The band that proclaimed itself "The Greatest Rock & Roll Band in the World" has long since represented rock's most overarching confluence of art and commerce-with a distinct emphasis on the latter in recent decades-a notion this 40-track, five-decade-spanning anthology can't completely escape. While this is the first anthology to gather hits from the band's entire career, it's the early tunes that highlight one of the Stones' central ironies: virtually their entire "bad boy" reputation was built working for The Man. That original '60s musical arc bounded from '50s rock and R&B revivalism ("Not Fade Away," "The Last Time") to anti-Mop Top aggression ("Satisfaction," "Get Off My Cloud," "19th Nervous Breakdown") to proto-goth cynicism ("Paint It Black," "Have You Seen Your Mother Baby") and psychedelic minstrelsy ("She's a Rainbow," "Ruby Tuesday") to the epitome of blues-based cock rock ("Street Fighting Man," "Jumpin' Jack Flash") in quick succession. Wresting control of their own destinies-and future copyrights-at the end of the '60s, they'd spend the next 30 years largely recycling their earlier incarnation ad infinitum-their music sprinkled with occasionally successful forays into contemporary club and disco fodder ("Some Girls," "Shattered")-and resting on their well-paid laurels. Unfortunately, the listless quartet of new tracks that flesh out this collection seems little more than another business deal to hype their 2002-03 world tour, with "Don't Stop" arguably the weakest in a long string of post-'80s Stones McSingles. If Jagger seems typically detached here, Keith Richards injects some welcome, craggy warmth into the closing barroom lament, "Losing My Touch. " But it's also a performance that suggests his legendary band has become little more to him than "The Greatest Day Job in the World. " -Jerry McCulley.

The Roy Orbison drama, the Wall of Sound and the soul energy of Born to Run are still present here but there's a darkness now, too, and it's more than around the edges. The stories have more at risk, for one thing, a definite sense of the pain that can accompany the hardest choices. These real-world consequences are felt most strikingly in Bruce Springsteen's newly prominent guitar-his solos are ugly and twisted but he sounds all the stronger for it. Recorded for everyone who has "a notion. it ain't no sin to be glad you're alive", Darkness on the Edge of Town might just be Springsteen's greatest achievement. -David Cantwell.

At a certain point, bad taste and bombast becomes so excessive and so grandiose that they're no longer an easily dismissed irritation but an astonishing monument to the warped imagination. Such a monument is Meat Loaf's Bat Out of Hell II: Back Into Hell, the long-delayed sequel to 1977's Bat Out of Hell. Once again songwriter/producer Jim Steinman has isolated high-school parking-lot aphorisms and inflated them to Wagner-on-Broadway proportions, casting Mr. Loaf as a heavy-metal Ezio Pinza. Typical of the album's strategy is its big hit single, "I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)". Steinman piles on the guitars, drums, synthesizers, and choral voices as if he were Phil Spector producing Kiss playing the Who songbook. The rest of the album tackles the themes of teenage lust, frustration, and rock & roll fantasies in similar fashion. It's somehow beside the point to complain about the puerile lyrics, the leaden rhythms, the derivative melodies, the histrionic vocals, or the overblown arrangements. Steinman knows how to push his audience's buttons, and with Meat Loaf's help, he hits those buttons with a sledgehammer. -Geoffrey Himes At a certain point, bad taste and bombast becomes so excessive and so grandiose that they're no longer an easily dismissed irritation but an astonishing monument to the warped imagination. [+]

Legacy is just about the right title for this album. Boyz II Men were the original, modern-day boy band who formed the mould for groups such as Take That and the Backstreet Boys to be cast from. Heavily influenced by Doo Wop groups such as the Platters and the Dells and developed by ex-New Edition and BellBivDevoe member Michael Bivins, Boyz II Men quickly rose to heavyweight status after the foursome's 1991 debut Cooleyhighharmony. Their success is based on romantic ballads and strong vocals, the type of which groups such as Another Level could only dream of. However they've lacked the charisma and looks to really impact upon the world, being perhaps the only group that could be described as "quietly" selling an incredible 35 million records. This collection of their best moments concentrates on their strengths as crooning Cupids, best exemplified by their massive hit and classic ballad "End of the Road" (taken from the Boomerang soundtrack). "Hey Lover" featuring LL Cool J is as energetic as the album gets and Legacy is unashamedly assembled for lovers of slow, romantic bedroom soul. But a lot of Boyz II Men's work hasn't aged too well. "I'll Make Love To You", a one time smash, sounds tinny and tacky and "On Bended Knee" is gut wrenchingly saccharine in a way today's R&B artists just wouldn't even try on. This Greatest Hits album effectively closes a chapter of Boyz II Men's history. [+]

