This sorta folky, sorta bluesy, totally rockin' San Francisco quartet lives up to it's critical acclaim and then some. Linda Perry's pyrotechnics on "Morphine and Chocolate" would give Robert Plant pause. Jeff Bateman

The '80s Norwegian pop trio's 1986 album for Warner Brothers, out of print in the U.S. 10 tracks, including the title cut, 'Cry Wolf', 'I've Been Losing You' and 'ManhattanSkyline'.

"All That She Wants," the song that catapulted the photogenic Swedish quartet to the Top 10 in the early '90s, was impossible to escape—it kept popping up on radio and prime-time TV shows, and even in novels. Despite the inevitable Abba comparisons—and the fact that the music was crafted in that sugary pop fashion that seldom lasts past the first single—Jenny, Linn, Jonas, and Ulf refused to disappear. They followed up their debut album, The Sign, with The Bridge, the songs on which——"Beautiful Life," "Lucky Love"—headed more and more toward lollipop dance, and it is there that they pick up with their third release, Cruel Summer. It is hard to label this collection of syncopation and radio-friendly melodies as anything more than fun, but that's just fine with Ace of Base. As they've pointed out in the past, "A good song is a good song." These songs—as exemplified by the light, upbeat groove of the title track—are just as apt to convince their fans likewise. —Rebecca Wallwork

For close to a decade, Cincinnati-based alt-rock combo Afghan Whigs created music that hurt so good. Rooted in an emotive hybrid of self-loathing punk and exhibitionistic soul, the band's tunes writhed and roiled, cutting to the core of dysfunctional relationships. But after their bleak, bitter 1995 release, Black Love, was met with general disinterest, the discouraged band took four years off to reevaluate its art. 1965 indicates that if the Whigs were suffering identity crisis, they've certainly found themselves. Instead of wallowing or brooding, as they did on past efforts, the band struts and staggers lustfully, coming across with the drive and vibe of the Rolling Stones' hormone-fest Some Girls. Many songs on 1965 are augmented with braying horns, gliding strings, and jaunty piano, and the hedonistic mood clearly reflects the downtown New Orleans environment the record was created in. High points include the swarthy surge of "Something Hot," the torch-lighted drama of "Crazy," and the sleazy pulse of "66," which begins with a 23-second recording of one of frontman Greg Dulli's intimate encounters. —Jon Wiederhorn

The First Time That The Hits From This 80'sfolk/Goth Act Have Been Made Available On CD.

Aqualung is Matt Hales, a Brit popster whose ethereal, plangently lovely stateside debut is all knotted up in the sounds of now. Cribbing from Keane, Coldplay, Radiohead, and the Beatles, Hales is a U.K. sensation who staves off staleness by way of his exceptional talent. (Volkswagen dropped the title track into one of its uber-hip European ads in 2002, sparking a who's-the-artist frenzy not seen since the company revived the catalog of Nick Drake.) "When the sun sets around me/my daydreams confound me/and the long night surrounds me," he whimpers compellingly on "You Turn Me Round," a brief ache of a song. Though we feel for him—here's an artist with a gift for getting empathy in a chokehold—we can't help hoping his long, melodic night meanders endlessly. Fans of "The O.C." and Garden State soundtracks should dip in. And don't worry: all Jethro Tull ties end at his handle, meant to evoke the strange and beautiful murkiness of the music. —Tammy La Gorce

Debut full length from acclaimed singer/songwriter Damon Gough who collaborated with U.N.K.L.E. on 'Psyence Fiction'. Includes the single 'Another Pearl'. 18 tracks of futurist folk. Droll, yet touching, seldom immediate, but forever sublime. 2000 release. Standard jewel case.

The band's goofy charm and sure-footed melodic sense is in full flower here, and the singalongs on "Brian Wilson" and "If I Had $1000000" are proof of the bond between band and audience. A hidden rap tribute to Ed Robertson's "Uncle Elwyn" is vintage Bill Cosby. —Jeff Bateman

1988 reissue on Beggars Banquet of their final studio album from 1983 with four bonus tracks not on the U.S. A&M edition: 'Lagartija Nick', 'Here's The Dub', 'Departure' and'The Sanity Assassin'. 14 tracks total, also featuring the single 'She's In Parties'.