Recorded at the Gibson Amphitheatre in California on June 28, 2006, Real Live Roadrunning features live renditions of all of the cuts from Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris' collaboration of the same name, as well as solo cuts from each and Dire Straits classics like "So Far Away" and "Romeo & Juliet." The musicianship is as flawless as expected, but there's not a whole lot to separate the tunes here from their studio sisters. The accompanying DVD is a much better example of the pair's quiet dynamic, allowing both the duo and its talented band a broader spectrum on which to emit their wry tales of love, loss, and life.© James Christopher Monger /TiVo

Not long after her last album, 2019's Dedicated, was released, Carly Rae Jepsen revealed a change of heart. It was originally going to be a very different collection of songs: "I had an album I named Disco Sweat that will probably never be released, and shouldn't. I started off with a very strong intention to make an understated disco, living room dance party thing," she said in an interview, jokingly (?) adding it "will be buried in my backyard." We may never know if she dug up the evidence, but the singer's fifth studio album has plenty of disco influence. "Shooting Star" is sassy stuff, with Daft Punk-style synth, space-laser zoomies and Jepsen trying on an animatronic baby-doll voice: "I might sleep with you tonight … I still believe in my New York City … we could turn it on." "So Nice" goes for loose and easy chill-disco beats. Cool "Joshua Tree" applies big, bouncy bass as Jepsen purrs, "I need it … I feel it … I see it … I know it … I own it … I show it." "Talking to Yourself"—which Jepsen has called "not not a revenge song," about leaving someone wanting more after it's too late—has fun whiplash glitches and an icy bridge. And "The Loneliest Time" is a disco-goddess duet with Rufus Wainwright—a delicious pairing glorified with a five-piece string section. (It also begs the question: Why doesn't Wainwright make a whole album like this?) "Beach House," meanwhile, is a Eurobeat lark: playful, winky and pure camp; Jepsen plays it cool, like Dua Lipa with more personality. The song was inspired by the perils of dating and features dudes delivering creepy lines to a slinky beat—"I've got a beach house in Malibu/ And I'm probably gonna hurt your feelings … I've got a weekend in paradise/ And I'm probably gonna never call you … I've got a lake house in Canada/ And I'm probably gonna harvest your organs." There are surprises, too, like the sultry island breeze of "Sideways" and "Far Away," a jittery ballad with a Terence Trent D'Arby feel. Breezy "Western Wind" was produced by Rostam Batmanglij and you can hear him all over it, bringing world-beat conga to Jepsen's California dream. The former Vampire Weekend multi-instrumentalist also produced "Go Find Yourself or Whatever," an '80s-centric ballad with folky guitars and a Broadway heroine delivery from Jepsen. © Shelly Ridenour/Qobuz

Following the death of Avenged Sevenfold drummer James “The Reverend” Sullivan in 2009, the band marched on, enlisting the help of Sullivan’s drumming hero, Dream Theater’s Mike Portnoy, for their fifth studio album Nightmare. Luckily, the sound of the band remains unchanged, and as one of the best drummers in the business, Portnoy picks up the reigns and rides the Deathbat's double kick in complete synchronicity with Gates, Christ, and Vengeance. Like their previous outings, the group incorporates a New Wave of British Heavy Metal influence throughout Nightmare while paying tribute to ‘80s hair metal with guitar god appeal; but playing retroactive music doesn’t seem to concern them, as long as they play it more skillfully than their forefathers. The group’s influences may be worn on their sleeves, (check out the chugging Metallica "One" breakdown in “Buried Alive,” or the Queensrÿche-style power-ballad “Victim”), but there is no denying that they have some of the best chops in the metal world. Songs shift from their trademark blistering assault to Black album ballads on a dime; M. Shadows continually amazes with his vocal acrobatics, and the opening riff of "Natural Born Killer" ramps up to an inhuman speed. "Save Me" ends the album as one of their most epic songs to date, in a proper 21 gun salute, as thunderous blasts and guitar divebombs interweave into a melodic, heartfelt “Tonight we all die young!” outro. It's a fitting tribute for their fallen 28-year-old comrade, and excellent proof of the band's ability. However, as great as Nightmare's finale is, the Alice Cooper-gone-blue “it’s your fuckin’ nightmare!” chorus on the title track is too cliché to be excused.© Jason Lymangrover /TiVo

