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Genere: Jazz

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Genere: Folk

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Genere: Jazz

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Genere: Country

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Trama: Singer and guitarist extraordinaire Jorma Kaukonen was a devoted aficionado of early-20th-century rural music long before he cofounded Jefferson Airplane in 1965 and Hot Tuna some years later. On his new solo album, Kaukonen has found an imaginative setting to remind listeners how a fusion of styles and influences from both black and white musicians defined American country music in its formative decades. Included here are gems, both familiar and obscure, by the likes of Jimmie Rodgers, the Delmore Brothers, Jimmie Davis, Cliff Carlisle, and other country musicians who were clearly inspired by their blues cousins. Backed by the Nashville All-Stars, a supersonic string band comprising bluegrass masters Sam Bush (mandolin), Jerry Douglas (Dobro), Béla Fleck (banjo), and Byron House (stand-up bass), all playing on vintage 1920s and '30s acoustic instruments, Kaukonen revives and vividly reinterprets these blues-drenched country classics for a new generation of listeners. <I>--Bob Allen</I>

Genere: Blues

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Trama: "I can't even crack a frown since the blues slipped out of town," sings Keb' Mo' on "Prosperity Blues," with a patented big wide grin you can practically hear. It's a witty and accurate assessment of his approach to the often lowdown genre. Even on the album's title track, where Mo's tough National steel slide playing is most prominent, he's concerned with the daunting amount of coffee choices at his local java emporium. Call it the middle-class blues then, as Mo' wraps his grits-and-honey voice around another set of gently rolling, melodic, and warm compositions. Similar to, say, James Taylor, he spins beautifully crafted, meticulously produced, uncluttered roots-influenced music that is no less satisfying because of its smooth qualities. Traces of gospel, folk, and even bluegrass sprinkle these pop-oriented tunes, and while most of the edges here are sanded off--nobody will mistake him for Howlin' Wolf--Mo's cushy voice and charm create another winning entry in his catalog. Sophisticated and burnished, <I>Keep It Simple</I> goes down easy thanks to alluring songs that beckon you back like the memories of an old flame. <I>--Hal Horowitz</I>

Genere: Blues

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Genere: Blues

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Genere: Country

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Genere: Country

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Trama: His hair isn't as electric as Lyle Lovett's, and his life isn't as tragic as Townes Van Zandt's, but Keen is the sort of literate songwriter Texas produces by the bushel. Joe Ely is a big fan of his songs, covering "When Kindness Fails" and "The Road Goes On Forever", but Keen has been recording low-key albums of his own since the mid-'80s. His ability to capture the lives of nickel-and-dime losers is reminiscent of Raymond Carver one minute, John Prine the next. On <I>Gringo Honeymoon</I>, Keen proves he can funny--his "Merry Christmas from the Family" is a wicked take on holiday dysfunction--and overall it's his most consistent album. The only misstep is "Barbecue," a slight appreciation of wood-smoked meat that feels obvious and forced. <I>--Keith Moerer</I>

Genere: Country

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Genere: Country

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Trama: Compared to Willie Nelson or Butch Hancock, Keen fits squarely in the second rank of Texas songwriters, but even a relatively slick work like <i>Picnic</i> is better than the bulk of what's produced these days in Nashville. Nothing here approaches the knockout wit of Keen's "Merry Christmas from the Family," but "Shades of Gray," the story of small-town criminals almost arrested for a robbery they didn't commit, and "Then Came Lo Mein," about a guy uncorking a lifetime of frustration during a cheap Chinese dinner, are both examples of Lone Star storytelling at its best. <I>--Keith Moerer</I>

Genere: Country

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Trama: Though Robert Earl Keen was previously best known as Lyle Lovett's college buddy, this 1989 release established the Texas troubadour as a master of the musical narrative. His ambitious story songs extend from the rambunctious anthemry of "The Road Goes On Forever" (later covered by Joe Ely) to the bittersweet border balladry of "Mariano." Other highlights include the deadpan hilarity of "It's the Little Things" and the deadly serious "Love's a Word I Never Throw Around." While Keen's singing tends toward nasal monotone, the strength of the songcraft and the sprite settings established by producer Jim Rooney and a virtuosic band transcend the vocal limitations. <I>--Don McLeese</I>

