Released in 2010, this Christmas album by the famous Eurythmics singer is back in 2020 as a remastered version. For an English-speaking pop singer, it is common to offer a "Christmas album" once in their career. But, true to her temperament, Annie Lennox wanted to shake up the often traditional and culturally fixed aspect of this type of project, which she wants to be more open and committed than usual. This 6th solo album therefore offers a cosmopolitan selection of Christmas carols, with classics from Great Britain, but also from Germany and France. It even goes so far as to interpret Il Est Né Le Divin Enfant in the language of Molière. This song also has an African element, with the African Children's Choir and percussion performed by Barry van Zyl. A process that allows us to open up even further towards other horizons. "I hope this recording will offer some comfort and nostalgia, but also an awareness in the eyes of political leaders, religious leaders and the world: we have to face the question of how many mores Christmases we have left on this ravaged planet," says Annie Lennox. A song like Lullay Lullay is a perfect example of her humanist approach, as the Scottish singer relates the festive Nativity to the tragedy of child soldiers in Africa. This re-release includes the previously unreleased Universal Child, written and composed by Lennox herself. She also plays most of the instruments on the album, leaving the guitars, bass and some keyboards to her colleague Mike Stevens. © Nicolas Magenham/Qobuz

This double CD combines all three of John Cale's mid-'70s Island albums (Fear, Slow Dazzle, and Helen of Troy) into one package, with the addition of some interesting bonus tracks: outtakes from Slow Dazzle and Helen of Troy, the B-side "Sylvia Said," "Leaving It up to You" (which only appeared on early copies of Helen of Troy before "Coral Moon" took its place), and "Mary Lou" (from the 1977 Guts compilation). This was undeniably one of Cale's most fertile periods. There is also no other body of work from the mid-'70s with such a confluence of listenable FM radio-ready tunes and sneaky, at times subversive experimentation, its eclecticism encompassing art rock, macabre recitations, and Beach Boy pastiches.© Richie Unterberger /TiVo

Originally released in 1985, Island Life compiles highlights from Grace Jones' 1977 debut through 1985’s Slave to the Rhythm. It’s a concise overview that features four Top Ten U.S. club hits (“I Need a Man,” “Do or Die,” “Pull Up to the Bumper,” “Slave to the Rhythm”), as well as an additional smattering of choice cuts from her late-‘70s collaborations with Tom Moulton and her stellar ‘80s work with Sly & Robbie. It’s a decent introduction for casual fans but lacks crucial material like “Warm Leatherette” and “Nipple to the Bottle.” A later edition, dubbed Island Life 2, adds "Pars," "Feel Up," and two remixes of "Sex Drive."© Andy Kellman /TiVo

When you've been named the best rapper ever in countless readers' and critics' polls, it must be easy to get a bit complacent. And as a veteran who's been on the mic since 1985 (yes, there are several rappers who weren't even on the earth back then), it also must be easy to make a few concessions to all the rappers and delivery styles that have come since Kangols were all the rage -- the first time, that is. Thankfully, Rakim's second solo album shows hip-hop's best rapper outdoing himself yet again, and not conceding a whit to '90s rap. Rakim has always been known for his laid-back flow and, accordingly, he never pushes himself here; his flow is smooth as syrup, and will undoubtedly make hip-hop fans realize just what rhythm is after merely a few tracks. He plays with internal rhymes (one of his trademarks) and constructs the most dense lyrics heard in hip-hop for years. The Master also benefits from its stellar cast of producers -- Clark Kent, DJ Premier, Ron "Amen-Ra" Lawrence, the 45 King, and even Rakim himself. The productions are tough and catchy (no strings here, thankfully), but they never outshine the rhymes. Rakim praises himself on quite a few tracks ("Flow Forever," "When I B on the Mic," "I Know," "It's the R"), but after a listen or two, listeners will likely agree with every boast he makes. After one album (The 18th Letter) to get back into things, Rakim is arguably doing the best work of his career.© John Bush /TiVo