The come-from-nowhere success of Shania Twain's previous album, The Woman In Me, proved that the world was ready for a combination of traditional instruments, girl-power themes and dance-pop dynamics. Whether Twain is a modern-day Dolly Parton or a country music Spice Girl is a matter of perspective; with her third album, she accentuates the sing-along choruses and simple dance rhythms while downplaying the country elements. As a pop move, it works wonderfully for her, earning Twain a valued spot on MTV, VH-1 and pop radio. The emphasis is on fun rather than depth, of course, but no one can accuse her of being stingy: She and her Svengali-like producer/husband, slick-rock king Robert "Mutt" Lange (Def Leppard, Bryan Adams, AC/DC) load down the album with 16 songs, all of them quite radio-friendly. -Michael McCall.

If you want to plot a classic rise and fall pattern in the career of a band, look no further than the Pixies. This middle album, third of five, is the pinnacle of their noise equation: taut, terrifying and tightly edited, these 15 tracks (best known: "Monkey Gone To Heaven"; best quality, the insane "Debaser"; or the predatory "Hey") have the confidence that was missing from Come On Pilgrim and Surfer Rosa, but without the bloated pomp of Bossanova or Trompe Le Monde. Black Francis, as Charles Thompson IV was known then, surfs fast with his and Joey Santiago's guitars, tempered by the groundswell of Kim Deal's fine bass and counter vocals. It is like the last stand of US indie-dom: intelligent music encased in its precious, intricate and trademark Vaughn Oliver sleeve. Charlie Porter.

The title of this compilation tells the truth-almost. Although one is moved to question the validity of including the Raven Maize club hit "Real Life"-selected on account of it sampling the tonal poetry of "Theme From Great Cities"(a prime slice of the early Minds' funked-up Eurosynth futurism) and slapped on the end as if to convince a jaded public that Simple Minds really are "contemporary" and have a profound relevance to today's dance scene-this really contains the best of Simple Minds. Which is a very good thing indeed-but where's "Changeling"? These trifling grievances aside, this compilation does Simple Minds' chart-history justice. Sometimes unduly castigated for blustery over-expression and much ado about nothing, re-familiarisation with much of the post-Sparkle In The Rain material reveals a band at ease with an astute musical economy-the grand gesturing of "Mandela Day", for example, may well sound monumentally sincere and overwrought but it consists of a measly three chords, while the trotting-horse bass-line to "Waterfront" is one note repeated for over four minutes (and that note was "D" if you're interested). Some great pop singles aside-"She's A River", "Alive And Kicking", "Up On The Catwalk" and "Promised You A Miracle", a song cut from the same tartan cloth as early Spandau Ballet-the most interesting thing about Simple Mind's evolution is how they started to get more successful once they'd stopped impersonating Roxy Music only to hit pay dirt with a song which Bryan Ferry didn't have enough time to record, namely Keith Forsey's "Don't You Forget About Me". -Kevin Maidment.

Underneath all Christine Aguilera's coy affectations and vocal gymnastics lurks a rare talent. With her second album, Aguilera allows it to flower by abandoning all pretence of courting the teenage market. Stripped is a seemingly effortless move into weightier adult territory. Using her extraordinary voice as a much subtler instrument, Aguilera sings movingly about the disintegration of a relationship with grit and anger, ultimately stronger for the pain. But that's not all that's on her agenda: Aguilera also extols the power of women on "Can't Hold Us Down", which features Lil' Kim. Other guests include Dave Navarro, Redman, ?uestlove and Alicia Keys. Aguilera co-wrote most of the songs on the disc, and produced one cut. She also partnered with former 4 Non Blondes leader and Pink collaborator Linda Perry on four songs, which gives her a rock edge she never possessed before. -Jaan Uhelszki.