Genere: Country

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Genere: Jazz

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Trama: The Poll Winners trio was based on guitarist Barney Kessel, bassist Ray Brown, and drummer Shelly Manne, who each managed to place first on his instrument in the 1956 Down Beat, Metronome, and Playboy readers' polls, a remarkable feat given the range from hardcore jazz fans to casual generalists who read the magazines. Kessel and Brown had worked together as two-thirds of the Oscar Peterson trio, and they had all played together on numerous recording sessions, but the open sound of the guitar-led trio was a special opportunity for Brown and Manne to share the foreground. Kessel was an outstanding soloist, capable of almost trumpetlike phrases delivered with rhythmic bite and flexibility--unusual in guitarists of the era. His clear, boppish lines intertwine neatly with Brown's loping pulse and Manne's lightly swinging drums, while Brown's solos are almost as dexterous as the guitarist's. It's low-key, melodic music, equally suited for casual and close listening. Stuart Broomer

Genere: R&B

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Trama: Alicia Keys has more than lived up to the promise of her formidable debut <I>Songs in A Minor</I>, pushing beyond her flirtation with old-school soul and venturing into the modern world, even hiring Timbaland to guide her through the shoals of anthemic hip-hop on the breathless and funkified "Heartburn." Sounding like a hyperthyroid cheerleader, Keys unleashes a quirky sense of humor that no one even suspected she possessed. Her effortless singing on the beat-driven "Karma" is a wonder of sonics on this uplifting piece of pop philosophy, giving countless anxious woman hope that everything will work out as it's meant to, or on "Samsonite Man," where it won't. But despite her edgy styling and jazzy vocal posturing, Keys hasn't abandoned her love for old R&B and travels back in time, giving Gladys Knight's "If I Was Your Woman" a face lift it may not have needed, then turns around and recasts the song as the winsome and dramatic "You Don't Know My Name." But at its heart, <I>The Diary of Alicia Keys</I> is a gross misnomer. After listening to the disc, fans will know little more about the elusive diva than they did before, her lyrical style consistently more narrative than confessional. In fact, the title track doesn't delve into the singer's inner life, but instead is about a long-distance love affair, with Keys promising the object of her affection that: "I won't tell your secrets/Your secrets are safe with me/I will keep your secrets/Just think of me as the pages in your diary."--<I>Jaan Uhelszki</I>

Genere: R&B

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Genere: R&B

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Genere: Blues

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Genere: Blues

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Genere: Blues

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Genere: Blues

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Trama: B.B. King is the most influential guitarist in the instrument's electric history. His string-bending, vibrato, and phrasing are the raw material that players as diverse as Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page and Pink Floyd's David Gilmour have spun into their own epic solos. This CD draws on King's '60s efforts for the defunct Kent label, tapping rarely heard instrumental tracks to present a crash course in his unique fusion of country blues, the single-string soloing perfected by Lonnie Johnson, and the swinging phrasing of jazz guitar pioneers like Charlie Christian and Django Reinhardt. Tunes like "Slidin' and Glidin'" and "Calypso Jazz" are tickets to blues heaven. <I>--Ted Drozdowski</I>

Genere: Blues

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Genere: R&B

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Genere: Blues

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Genere: Pop

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Genere: Rock

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Genere: Folk

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Genere: Blues

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Genere: Country

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Genere: Rock

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Trama: Even at the peak of Dire Straits' fame, Mark Knopfler's music often seemed informed by a restless worldview as abstruse as his guitar playing was fluid and expressive. This follow-up to his impressive 2000 collection, <I>Sailing to Philadelphia</I>, finds Knopfler chasing a similar musical and lyrical muse, with results that are even more surprising and loose-limbed. "Why Aye Man," the bracing opening chantey that sets much of the album's tone, draws parallels between Geordie pub-speak and Native American chants whilst lamenting economic refugees of Thatcherism forced to ply their blue-collar trades--and keep their Brit pub culture alive--deep in the Fatherland. From there, Knopfler takes us by "A Place Where We Used to Live" for a lounge-y, Jobim-inflected reminder that one can never really go home, drops in on "Quality Shoe" for a tribute to Roger Miller, and gives us a typically dry, so-deadpan-it's-funny rundown of his Circus Sideshow pals on "Devil Baby." "Marbletown," a graveyard folk-blues, showcases the musician at home on solo acoustic guitar, while the loping, laconic "Coyote" draws its good-natured inspiration from a beast named Wile E. But it's the way that Knopfler connects disparate cultures and histories with subliminal, deceptively effortless grace on "Fare Thee Well Northumberland," "You Don't Know You're Born" (both of which feature Knopfler's signature languorous, blues-inflected soloing), the folksy "Hill Farmer's Blues," and the country-fried "Daddy's Gone to Knoxville" that make the album a triumph of understatement. <I>--Jerry McCulley</I>

