REVIEWED BY CHUCK ARNOLD
CRITIC'S CHOICE
COUNTRY
You must be somewhere in the stars/'Cause from a distance comes the sound of your guitar." So sings Rosanne Cash on the gently atmospheric "The World Unseen," contemplating the great beyond where her father, Johnny Cash, has gone to rest. On this moving meditation on death and grief, the singer-songwriter copes with the loss of her dad, stepmother June Carter Cash and mother Vivian Liberto Cash Distin, who all died roughly within the making of Black Cadillac. Letting the listener in on her private pain, Cash creates something that goes beyond her own bereavement, touching the wounded heart of anyone who has mourned a loved one. From the beginning of the disc, where the Man in Black can be heard telling his young daughter, "Rosanne, y'better come on," the disc is rich in personal details, memories that will live on. Cash reminisces about her childhood home in Nashville on "House on the Lake," while recalling her father's days in the Air Force on "Radio Operator." Despite the specter of death, Black Cadillac is ultimately life-affirming: Cash comes to a realization that "God Is in the Roses" after her father's funeral and, on the sweetly haunting "I Was Watching You," concludes that "long after life there is love."
DOWNLOAD THIS: "God Is in the Roses"
The Secret Life Of ...
POP-ROCK
The Veronicas are no big secret back in their native Australia, where they have found chart success since their debut album came out last October. So far the biggest claim to fame in the States for the duo—which consists of 20-year-old identical twins Jess and Lisa Origliasso—has been singing the theme song of Related, a low-rated sisterly drama on The WB. That will likely change with the U.S. release of this TRL-friendly disc, which bears more than a little resemblance to such pop-rock princesses as Avril Lavigne, Hilary Duff and Ashlee Simpson. The CD's best cut, the punchy ode to insecurity "Everything I'm Not," was produced by frequent Britney Spears collaborator Max Martin and has a chorus that echoes Kelly Clarkson's "Behind These Hazel Eyes." Original they may not be, but they can be giddy fun.
DOWNLOAD THIS: "Everything I'm Not"
Your Man
REVIEWED BY RALPH NOVAK
COUNTRY
While his 2003 debut Long Black Train was a clear-cut triumph, Josh Turner seems to have really found his place in the continuum of country music on his very satisfying second album. Credit his producer Frank Rogers (Brad Paisley), as well as newfound mentor Eddy Arnold. He also benefits from the composing skills of Shawn Camp, who cowrote the disc's best song, "Baby's Gone Home to Mama," as well as the playful paean to used-car shopping, "Loretta Lynn's Lincoln." Turner also applies that deep, mellow baritone to a song by the great Bob McDill, the old Don Williams hit "Lord Have Mercy on a Country Boy." The singer duets with John Anderson on a tune they wrote together, "White Noise," and is joined by bluegrass patriarch Ralph Stanley on the amusing if somewhat presumptuous "Me and God." Turner is backed throughout by a stellar cast of musicians, including fiddler Aubrey Haynie and steel guitarist Steve Hinson, but it's his great, floorboard-rattling voice that truly makes him the man.
DOWNLOAD THIS: "Baby's Gone Home to Mama"Amore
POP-CLASSICAL
Italy's Andrea Bocelli could probably sing the want ads and make it sound romantic. On this amorous collection, the international star turns his operatic tenor to popular love songs from the '20s to the '80s sung in Italian, Spanish, French and English. Working with Grammy-winning producer David Foster (Celine Dion), Bocelli further crosses over to traditional pop territory with a little help from guests like Stevie Wonder, Christina Aguilera and Kenny G. Latin accents bring out Bocelli's inner Casanova on songs like "Besame Mucho," but occasionally all that passion can make things a bit overheated.
DOWNLOAD THIS: "Besame Mucho"
For information on where to find our Download This picks, go to www.people.com/downloadthis or AOL (Keyword: People)
The Notorious B.I.G.,Duets: The Final Chapter This deftly executed disc—on which freshly produced tracks pair old Biggie rhymes with new ones by a who's who of hip-hop—shows just why the late rapper remains a vital force.
Beth Orton, Comfort of Strangers Her most stripped-down and accessible effort to date showcases Orton's ability as an instrumentalist, featuring the singer-songwriter on guitar, piano and harmonica.
Jack Johnson, Curious George soundtrack The ever-mellow surfer dude gets in touch with his inner simian on fanciful folk-pop ditties that will have both kiddies and grown-ups happily singing along.
Duncan Sheik, White Limousine On the follow-up to 2002's shimmering Daylight, this underappreciated artist continues to make rich, melodic pop that is at once literate and lovely.
SOUNDS OFF
To help victims of Hurricane Katrina, R.E.M.'s lead singer and some famous friends recorded six versions of "In the Sun" (99 cents per song, $4.95 for the album), with all proceeds going to charity.
ON GETTING INVOLVED I wanted to help point a spotlight on what's still a catastrophic situation. I, like all Americans, was shocked at the devastation. Five months later I went to visit New Orleans to see for myself, and I was surprised at how little has been done. I don't think people have forgotten, I just think there are messages that things are going well, and, the truth is, they're not.
ON HOW THE MUSIC CAME TOGETHER I recorded "In The Sun," by [musician] Joseph Arthur, and I did a duet of it with [Coldplay lead singer] Chris Martin. Justin Timberlake and will.i.am from the Black Eyed Peas also produced a remix. One hundred percent of the proceeds from these songs, [available on iTunes], go directly to Mercy Corps, an international aid organization [that's helping hurricane victims in the Gulf Coast].
ON WHAT MORE CAN BE DONE TO HELP OUT We need to assure the people who were impacted by this disaster that we stand beside them and the promise that we represent as a country and in our hearts. We can't allow ourselves to forget that there are a lot of people still put out by this.
Saved by the Bell Reunion
The hookups, the meltdowns, the memoires
The case reveals what was really going on what they think of each other now!