When does an artist morph from being current to nostalgia? It's an often imperceptible evolution that can happen almost overnight. Back in 2010, when this album was first released, old friends and musical contemporaries Carole King and James Taylor were fast approaching that turn. And yet this pair of indispensable American singer/songwriters were still in fine voice and even more buoyant spirits during these shows which judging by the crowd reaction, were a rousing success. Capturing highlights from three 2007 shows at the legendary (and still open) Troubadour in West Hollywood, these shows were meant to celebrate the club's 50th anniversary, and also its history with King and Taylor, who once laid the foundations of their respective careers there. In 1969 prior to her first solo release Writer, King played piano in Taylor's band during a six-night residency at the club. The next year they returned to co-headline a multi-night stand. Their appearance in 2007, using the same band as those original gigs—Danny Kortchmar (guitar), Leland Sklar (bass) and Russ Kunkel (drums)—were a love fest for the fans and performers alike, igniting the subsequent 2010 Troubadour Reunion Tour which touched down in the US, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. The big news with this reissue is that for the first time it's available in 96 kHz/24-bit high resolution. While live albums will never be noted for their pristine sound, the increased level of detail, hearing the resonances of the room for the first time and the newly crisped edges to the overall production are a welcome improvement. Needless to say, finding suitable material was not this duo's problem. The dilemma quickly became which songs not to play. Adopting the your song-my song method of a guitar pull they swing back and forth between originals. No disrespect to Taylor but King's songs, many from her 1971 breakthrough, Tapestry, are hard to top. While not the singer she was in 1970, King delivers a first-class rendition of "It's Too Late" which is spiced by a tight Danny Kortchmar solo. "Smackwater Jack," with King playing barrelhouse piano licks, becomes even more of a head-bobbing, toe-tapping stomp than the original. She reaches back, giving a slow performance of "Will You Love Me Tomorrow?" her 1960 hit for the Shirelles, in which Taylor sings a duet in the chorus. Wise performers that they are, they save the big fireworks for the finale: Taylor works his way through a slow-paced "Fire and Rain," King adds the necessary snap to "I Feel the Earth Move" before Taylor volleys back with "You've Got a Friend" where King takes a verse and sings duet in the choruses on a song that opened side two of Tapestry. In closing, they trade verses on King's "Up On The Roof," a 1962 hit for The Drifters, and sing a duet on Taylor's "You Can Close Your Eyes," which seems a bit anticlimactic and mournful for a friendly performance—akin to listening to '70s FM Radio—from aging old pros which is anything but. © Robert Baird/Qobuz

As the title suggests, this is the definitive edition of Etta James' Tell Mama long-player. For this single-disc release the original album is augmented with five previously unissued tracks -- documented during James' four Muscle Shoals sessions circa '67-'68. The question of why a rural Alabama town became a conduit for some of the most memorable and instantly identifiable grooves may still be up for debate. The evidence exists in droves and Tell Mama could certainly be considered exhibit A. These sessions feature the same impact that would redirect several first ladies of soul. Notable among them are Dusty Springfield's Dusty in Memphis, Aretha Franklin's I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Love You) and to somewhat lesser acclaim, Jackie DeShannon's Jackie. Tell Mama showcases some of the unique and admittedly darker qualities of what might best be described as R&B noir. "I'd Rather Go Blind," "Steal Away," "I'm Gonna Take What He's Got" all exemplify the essence of the blues -- making the best of a bad situation. The flipside of the sombre subject matter is the satisfying conviction in the music -- which is where the remastering becomes particularly noticeable. No longer does the brass section sound alternately muffled or harsh as it has on previous releases. Likewise, the churning Hammond B-3 organ swells with rich textures. Perhaps the most sonically evident improvements are the subtle ones, such as the supple fretwork on "Sweet Dreams," "I'd Rather Go Blind," and the jazzy percussive shuffle of "The Same Rope." © Lindsay Planer /TiVo

Recorded at the end of 2015 at the Royal Theatre Carré in Amsterdam, ALIVE in Amsterdam captures the return of Walter Trout to the live scene after his 2014 liver transplant and subsequent album Battle Scars. A white-knuckle ride through guitar solos and blues-rock, the album sees Trout at his most fierce, delivering a compelling live set of material drawn from his huge back catalog.© Rich Wilson /TiVo

Thanks to their power ballad "It's Been Awhile," it'd be easy for some listeners to forget that Staind got their big break thanks to none other than Fred Durst, the king of lunkheaded mook rock at the turn of the millennium. Not that "It's Been Awhile" was fun -- like all post-grunge hard rock of the late '90s/early 2000s, it was humorless and earnest, intent on catharsis -- but it had a strong hook that tempered the gloom and helped them cross over, even if their lead singer/songwriter, Aaron Lewis, remained fueled by angst even after selling millions. Released in 2006 -- five years after "It's Been Awhile" and a year after their fifth album, Chapter V, topped the Billboard charts without leaving much of a lasting impression -- the 15-track Greatest Hits downplays their early, churning Alice in Chains fixation and emphasizes songs in the vein of "It's Been Awhile." Not that the metal is completely absent -- their first single, the grinding "Mudshovel" is here, for instance -- but brooding ballads are pushed front and center; there are no less than four acoustic tracks tacked on the end of the record (including a cover of Pink Floyd's "Comfortably Numb," which does produce the mild revelation that Roger Waters' narcissistic rock opera did indeed influence Lewis' lyrical outlook). In this context, such singles as "Price to Play" -- which aren't quite rock, yet not quite ballads -- sound akin to power ballads, which helps make this a good overview and introduction for those who were won over to the band via their big hit, yet for those who remember that Staind was once a protégé of Durst & Co., they'd be better off sticking with their old copy of Dysfunction.© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo

With Prison Bound, Social Distortion began to metamorphasize from a rather ordinary L.A. hardcore band into a roots rock band willing to make with more than their share of the attitude, and this process continued on their self-titled third album (which was also their major-label debut). Musically, Mike Ness and company had learned to split the difference between rockabilly and Ramones-style punk, not unlike fellow L.A. vets X, and if Ness couldn't sing or write with the skill or the resonance of John Doe, "Story of My Life" and "It Coulda Been Me" sound a lot more personal and deeply felt than anything on Mommy's Little Monster, and "Ball and Chain" and "So Far Away" prove he could crank out a respectable honky tonk number if he put his mind to it. Thanks to Epic's sponsorship, the group had more time and money at their disposal for Social Distortion than on their previous albums, and producer Dave Jerden made the most of it; Mike Ness and Dennis Danell's guitars sound lean, sharp, and powerful; Ness's vocals are better controlled than ever before; and Christopher Reece's drums have a tight snap that suits both the thrashier numbers as well as the slower, blusier tunes. Social Distortion isn't a great roots rock album, but it's a pretty good one, and it's better and more affecting than anything this band had cranked out before.© Mark Deming /TiVo

Hometown Crossfade fans will recognize the majority of this eponymous major-label debut, as it's been retooled from the band's self-released 2001 effort, when they were still known as Sugardaddy Superstar. Columbia's signing of the band makes sense, as Crossfade combines the most marketable elements of Nickelback and P.O.D. (check "No Giving Up"), throwing in the brooding aggression of Cold and Disturbed as bonus glue. Its occasional flirtation with synths and sampling is negligible, as discordant guitars dominate the album's mix. Speaking of cold, that's also the name of the 'Fade's first single. Ed Sloan has a powerful voice, and he sells the track's somewhat generic chorus ("What I really meant to say/Is that I'm sorry for the way I am") by really lighting into the melody. He goes on to apologize for his "screwed-up side" as dull power chords lurch in the background. "So Far Away" and "Disco" follow a similar formula, marrying thick, glowering riffs to rousing choruses; that Disturbed feel really drifts in on the latter, where you half expect an "Oh wah ah ah ah!" yawp after its payoff chorus chant. Crossfade actually runs into trouble with tracks like this or "Death Trend Setta," where they try too hard to soak their considerable rock power in played-out angry guy raps. The band is more successful with cuts like "Starless," the aforementioned "Cold," or even the atmospheric "Deep End," where Sloan hits huge vocal hooks over serviceably powerful riffs. "Dead Skin" is another relative highlight of Crossfade. Musically it's an awkward facsimile of Staind's embittered melodrama, but its tale of addiction and relationship destruction feels like the record's emotional core.© Johnny Loftus /TiVo

Not long after her last album, 2019's Dedicated, was released, Carly Rae Jepsen revealed a change of heart. It was originally going to be a very different collection of songs: "I had an album I named Disco Sweat that will probably never be released, and shouldn't. I started off with a very strong intention to make an understated disco, living room dance party thing," she said in an interview, jokingly (?) adding it "will be buried in my backyard." We may never know if she dug up the evidence, but the singer's fifth studio album has plenty of disco influence. "Shooting Star" is sassy stuff, with Daft Punk-style synth, space-laser zoomies and Jepsen trying on an animatronic baby-doll voice: "I might sleep with you tonight … I still believe in my New York City … we could turn it on." "So Nice" goes for loose and easy chill-disco beats. Cool "Joshua Tree" applies big, bouncy bass as Jepsen purrs, "I need it … I feel it … I see it … I know it … I own it … I show it." "Talking to Yourself"—which Jepsen has called "not not a revenge song," about leaving someone wanting more after it's too late—has fun whiplash glitches and an icy bridge. And "The Loneliest Time" is a disco-goddess duet with Rufus Wainwright—a delicious pairing glorified with a five-piece string section. (It also begs the question: Why doesn't Wainwright make a whole album like this?) "Beach House," meanwhile, is a Eurobeat lark: playful, winky and pure camp; Jepsen plays it cool, like Dua Lipa with more personality. The song was inspired by the perils of dating and features dudes delivering creepy lines to a slinky beat—"I've got a beach house in Malibu/ And I'm probably gonna hurt your feelings … I've got a weekend in paradise/ And I'm probably gonna never call you … I've got a lake house in Canada/ And I'm probably gonna harvest your organs." There are surprises, too, like the sultry island breeze of "Sideways" and "Far Away," a jittery ballad with a Terence Trent D'Arby feel. Breezy "Western Wind" was produced by Rostam Batmanglij and you can hear him all over it, bringing world-beat conga to Jepsen's California dream. The former Vampire Weekend multi-instrumentalist also produced "Go Find Yourself or Whatever," an '80s-centric ballad with folky guitars and a Broadway heroine delivery from Jepsen. © Shelly Ridenour/Qobuz