Genere: Rock

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Trama: Over the last seven years, Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris quietly recorded an album by stealing "a few precious hours of studio time here and there," as the ex-Dire Straits singer/guitarist puts it. Good thing they kept it largely under wraps--expectations would have pushed through the clouds, especially as Knopfler conjured 10 of the 12 cuts, and Harris, who writes potently, but little, contributed two ("Love and Happiness," "Belle Starr"). Yet now that it's here, <i>All the Roadrunning</i>--while beautiful--seems somehow underwhelming, and without a true centerpiece. Anyone familiar with the artists' famous catalogues would expect the repertoire to be poetic and brooding, and that Harris's ethereal soprano would add light to Knopfler's dark Prozac rumblings. But the surprise is that the album is too tame, never breaks out of its midtempo groove, and never takes any big chances.<P></P>That said, there is much to like: The marital scrapbook romp of "This Is Us," the bluesy bickering of "Right Now," the wrenching poignancy of the 9/11-inspired ballad "If This Is Goodbye." Knopfler, ever the hypnotic guitarist, turns in some thrillingly droll and laconic vocals, and Harris brings the spirited coltishness of her early work to "Belle Starr." In the end, though, this is not so much a duet album as two famously melancholy musicians singing together--at times, strikingly so. <i>--Alanna Nash<

Genere: Jazz

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Trama: After years performing in the world's top venues with such jazz legends as Hank Jones and Oscar Peterson, here is Hilary Kole's debut, produced by John Pizzarelli, a jazz star in his own right, and who also serves as the album's guitarist. Together, Hilary and John have assembled 13 songs with roots in the great American songbook, but largely unknown, including Tom Waits Old Boyfriends and You For Me, best known from the late Blossom Dearie's interpretation. Here is a jazz vocalist for today!

Hilary Kole co- created and originated the lead female roles in the critically acclaimed, award winning Off-Broadway musicals, Our Sinatra (2000 MAC Award) and Singing Astaire.

Ms. Kole has been hailed by critics as a 'a musical marvel!' (Rex Reed, New York Observer.) Robert Daniels from Daily Variety said 'Kole is quite the prettiest young thrush on the club circuit...it's torch singing at its apex.'

Kole's television appearances include CNN's Showbiz Today, Fox's Good Day New York, PBS, NBC's Today in New York, as well as a half hour feature on CN8's 'One on One with Steve Adubato' in 2004.
Hilary has entertained at some of Manhattan's most prestigious events, including a Democratic Fundraiser for President Bill Clinton; an Emmy party in honor of Oprah Winfrey's Lifetime Achievement Award; the Helen Hays Awards, and as the featured entertainmer at the movie premier parties for Maid in Manhattan starring Jennifer Lopez, and Mona Lisa Smile and Stepmom starring Julia Roberts. Hilary also appeared at the 2004 Super Bowl at the Houston Astrodome

Genere: Jazz

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Trama: Lee Konitz is one of the great and genuine improvisers, a musician who can be counted on to take risks, striving to invent in the moment. In these live recordings from Los Angeles's Jazz Bakery, he's heard exploring familiar standards that have long been part of his repertoire, but every phrase seems newly minted by Konitz's dry sound and his slightly hesitant, always searching, line. Tunes that often receive pat performances, like "Cherokee" and "Round Midnight," appear here as unknown terrains. Veteran bassist Charlie Haden displays the intense listening skills that distinguish his playing, shadowing Konitz's invention and anchoring the harmony. Pianist Brad Mehldau, a rising star, extends his musical reach here, accepting Konitz's terms and playing jazz in its most naked and challenging form. <i>--Stuart Broomer</i>

Genere: Jazz

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Genere: Folk

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Genere: Jazz

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Trama: <I>All for You</I> is a tribute to the Nat "King" Cole Trio of the 1940s, when Cole performed as both a singer and a pianist. Krall, like her heroes Lena Horne and Carmen McRae, is also a singer-pianist, and she plays both roles on most of the songs here. She's able to link her singing to her piano playing in sympathetic ways and projects tremendous feeling through both. Like Cole in the '40s, Krall plays with a drummerless trio--here with guitarist Russell Malone and bassist Paul Keller. Their sense of intimate rapport is especially valuable on ballads such as "You Call It Madness" and "I'm Thru with Love," but also allows such uptempo tunes as "Hit That Jive Jack" to swing with surprising lightness. <I>--Geoffrey Himes</I>