Island's 2005 compilation The Very Best of the Island Years is a near-perfect single-disc overview of Robert Palmer's stint at Island Records, which ran from 1974's Sneakin' Sally Through the Alley to 1985's Riptide. This is regarded by fans and critics alike as his peak creative period, and it also contained his best-known hits, including 1978's "Every Kinda People," 1979's "Bad Case of Loving You (Doctor, Doctor)," 1980's "Can We Still Be Friends," 1981's "Johnny and Mary" and "Looking for Clues," and, of course, 1986's "Addicted to Love" and 1987's "I Didn't Mean to Turn You On." While he continued to chart into the early '90s, only one song -- 1988's "Addicted to Love" rewrite "Simply Irresistible" -- could hold a candle to those hits, and it's here in a live version that concludes the album. While it would have been nice if the original studio version had somehow made the cut, the rest of this is such a terrific listen, charting Palmer's progression from laid-back New Orleans-styled blue-eyed soul crooner through new wave pop guy through his sleek rock makeover with Riptide, that most listeners won't mind that it's a live version, and choose to simply enjoy the best single-disc Palmer compilation yet assembled (and anybody wanting to dig deeper should turn to 2002's similarly excellent double-disc set Best of Both Worlds).© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo

Tom Waits' brilliance is messy -- he has so many ideas that sometimes unrealized songs are juxtaposed with moments of greatness on his albums. That may make for the occasional uneven record, but each album has its own distinct tone that makes it a unique listening experience, whether it's a masterpiece or a missed opportunity. And that's the reason why his work, especially his sprawling Island albums, doesn't easily lend itself to retrospectives like Beautiful Maladies: The Island Years. The single disc features 22 tracks from Swordfishtrombones, Rain Dogs, Franks Wild Years, Big Time, Bone Machine, and The Black Rider, including such familiar and celebrated items as "Hang on St. Christopher," "Innocent When You Dream," "I Don't Wanna Grow Up," "16 Shells From a Thirty-Ought Six," and "Downtown Train." Some fans might spot missing favorites, but it's hard to fault the selections themselves. Because of this, Beautiful Maladies functions as a primer for neophytes. The collection may not give the full scope of Waits' talents, but for the curious, it works well as a sampler.© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo

Because more than half of the 35 songs on this two-disc retrospective of Marianne Faithfull's 1979-95 output come from her three great albums -- Broken English, Dangerous Acquaintances, and Strange Weather -- or are previously unreleased outtakes or B-sides from them, A Perfect Stranger: The Island Anthology makes a fine primer to Faithfull's often challenging, always mesmerizing (or would that be always challenging, often mesmerizing?) music. "Ballad of the Soldier's Wife," her solid contribution to 1985's Lost in the Stars: The Music of Kurt Weill, is also included, giving Faithfull's hauntingly tragic voice the resonance and attention it demands. Weill and Faithfull seem made for each other, as the bulk of the second disc (comprised of songs from her 1990 live album and the underachieving A Secret Life, as well as the career-capping Strange Weather) makes clear. But there's also a strain to some of these tracks, as if Faithfull's aesthetic wandering eventually will bring her to that elusive cabaret of her dreams. On her best recordings, it indeed sounds like she's home.© Michael Gallucci /TiVo

