventurous fare like Sting's "Fields of Gold" and Al Green's "Take Me to The River." Cassidy's superpower was that her voice and phrasing were extraordinary at communicating a resounding feeling of sadness. It's tempting to say it's because she sensed her coming tragedy. Supported by a quintet that includes pianist Lenny Williams and her then partner bassist Chris Biondo, Cassidy wrings every drop of pathos out of the Johnny Mercer-penned standard, "Autumn Leaves." Frustrating as a tease for what her subsequent career might have been, Live at Blues Alley nevertheless is a precious crumb of genius tragically interrupted. © Robert Baird/Qobuz

Twenty years after her untimely passing, Nightbird is an expanded, remastered, and remixed collection of songs documenting Eva Cassidy’s illustrious live performance in Washington, D.C. in 1996, which in turn inspired her only solo album. The release contains all 31 songs that Cassidy performed that evening, including eight previously unreleased tracks.© Rob Wacey /TiVo

The late Eva Cassidy gained a loyal following in the Washington, D.C., area through appearances in small clubs, utilizing her pitch-perfect singing voice to interpret a variety of tunes ranging from standards to modern-era pop songs. A notoriously shy performer, Eva Cassidy had a somewhat stiff stage presence, but she endeared herself to her audiences by performing songs she obviously loved, combining elements of soul, gospel, blues, and jazz. Live at Blues Alley is an excellent showcase for her vocal talents and her ability to make even the most familiar tune uniquely her own. Admittedly, the titles on Live at Blues Alley seem like a set list for a bad Vegas lounge act; songs such as Irving Berlin's "Cheek to Cheek" and Louis Armstrong's "What a Wonderful World" have been done to death for decades. Fortunately, Eva Cassidy had an obvious affection for these standards. She sounds as if she had a ball performing the Irving Berlin number, while her subtle reading of the Louis Armstrong tune is nothing less than extraordinary. She was equally successful with more contemporary pop classics like "Bridge Over Troubled Water" and "Take Me to the River." Ultimately, the slower songs are the most stirring, particularly her rendition of "Fields of Gold." Her tear-jerking version of the Sting tune could very well be one of the greatest cover songs ever recorded. Eva Cassidy's popularity slowly began to spread outside of the D.C. area upon the release of this album in early 1996. Unfortunately, Eva Cassidy passed away later that year, just as she began laying the groundwork for what could have been a stellar career in music. However, her posthumous success has been astonishing, with worldwide critical acclaim and extensive exposure on British television that helped her album Songbird climb to number one on the British album chart in March, 2001. Live at Blues Alley was the only solo album released during Eva Cassidy's lifetime (an album recorded with Chuck Brown, The Other Side, was also released), and it's an excellent introduction to a performer who never lived to witness the impact her voice made on her fans all over the world.© William Cooper /TiVo

Quiet Fire proves to be an apt title, as Flack's MOR-informed jazz and gospel vocals simmer just below the surface on the eight sides here. Forgoing the full-throttled delivery of, say, Aretha Franklin, Flack translates the pathos of gospel expression into measured intensity and sighing, elongated phrases. There's even a bit of Carole King's ashen tone in Flack's voice, as manifested on songs like "Let Them Talk," Van McCoy's "Sweet Bitter Love," and a meditative reworking of King's "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow." The album's other high-profile cover, "Bridge Over Troubled Waters," features the ideal setting for Flack's airy pipes with a tasteful backdrop of strings and a chorus featuring soul songstress Cissy Houston (Whitney's mom). Switching from this hushed sanctity, Flack digs into some groove-heavy southern soul on "Go Up Moses," "Sunday and Sister Jones," and an amazing version of the Bee Gees hit "To Love Somebody" (this perennial number has been done by everyone from Rita Marley to Hank Williams, Jr.). Flack finally completes the modern triumvirate of southern music, adding the country tones of Jimmy Webb's "See You Then" to the Quiet Fire's stock of gospel and soul. And thanks to top players like guitarist Hugh McCracken, organist Richard Tee, bassist Chuck Rainey, and drummer Bernard Purdie, the varied mix all comes off sounding seamless. One of Flack's best.© Stephen Cook /TiVo