Genere: Jazz

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Trama: This album appears in the footsteps of 2004's <i>The Girl in the Other Room</i> but doesn't sound like a follow-up. Whereas <i>The Girl</i> saw the pianist-singer abandon the Great American Songbook for more personal pastures, <i>From This Moment On</i> sees her working out on standards done in traditional arrangements. Although the tracks here are by the likes of Cole Porter, Jimmy Van Heusen and Sammy Cahn, and the Gershwins, Krall sounds more at ease than ever before; perhaps digging deep inside on <i>The Girl</i> loosened her up. Backed by the Clayton/Hamilton Jazz Orchestra on seven tracks, Krall sings off the big band with ease. On the title track, she keeps up with a galloping bass and explosive brass arrangements and even ventures into scatting toward the end of the song. Her voice has also acquired a wonderfully worn texture in the past few years, and it works wonders on the ballads (just listen to "Isn't This a Lovely Day" and "Little Girl Blue" for instance). When standards are done like this, there's just nothing like 'em. <i>--Elisabeth Vincentelli</i>

Genere: Jazz

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Trama: Singer/pianist Diana Krall breaks new ground interpreting modern standards by Tom Waits, Mose Allison, and Joni Mitchell, as well as compositions by herself and new husband, Elvis Costello. Krall's piano-jazz cred comes through loudly and clearly on her Count Basie-styled version of the Bonnie Raitt staple "Love Me Like a Man" (written by folk-bluesman Chris Smither). But it's the collaborations with her spouse that unearth untapped emotional nuances of her velvet voice; many are reminiscent of Bill Evans's moody, impressionistic pieces. The title track, "Narrow Daylight," "Abandoned Masquerade," and "I’m Coming Through" all deal with love and loss. "Departure Bay," a picturesque ode to her hometown of Nanaimo, B.C., proves that this is the start of something big, and that two heads--and hearts--are better than one. <I>--Eugene Holley Jr.</I>

Genere: Jazz

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Trama: Recorded at the historic Olympia Theatre in Paris in November 2001, this is Diana Krall's first live album. Backed by her quicksilver combo of bassist John Clayton, drummer Jeff Hamilton, and guitarist John Pisano (on some tracks), Krall's jazz heritage comes through loud and clear on this program of standards, ballads, and bossa novas. On Peggy Lee's "I Love Being Here with You," Bob Dorough's "Devil May Care," and Frank Sinatra's "Fly Me to the Moon," Krall's snappy, postbop piano playing shows off her debt to Nat "King" Cole and Jimmy Rowles. Her cool contralto vocals are illuminated by the Orchestre Symphonique Europeen, under the direction of Alan Broadbent, as well as the London Symphony Orchestra, led by conductor Claus Ogerman. Krall's deep take on Joni Mitchell's "A Case of You" is a great choice for an encore, and the CD concludes with Billy Joel's "Just the Way You Are" (a studio track from a film called <I>The Guru</I>), with tenor saxophonist Michael Brecker and bassist Christian McBride. This collection only hints at what Diana Krall has to offer in the future.<I>--Eugene Holley Jr.</I>

Genere: Jazz

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Trama: <I>The Look of Love</I> doesn't tamper with Diana Krall's ongoing success, continuing the emphasis on romantic ballads and embracing them with lush string arrangements. At the core, of course, is Krall's voice. She's developing into one of the great torch singers, with an approach that's both direct and subtly nuanced, true to the song and yet deeply personal. There's a combination of restraint and drama here, as Krall ranges from the confident to the wistful, from loss to playful insinuation, as each song requires. "Cry Me a River" is bittersweet triumph, while "Love Letters" and "Maybe You'll Be There" maintain the most tenuous emotional hold, at once fragile and resilient. "Besame Mucho" and "Dancing in the Dark" are sultry romances wafted on light Latin beats. The songs develop their intimacy in the setting of Krall's quartet, which usually includes bassist Christian McBride and drummer Peter Erskine and several fine guitarists, most frequently Russell Malone. They're a superb complement to her voice and piano, and the close communication carries through the depth and sheen added by Claus Ogerman's rich orchestrations. <I>--Stuart Broomer</I>