Major label rivalry makes it unlikely that Burning Spear will ever receive a proper career retrospective set. Burning Spear signed to Island Records in 1976, debuting with the legendary Marcus Garvey album, accompanied by its dub companion Garvey's Ghost. Four new albums followed before Spear departing Island for the U.K. EMI label in 1980. A decade later, Burning Spear returned to Island for two new albums before their relationship again soured. (The situation is even more complex in the U.S., where Spear releases have been split among the Island, Heartbeat, and Slash labels.) The result of all these label relocations makes for a rather odd anthology indeed, which inevitably omits Spears' entire 1980s output, five albums in all, including the Grammy-nominated trio of Resistance, People of the World, and Mistress Music. Obviously, post-1992 material is also missing, including anything from the Grammy-winning Calling Rastafari. That's what you don't get. What you do get is a double album of some of Spear's most seminal work. The five albums released between 1975 and 1980 are all considered masterpieces, comprising a roots series that remains unparalleled. Of course, the fifth, Hail H.I.M., was not an Island release, but you do get selections from the other four. Of Babylon's 35 tracks, 20 are culled from Marcus Garvey, Man in the Hills, Dry & Heavy, and Social Living, the first four albums in this seminal set. Others also date from this period: a track from Garvey's Ghost; "Man in the Hill"'s B-side, "Cultivation"; "Jah No Dead," Spear's contribution to the Rockers soundtrack; "The Lion," taken from 1977's Live album; a previously unreleased "Jordan River," recorded live around the same time; and a non-album track culled from 1979's Harder Than the Rest compilation. The remainder are pulled from Spear's early-'90s albums, the Grammy-nominated Mek We Dweet and Jah Kingdom. The latter album included Spear's contribution to the Grateful Dead tribute album, Dedicated, a simmering "Estimated Prophet," which also appears here. Only the most persnickety fan could complain about Babylon's selections, which boast all of these albums' strongest songs. However, the musical leap between tracks five and six on disc two, which chronologically jumps a decade, remains disconcerting, but there's no avoiding it, bar squeezing the early material onto disc one. So, while not a definitive career compilation, this anthology is probably the best fans can hope for.© Jo-Ann Greene /TiVo

How Strong Is a Woman: The Island Sessions collects the highlights from Etta James's late '80s and early '90s stint at Island Records. Although she didn't record any new classics while she was at the label, she demonstrated time and time again that she hadn't lost much of her vocal power and that she remained vital 40 years after she began recording. The set offers positive proof of that and is a good sampling of her work for Island.© Thom Owens /TiVo

This two-CD set contains all of Jade Warrior's four albums recorded for Island Records in the 1970s. By this time the group was a duo of multi-instrumentalists Tony Duhig and Jon Field. Outside of a small hardcore fan base, listeners didn't know what to make of Jade Warrior. Was the group art rock or eccentric jazz or MOR flute fluff? Perhaps they were a little bit of each, but not enough to carve a niche of their own. From a perspective of 25 years, Field and Duhig deserved better. The band certainly influenced many successful acts. Jade Warrior was among the first and best to delve into what is now called new age music and they were one of the first Western bands to incorporate a world sound into their repertoire. The duo recorded two albums in the 1980s, but Duhig's death in 1990 left Field without a creative counterpoint. Despite recruiting new members, the group disbanded for good in the mid-'90s. Elements supplies evidence that Jade Warrior was among the most interesting groups of their day. The set includes a 16-page booklet with liner notes and full color re-creations of the four brilliantly rendered album covers.© Casey Elston. /TiVo