John Legend had been using his honorific stage surname for nearly 20 years when he felt that his track record finally merited its use as an album title. The EGOT with a dozen Grammys somehow fought the urge until his eighth proper studio album, a set distinguishable from the rest of his catalog mainly for its length and crowd of collaborators. Legend, divided into halves, is an 80-minute set executive produced in tandem with "A Bigger Love" co-writer/co-producer Ryan Tedder (Beyoncé, Adele, Taylor Swift). The first disc is primarily uptempo and loved up. Effervescent songs like "Waterslide," "Dope," and "All She Wanna Do" seem purpose-built for amusement parks and fairgrounds to remind visitors that they're having fun. (The latter song is heard in versions with and without a bouncy, Top Boy-referencing verse from Saweetie.) Those and other numbers such as "Splash," in which Legend is third wheel to more naturally lascivious co-stars Jhené Aiko and Ty Dolla $ign, unload water and drug metaphors for sex to almost mind-numbing effect. Better are the leisurely and awed songs with a deeper soul foundation. "Strawberry Blush" is a strings-sweetened connection with Free Nationals, Anderson .Paak affiliates who answer the call with one of their breeziest grooves. The grittier "You" has delicate touches of Philly and Chicago soul -- a little O'Jays, a little Curtis Mayfield -- enlivened by Legend's very strong falsetto game. Disc two, heavier on ballads, also contains more stylistic and emotional variety with a lasting partnership as a frequent setting. The feel-good, reassuring "I Want You to Know" could easily morph into a rocksteady cover of the Staple Singers' "I'll Take You There," while "Speak in Tongues," swaying and romantic, benefits from the presence of Jada Kingdom. Surprisingly, the songs informed by Jamaica outnumber piano ballads until the final stretch. "The Other Ones" is out of place for its melodramatic decluttering of baggage, but the trio of "Pieces," "I Don't Love You Like I Used To," and "Home" come across as wholly heartfelt, respectively striking a rare balance of numbness and hope, expressing total devotion, and turning on the (ocular) waterworks. Legend is at his best when entertainment isn't his objective.© Andy Kellman /TiVo

Released to coincide with the duo's 2003 reunion tour, this two-disc anthology is no less than the fifth multi-disc compilation of the duo to appear in the CD era. Viewed coldly, it's a mercenary exercise, squeezing yet more juice out of one of the most valuable catalogs in the business. If you happen to be starting from square one, though, it's an excellent package, with all 16 of their singles to reach the Top 100 (including the 1975 reunion hit, "My Little Town"). The other 17 tracks include some of their most beloved non-hits ("Richard Cory," "The 59th Street Bridge Song," "The Only Living Boy in New York") and eight live 1967-1969 performances, none of them found in studio counterparts on this compilation, though all are drawn from previously released albums or anthologies. Some listeners might find some of their secondary Simon & Garfunkel favorites missing; "Anji," "April Come She Will," "Patterns," and "Punky's Dilemma" are absent, for example. But it's a good option for that niche audience looking for something between a single-disc greatest-hits collection and a box set.© Richie Unterberger /TiVo

Elvis Presley’s legendary 1970 marathon sessions in Nashville are among the King’s last shining moments. The sessions would notably lead to albums like Elvis: That’s the Way It is, Elvis Country (I’m 10,000 Years Old) and Love Letters from Elvis but would also mark the advent of a pop-sounding country rock which influenced numerous wannabe-cowboys (a style which would nevertheless fizzle out before the end of the 70s). For the session’s 50th anniversary, the songs are all reunited in a never-before-heard unaltered version that omits layers of overdubbing and supplementary orchestrations. Matt Ross-Spring (who has worked with John Prine, Jason Isbell and Margo Price) provides a radiant mixing here. Some rarities and previously unreleased material like the covers of Willie Nelson’s Funny How Time Slips Away and Simon & Garfunkel’s Bridge over Troubled Water are including as an additional bonus. Here is an Elvis on the rise once again after his marvellous 1968 Comeback Special and the masterpiece From Elvis in Memphis released the year later… In the famous studio B of Nashville’s RCA studios (which was all-familiar to Presley) for five days in June  (an additional session took place on the 22nd of September), the King is surrounded by multi-instrumentalist Charlie McCoy, bassist Norbert Putnam, pianist David Briggs, and his legendary stage guitarist James Burton (and his demonic solo on I Washed My Hands In Muddy Water !) and former Muscle Shoals member Eddie Hinton. In short, the band are loyal virtuosos and five-star session men who bring a great sense of confidence to the record as they magnify the King’s great voice. These marathon sessions mix country songs with rock and a dash of soul. All compositions are chosen by Elvis himself. Live in the studio, his singing is godlike, and Ross-Spring’s flawless mixing brings a sense of modernity to the general sound of these seances. There’s no need to be an expert on the King to appreciate the value of these 4 and a half hours of lively and pure music. An essential. © Marc Zisman/Qobuz

Twenty years after her untimely passing, Nightbird is an expanded, remastered, and remixed collection of songs documenting Eva Cassidy’s illustrious live performance in Washington, D.C. in 1996, which in turn inspired her only solo album. The release contains all 31 songs that Cassidy performed that evening, including eight previously unreleased tracks.© Rob Wacey /TiVo