Genere: Jazz

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Trama: Years after the 1990s, the decade will be remembered for the rise of pianist-vocalist Diana Krall. Simply put, this British Columbian-born artist is one of the most engaging musicians to emerge from the heap of scat-happy singers high on pyrotechnics, but short on poetry. Stamped with the imprimatur of the Nat King Cole trio and blessed by her apprenticeship with the late West Coast piano giant Jimmy Rowles, Krall simply sings songs the way they're supposed to be sung: with devotion to the lyric and with attention to the groove. This CD finds Krall in familiar company with compatriots Russell Malone (on guitar), bassist John Clayton, drummers Lewis Nash and Jeff Hamilton, and vibraphonist (and former Bill Evans associate) Larry Bunker--all supported by Johnny Mandel's svelte string arrangements. Krall and crew take Irving Berlin's chestnut "Let's Face the Music and Dance" and the Sinatra-signatured "I've Got You Under My Skin" south to Brazil via a sexy bossa nova. Malone's lush guitar accompaniment complements Krall's heartfelt delivery on "When I Look in Your Eyes", and Michael Franks's "Popsicle Toes" dances courtesy of Hamilton's drum work. "Devil May Care", "East of the Sun (and West of the Moon)", The Best Thing for You", and the stridish "I Can't Give You Anything but Love" groove with a minimum of waste, while Mandel's simpatico strings steal the show on "I'll String Along with You", "Pick Yourself Up", and "Do It Again". All of which further illuminate the cool fire from this fine gift from North of the Border. <i>--Eugene Holley Jr. </i>

Genere: Jazz

Durata: 1:08:23

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Produttore: Chris Potter, T Bone Burnett, Diana Krall

Trama: For only the second time in her career, jazz pianist and vocalist Diana Krall deviates from her tried, true m.o. of covering easily identifiable jazz standards. On Glad Rag Doll she teams with producer T-Bone Burnett and his stable of studio aces. Here the two-time Grammy winner covers mostly vaudeville and jazz tunes written in the 1920s and '30s, some relatively obscure. Most of the music here is from her father's collection of 78-rpm records. Krall picked 35 tunes from that music library and gave sheet music to Burnett. He didn't reveal his final selections until they got into the studio. Given their origins, these songs remove the sheen of detached cool that is one of Krall's vocal trademarks. Check the speakeasy feel on opener "We Just Couldn't Say Goodbye," with Marc Ribot's airy chords, Jay Bellerose's loose shuffle, and Dennis Crouch's strolling upright bass. Krall's vocal actually seems to express delight in this loose and informal proceeding -- though her piano playing is, as usual, tight, top-notch. The shimmering sentimental nocturnal balladry there gives way to swing in "Just Like a Butterfly That's Caught in the Rain," which stands out because of the interplay between Ribot's ukulele, a pair of basses, and Bellerose's brushes. Krall's vocal hovers; she lets the melody guide her right through the middle. On the title cut, her only accompanist is Ribot on an acoustic guitar. Being the best-known tune in the bunch, it's easy to compare this reading with many others, but Krall's breathy vocal fully inhabits the lyric and melody and makes them her own. A few tracks stand apart from the album's theme. There's the modern take on Betty James' rockabilly single "I'm a Little Mixed Up," which allows Burnett to indulge himself a little and showcases a rarity: Krall playing rock & roll piano. The atmospheric reading of Doc Pomus' "Lonely Avenue" is somewhat radical, but is among the finest moments here. Burnett gets his obligatory reverb on here, but the weave of his and Ribot's guitars (and the latter's banjo) and the mandola by Howard Coward (Elvis Costello in one of several guest appearances) is arresting. The arrangement also contains an odd yet compelling reference to Miles Davis' "Right Off (Theme from Jack Johnson)"; Krall's piano solo is rife with elliptical, meandering lines and chord voicings. But vocally she gets inside the tune's blues and pulls them out with real authority. Glad Rag Doll is not the sound of Krall reinventing herself so much as it's the comfortable scratching of an old, persistent itch. The warmth, sophistication, humor, and immediacy present on this set make it a welcome addition to her catalog.