Most artists treat Christmas albums as toss-offs; something to get into the marketplace and have on the shelf when punters come in and snap up the holiday offerings. There is usually little forethought, production and arrangements are entrusted to studio stalwarts who paint by numbers. Annie Lennox doesn't fit this mold remotely. She considered a Christmas Cornucopia with all the intuitive care and devotion her other studio albums reflect. Lennox spent much of her youth singing in choirs, and that is reflected in both the song selection (all but one of these she sang as a child in choir) and arrangements. Working once more with producer Mike Stevens (who also helmed the sessions for her last offering, 2007's Songs of Mass Destruction), Lennox recorded many of the choral vocals herself by overdubbing. The pair did employ a 30-piece orchestra; they also recorded the African Children's Choir who are prominently featured throughout, especially on "The Holly and the Ivy" and the French carol "Il Est de le Divin Enfant." Textures and atmospheres are the name of the game in these interpretations, and they're employed in unusual ways: note the Middle Eastern rhythms and modalities on "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" that collide -- albeit harmoniously -- with Celtic pipe, flute, and accordion sounds. It's a fantastic track, though it does engender a minor complaint: why on earth would a vocalist of Lennox's caliber use Auto-Tune even momentarily? Other standouts here include the majestic "The Holly and the Ivy," the sparse instrumentation on "In the Bleak Midwinter," and the the dramatic darkness in the obscure carol "Lullay Lullay" that tells the Christian story of King Herod's infanticide in trying to eliminate the threat posed by the Christ child. "Silent Night" and "O Little Town of Bethlehem" are given wonderful arrangements and sung with a sincerity approaching absolute devotion, especially with the African Children's Choir underscoring Lennox's voice. The lone original here, "Universal Child," is the lead single (proceeds are being donated to the Annie Lennox Foundation); it's a beautifully written and arranged pop song, delivered soulfully and enigmatically; it is worth the price of the album itself. A Christmas Cornucopia is a real contender for best Christmas album of 2010.© Thom Jurek /TiVo

Since Richard & Linda Thompson's albums have been available through Hannibal Records for many years, it's easy to forget that they weren't all released by that label originally; in fact, only the last of the duo's six albums, Shoot Out the Lights, was a Hannibal album to begin with. The first three LPs (I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight, Hokey Pokey, and Pour Down Like Silver) came out on Island Records, while the fourth and fifth (First Light and Sunnyvista) were on Chrysalis. This only becomes important when you consider the compilation The Best of Richard & Linda Thompson: The Island Years. That subtitle is important. It means the album collects material from only the first half of the Thompsons' recording career. The selection comes not just from those three Island duo albums, but also from Richard's first solo album, Henry the Human Fly, and from an earlier Thompson compilation, Guitar, Vocal, which featured alternate and live material from the Thompsons. It's hard to argue with the selections from that material made here. Appropriately, the masterful I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight is the source of six cuts, the impressive Pour Down Like Silver provides four, and the weakest of the three albums, Hokey Pokey, only two. There is a good mixture of Linda-sung ballads and more up-tempo material, and "Night Comes In" and "Calvary Cross" feature extended examples of Richard's amazing guitar work. And the compilers have not shied away from featuring the often pessimistic tone of much of Richard's songwriting for the duo, from "Withered and Died" to "Beat the Retreat." But all this means that the album is a great half of a compilation of their career.© William Ruhlmann /TiVo

During the band's heyday in the late '70s and early '80s, Black Uhuru was one of the most unique and influential reggae bands in the world. This was partly due to their distinctive vocal sound -- which was dominated by the keening wail of Michael Rose and the haunting harmonies of American expatriate Puma Jones -- but in large part it was also due to their backing band, which was led by the legendary drum-and-bass duo of Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare and was one of the few that could challenge the Wailers in terms of telepathic tightness and sheer rhythmic wallop. Liberation goes one better than most retrospective compilations: instead of simply collecting two discs' worth of previously released singles and selected album tracks, it takes familiar songs (such as the anthemic "I Love King Selassie" and the apocalyptic "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner") and presents them in live versions, early mixes, 12" "showcase" versions (wherein the dub mix follows without a break on the heels of the vocal mix), and more. Little of this material is actually rare, and a good chunk of it actually does consist of standard singles and album tracks. But the rarities are plentiful enough to please fans, while the two-disc program is comprehensive enough to serve as a fine overview for beginners. Highlights abound, but they particularly include the showcase version of "Darkness" and the 12" mix of "Sponji Reggae." Excellent.© Rick Anderson /TiVo