How Ray Davies made it through is anyone's guess. He fought constantly with his brother and bandmate Dave. He received not a penny of royalties throughout the Kinks' late-1960s heyday, due to a management dispute. He endured two divorces-the first of which saw him hospitalised in a suspected suicide attempt-and a painful break-up with Chrissie Hynde. Under terrible stress, he announced his retirement every six months from 1967 onwards. Yet somehow he held together one of the 60s' most stylish outfits, and released a string of hits that rank among the wittiest, most provocative and most socially aware songs ever written. The first disc of the two-CD The Ultimate Collection begins with their third single and first No. 1, the insistent "You Really Got Me", then races through the glory years with the absurdly infectious likes of "Sunny Afternoon", "Waterloo Sunset", "Lola" and "Apeman". Dave's two hits are included, too, and the disc ends with "Come Dancing" and other selections from The Kinks' early-80s comeback. Disc Two includes songs that were hits for others ("David Watts" and "Stop Your Sobbing"), various B-sides and other rarities, including "God's Children", from the soundtrack of Percy, a movie about a fellow seeking the original owner of his recently transplanted penis. [+]

Respect features all the classic songs by the original Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin. Rooted in a gospel tradition that was to inform her soul-charged sound, her impact on pop music, and in particular American pop music was profound. It was the run of late-60s Atlantic hits featured here ("Respect", "Chain of Fools", "I Say A Little Prayer") that made her a star but as this "best of" shows, there was plenty more to come. Aretha was discovered all over again by a new generation in the 80s thanks to her role and performance ("Think") in hit musical The Blues Brothers. Riding high on a wave of success, duets with latter day icons followed like the epic "I Knew You Were Waiting" with stubble-faced George Michael and the anthemic "Sisters Are Doing It For Themselves" with self-proclaimed diva Annie Lennox. Respect is certainly due to the remarkable talent of Aretha Franklin and this double disc anthology thoroughly represents the diva in her full majesty. -Carol Baines.

Kelly Clarkson could have played her American Idol-propelled career much differently, languishing in the role of dippy ingénue or shunting her musical development by leaning too heavily on overnight stardom. Instead she dug in her heels and allowed good sense (or a good manager) to steer, and somewhere Simon Fuller and the rest of the TV gang ought to be smiling. Credit Breakaway, which couldn't be more aptly titled-the sophomore set represents a seismic split from the thin if pretty stuff debut Thankful set forth. Here we encounter Clarkson as superstar, with the humility that made her likable on the first disc tucked tightly under her arm. First single and leadoff track "Breakaway" topped the pop charts on arrival, and its rock-friendly thumps, dips, and rolls don't wear out their welcome; they blend, instead, into the firestorm of beats and guitars that is "Since U Been Gone," another shout-it-out rocker. Those songs set the tone for the rest of the disc in all its fury: The innocence is long gone, numbers including "Addicted" and "Hear Me" say collectively, and Clarkson's of a mind to kick it. The big, expressive voice ringed by the occasional high-pitch trill-the one that prompted millions to get behind her on Idol-doesn't dip entirely off the radar, though. On "Where Is Your Heart," and the stunning live closer "Beautiful Disaster," it's there in full force-a hint, maybe, that despite the wide, smart career step Breakaway represents, her fans come first. -Tammy La Gorce.

With their Black Cherry album, the duo of vocalist Alison Goldfrapp and composer Will Gregory moved emphatically away from the folky, filmic forays of their debut Felt Mountain to explore edgier, sexier themes. Supernature, their third long-player, continues to probe this more "adult" world, lashing together lascivious electro, cascading synths and the exhumed spirits of artists like Gary Numan and Giorgio Moroder. Lead single "Ooh La La", with its cosmetic sheen and hedonistic pop feel, is a good indicator for the rest of the album. The aphotic, flirtatious pulse of tracks like "Ride A White Horse" and "Koko" contrast subtly with spectral dream-pieces such as "Let It Take U" and "U Never Know", while Goldfrapp's vocals-dripping here with a digitized sensuality-and Gregory's arching soundscapes provide textural continuity. Occasionally vampish and consistently visceral, this is a classy excursion into Goldfrappian gothic dance-pop.