by Thom Jurek
allmusic.com

Genere: Country

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Trama: When you possess a great pop voice, it's inevitable that you'll someday make a pop album, and Alison Krauss has finally made hers. Instead of bidding for radio airplay with the extravagant, extroverted pop of Shania Twain, Trisha Yearwood, or Celine Dion, Krauss has crafted an intimate, understated chamber-pop album reminiscent of Joni Mitchell's <I>Blue</I> or Rosanne Cash's <I>Interiors</I>. The material comes from such mainstream-pop writers as Michael McDonald, Todd Rundgren, Allen Reynolds, and Danny O'Keefe, but Krauss the producer gives the songs a distinctive spin. She layers the harmonies of her regular Union Station band, the Cox Family singers, pianist Matt Rollings, drummer Jim Keltner, and mandolinist Sam Bush to create a lush, hushed sound that's neither traditional bluegrass nor electric country-pop. Krauss multitracks her own fiddle parts and blends them with Jerry Douglas's Dobro to create an unorthodox string-quartet sound. In this setting her tender, translucent vocals capture that moment when a relationship is unraveling before the lovers are ready to let it go. <I>--Geoffrey Himes</I>

Genere: Country

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Trama: At 14, child prodigy Alison Krauss signed to Rounder records, wooing critics and beguiling both bluegrass and country stalwarts with her nimble-fingered champion fiddling and inimitable otherworldly soprano. Though 1995's <i>Now That I've Found You</i> is credited as her mainstream breakthrough, 1990's <i>I've Got That Old Feeling</i> bridges her remarkable career into adulthood, capturing the public's interest in bluegrass. Barely past the threshold of womanhood, Krauss possesses musical agility far beyond her years, as well as the soft sweetness of the girlhood blush. The efficacy with which she and her band approach each song is marrow deep and tenderly precise, be it on the banjo rave-up "Will You Be Leaving" or the multi-string delay-beat of "Winter of a Broken Heart." Witness to the promise of a stellar future is the Floyd Cramer-esque piano-led "Tonight I'll Be Lonely Too," in which Krauss shines like the sun, her splendidly emotive tone and phrasing somewhat reminiscent of a young Dolly Parton. <i>--Paige La Grone</i>

Genere: Country

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Trama: A poll-winning fiddler since her teens, Alison Krauss was an established bluegrass star when her label persuaded her to step out from her usual projects with Union Station, her crack band, and sanction this compilation of various band and solo guest performances. The ploy worked, yielding a wonderful, odds-beating crossover hit with Krauss's cover of "Baby, Now That I've Found You," a carousing late-'60s pop chant transformed into a delicate, vulnerable declaration of love. Focusing on Krauss's lovely, yearning soprano, the track elevated the musician above her resolutely democratic role in her quintet, catapulting Krauss to the biggest bluegrass success story in over 30 years. Krauss has stayed true to her bluegrass roots, as well as to Union Station, but this cross-section of contemporary bluegrass songs, joyous gospel, and canny rock covers testifies to the young artist's luminous appeal. <i>--Sam Sutherland</i>

Genere: Country

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Trama: Many bluegrass musicians have incorporated contemporary elements into their work, Jim & Jesse, the Osborne Brothers, and Mac Wiseman among them., but Krauss's contemporary bluegrass contains particularly heavy doses of pop, folk, and modern country. Whatever style she chooses, her flawless voice and her crack Union Station cohorts usually maintain a high standard. The instrumental "Little Liza Jane" and the traditional "I'll Remember You, Love, In My Prayers" prove their instrumental chops, and songs like "No Place to Hide," with an impressive fiddle turn from Krauss herself, effectively mold modern elements into the bluegrass idiom. However, others such as "It Doesn't Matter" and "Deeper Than Crying" have very little to do with bluegrass at all. A mostly solid contemporary-bluegrass album, except when the contemporary drowns out the bluegrass. <I>--Marc Greilsamer</I>