Local H's two best and best-known albums, 1996's As Good as Dead and 1998's Pack Up the Cats, were loose concept pieces about Midwest rock & roll losers whose abilities never quite lived up to their ambitions or potential, so it's an amusing irony that the band's tenure at Island Records has now earned them a "best-of" compilation as part of Universal's mid-priced Icon series, alongside Nirvana, ABBA, Rod Stewart, Billy Ray Cyrus, and Tony! Toni! Toné! If both loyal fans and casual admirers might be amused by the band's presence alongside the bona fide rock stars and two-hit wonders in this series, the 12 songs on this disc make it clear that this was one of the best bands to emerge from the 1990s grunge explosion, and one of the few whose musical and philosophical outlook wasn't lifted outright from their peers in Seattle. This set is dominated by material from As Good as Dead (five songs) and Pack Up the Cats (three songs), though the band's appropriately titled debut, Ham Fisted, is represented by one tune ("Cynic"), while another track from the album, "Mayonnaise and Malaise," appears in an unreleased radio edit. The album even includes two genuine rarities for loyal fans and collectors; the band's reverent but powerful cover of Guided by Voices' "Smothered in Hugs," which first appeared on the soundtrack to the movie Sling Blade, makes the cut, as does "Tag-Along," an outtake from Pack Up the Cats that popped up on the soundtrack to the indie drama Gravesend. Local H's post-Island career has proven to be as interesting as their major-label period, but Icon (The Island Years) at least offers a worthy if concise overview of their agile but bruising sonic attack, their witty and witheringly honest lyrical perspective, and Scott Lucas' abundant street smarts as one of the most interesting underground heroes of hard rock in the 1990s. All that for less than ten bucks -- welcome to the big time at last, guys!© Mark Deming /TiVo

Nearly a half-century after she recorded a classic album with trumpeter Clifford Brown, Helen Merrill's voice is still pretty strong. On Lilac Wine she performs a set of melancholy ballads that are heartfelt and lightly swung. Accompanied by a large orchestra from Czechoslovakia that is arranged by Torrie Zito, Merrill interprets all of the material at a slow dreamy tempo. The results are subtle, quietly emotional, and atmospheric. The only real change of pace is Marian McPartland's instrumental "Portrait of Helen Merrill." Otherwise all of the music is taken at the same slow tempo and in a similar mood. Despite the lack of variety, this quiet outing grows in interest with each listen.© Scott Yanow /TiVo

Local H's two best and best-known albums, 1996's As Good as Dead and 1998's Pack Up the Cats, were loose concept pieces about Midwest rock & roll losers whose abilities never quite lived up to their ambitions or potential, so it's an amusing irony that the band's tenure at Island Records has now earned them a "best-of" compilation as part of Universal's mid-priced Icon series, alongside Nirvana, ABBA, Rod Stewart, Billy Ray Cyrus, and Tony! Toni! Toné! If both loyal fans and casual admirers might be amused by the band's presence alongside the bona fide rock stars and two-hit wonders in this series, the 12 songs on this disc make it clear that this was one of the best bands to emerge from the 1990s grunge explosion, and one of the few whose musical and philosophical outlook wasn't lifted outright from their peers in Seattle. This set is dominated by material from As Good as Dead (five songs) and Pack Up the Cats (three songs), though the band's appropriately titled debut, Ham Fisted, is represented by one tune ("Cynic"), while another track from the album, "Mayonnaise and Malaise," appears in an unreleased radio edit. The album even includes two genuine rarities for loyal fans and collectors; the band's reverent but powerful cover of Guided by Voices' "Smothered in Hugs," which first appeared on the soundtrack to the movie Sling Blade, makes the cut, as does "Tag-Along," an outtake from Pack Up the Cats that popped up on the soundtrack to the indie drama Gravesend. Local H's post-Island career has proven to be as interesting as their major-label period, but Icon (The Island Years) at least offers a worthy if concise overview of their agile but bruising sonic attack, their witty and witheringly honest lyrical perspective, and Scott Lucas' abundant street smarts as one of the most interesting underground heroes of hard rock in the 1990s. All that for less than ten bucks -- welcome to the big time at last, guys!© Mark Deming /TiVo