Genere: Country

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Trama: In addition to being a contest-winning fiddler and an angelic singer, Alison Krauss is also a terrific talent scout. She has assembled a personal stable of the finest songwriters in contemporary bluegrass--John Pennell, Nelson Mandrell, Ron Block, Sidney Cox and Mark Simos--and she has singlehandedly brought Louisiana's wonderful bluegrass/gospel group, the Cox Family, to national prominence. Last year Krauss produced the Cox Family's debut CD, "Everybody's Reaching Out for Someone," and this year she has joined them for a delightful joint gospel album, "I Know Who Holds Tomorrow."<P> The Cox Family includes daddy Willard, son Sidney and three daughters, Suzanne, Evelyn, and Lynn. All five are solid lead and harmony vocalists, but Suzanne and Evelyn are special singers with the same kind of effortlessly graceful sopranos as Krauss. Between them, Krauss, Suzanne and Evelyn take nine of the dozen lead vocals and with the backing of the Cox Family voices and Krauss' regular musicians, the results are enchantingly lovely. Krauss has picked the hymns from a wide variety of sources--Paul Simon, Loretta Lynn, Thomas Dorsey and Dottie Rambo--but they are united by her tastefully understated acoustic arrangements. Nothing quite captures the mix of hopes and fears that make up gospel music like the duet between Krauss and Evelyn on Lynn's "Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven (But Nobody Wants To Die)." <i>--Geoffrey Himes</i>

Genere: Country

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Trama: Over the course of her first albums, including her fourth, 1992's <I>Every Time You Say Goodbye</I>, Alison Krauss probably did more than any of her contemporaries to attract mainstream-country attention to bluegrass. A traditionalist might say this is because Krauss and her band, Union Station, offer a kind of "bluegrass-lite" that's cut with pop sensibility, absent any manic-fast picking, and awash in Krauss's goes-down-easy vocal. Nonetheless, this is a solid album that pushed Krauss deservedly further into the limelight. Highlights include the title track, Union Station banjo picker Ron Block's fine gospel number "Shield of Faith," and the traditional instrumental "Cluck Old Hen." <I>--Anders Smith-Lindall</I>

Genere: Blues

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Genere: Country

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Trama: Most of the songs Kris Kristofferson is famous for having written ("Me and Bobby McGee," "Help Me Make It Through the Night," "For the Good Times," "Loving Her Was Easier" and so on) appeared on his first two albums, 1970's <I>--Kristofferson</I> and 1971's <I>--The Silver Tongued Devil and I</I>. It was a spectacular entrance which forever changed country songwriting, but he has never been able to match it. So it brings great pleasure to report that Kristofferson's 1995 album, <I>--A Moment of Forever</I>, is his best since 1971. Part of its success is due to producer Don Was, who's performed similar resuscitations on Bonnie Raitt, Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings. Was has a great ear for material, and he always insists his clients hold out for the best songs. Moreover, Was has shored up Kristofferson's musical shortcomings by giving him sharply focused, nicely harmonized arrangements executed by L.A.'s top session pros. Also reinforcing the album's musicality is Kristofferson's touring sidekick, keyboardist Danny Timms, who co-wrote three songs and fleshed out several more. Most crucial, however, is the terrific batch of new songs Kristofferson has come up with since his last studio effort five years ago, most notably the title track, a ballad with a captivating melody and an understated meditation on the way love is both transitory and timeless. <I>--Geoffrey Himes</I>

Genere: Country

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Trama: Like most singer-songwriters, Kristofferson's memorable songs came in a flurry. Within just a couple of albums he recorded most of the numbers for which he's best known. It's hard to believe that these tender, evocative pieces were once viewed as a full-frontal assault on Nashville circa 1970. This double set pairs Kristofferson's original versions of his classics, such as "Me and Bobbie McGee," "Sunday Morning Coming Down," "For the Good Times," and "Help Me Make It Through the Night," with the hit versions by artists like Roger Miller, Johnny Cash, Ray Price, Willie Nelson, Bob Dylan, and Janis Joplin. The difference between the high gloss of the hit versions and Kristofferson's spare, whiskey baritone originals prove once again that truth must be sugar-coated at all times. <I>--Colin Escott</I>

Genere: Country

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Genere: Jazz

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Trama: A celebration of the magisterial music of John Coltrane. In 1960 Steve Kuhn was the original pianist in John Coltrane's quartet, preceding McCoy Tyner. The album is an homage to Coltrane's music and influence, focussing on music either written by him or strongly associated with him. Particularly fascinating is the scope of material selected, which not only includes tunes Kuhn once played with Coltrane - "Central Park West", "The Night Has A Thousand Eyes", "I Want To Talk About You" - but goes right through Coltrane's life, including pieces from the very final months, such as "Configuration" and "Jimmy's Mode"... These tremendous group performances, with Kuhn joined by Joe Lovano, a musician many critics believe to be the world's premier tenor player right now, effectively retrace Coltrane's last decade.