David Banner - The Greatest Story Ever Told

“Since he first appeared on the national stage with 2003’s “Mississippi: The Album,” Banner has used his platform as an opportunity to showcase the best and worst qualities of Southern hip-hop. The contrast reaches a head-scratching apogee on “The Greatest Story Ever Told,” where Banner alternates furiously soulful tracks about inner-city violence (”So Long”) with chest-beating sex jams in which foreplay is reduced to strangling a chick till her face turns blue (”A Girl”). The extremes offer up a portrait of a man far more complex than what we get from many of Banner’s peers, and the inventive beats (by Banner, Cool & Dre, Akon and others) add vital life to his gruff flow. But you have to wonder if some of these tracks simply reflect the rapper’s desire to be all things to all consumers.—Mikael Wood”

Sugarland - Love on the Inside

“Sugarland’s third album, finely crafted with producer Byron Gallimore, is proof positive that singer/songwriters Jennifer Nettles and Kristian Bush are on the cusp of superstardom. Hooky and infectious first single “All I Want to Do,” currently No. 3 on Hot Country Songs, is a tantalizing tease of the album’s breadth. Steamy “What I’d Give” finds Nettles growling her way through a honey-do list that would get any man’s blood pumping, while “Keep You” finds her convincingly pleading a seemingly no-win situation. “Joey,” a foreboding throwback written with Bill Anderson, leaves one wondering about the title character’s fate. “Genevieve” starts acoustic and slow, building into a rollicking ode to a favored beau, and “Steve Earle,” about the oft-married song poet, is hilarious and refreshingly raw from a production standpoint. —Ken Tucker”

Walter Becker - Circus Money

“Steely Dan’s Walter Becker hasn’t exactly made a habit of solo albums, and considering the muted reaction to his last one 14 years ago, you can’t say demand has overwhelmed supply. But “Circus Money” is an easy pleasure, 12 non-whack tracks largely co-written by Becker and producer Larry Klein, energized by a reggae rhythm base. Singing may not be Becker’s forte, but neither is it a terrible liability on songs that display his penchant for trenchant scene-setting and character sketch. His once pitiless cynicism is now leavened by compassion, whether in the portrayal of a none-too-attractive barfly (”Somebody’s Saturday Night”) or the accumulation of precise details that give ’70s Philly soul romance “Downtown Canon” its heartbreaking authority. Inveterate Dan fans will be perked by “Paging Audrey,” which sounds like a “Royal Scam”-era idea given a fresh dust-off. —Wayne Robins”

Beck - Modern Guilt

“Because his records so rarely sound like anyone’s but his own, it’s easy to forget how much Beck thrives on collaborating with name-brand producers like Nigel Godrich and the Dust Brothers. For the follow-up to 2006’s “The Information” he teamed with Danger Mouse, and though the result is unmistakably the work of our favorite midnite vulture, “Modern Guilt” also makes clear how much Beck must have loved “Crazy” by Gnarls Barkley. Nearly every tune here echoes that hit’s spooky, reverb-soaked vibe. Built on shuffling beats and big basslines, the ghost-gospel arrangements provide a good setting for Beck’s vocals, which hew closer to the depressed mumbling of “Mutations” and “Sea Change” than to the white-boy jive of “Guero” or “Odelay.” Nothing makes as quick of an impact as “Crazy,” but give the tunes time and you’ll find they stick around.—Mikael Wood”

Neil Diamond - Home Before Dark

“Neil Diamond was an international superstar by 1976, but nothing prepared him quite for the reception he met when he arrived for concerts in Australia and New Zealand. There are crowds as far as the eye can see during this Sydney show, originally broadcast on nationwide TV, and they eat up Diamond’s time-tested schtick from minute one of the faux-Afropop “Soolaimon.” The artist and his band are in full mid-’70s regalia here, with plenty of unbuttoned shirts, jewelry and feathered hair, but the sensitive pop/rock is a world away from the punk explosion about to occur back at home and in the United Kingdom. Diamond himself wrestled with being a man out of time, which is amply demonstrated in the fascinating TV interview included as a bonus here. Chain-smoking under hot studio lights and rarely resembling the confident pro he is onstage, Diamond reveals his struggles to understand his fame and why he took a two-year hiatus to put his life back in order. “Solitary Man,” indeed. —Jonathan Cohen”

Billy Joel - The Stranger: 30th Anniversary Edition

“”The Stranger” may not be Billy Joel’s best album, but it’s certainly his most important, the musical moment that took him from cult favorite to pop superstar. Thirty years on, it’s still a great record, and even better in this boxed anniversary incarnation. Like all career-defining works, “The Stranger” is a cohesive, loosely thematic piece whose individual highlights still stand out—the despairing characters of “Movin’ Out (Anthony’s Song),” the piano-playing heroics of the epic “Italian Restaurant,” the unapologetic cheek of “Only the Good Die Young,” the understated duality of “She’s Always a Woman.” The set’s second CD, a previously unreleased 1977 concert at New York’s Carnegie Hall, offers a slightly different incarnation of the breakthrough hit “Just the Way You Are” (more cha-cha than samba) and a look at the ensemble dynamic that producer Phil Ramone captured on “The Stranger,” while the DVD accompanying the deluxe edition features Joel’s 1978 performance on the BBC’s “Old Grey Whistle Test” and new interviews. All the material manages to freshen our long and familiar relationship with “The Stranger.”—Gary Graff”

The Pussycat Dolls feat Darkchild , Diddy , Lil Wayne & Fatman Scoop - When I Grow Up Remix

They altered the beat, and The Pussycat Dolls are only on the chorus, but it’s a nice, new version.  I personally don’t like it as much as the original, however this is nice change of pace version.  8/10

Katy Perry feat Mims - I Kissed A Girl Remix

I like the Remix better than the original.  Mims provides a nice touch.  8/10

Walter Trout - The Outsider

“If 2007’s “Trout’s latest disc comes via the Dutch label Provogue, which is not surprising, considering that his solo career took off in Europe years before he made a name for himself stateside. “The Outsider” reveals him and his bandmates hard at work doing what they do best: crunching together blues and rock to create a distinctive, intense groove. For a sumptuous taste of Trout’s blues, spin “You Can’t Have It All.” The song is a basic three-chord blues, but it comes at you like a sledgehammer. Bassist Hutch Hutchinson and drummer Kenny Aranoff deliver a thunderous bottom line while Trout cuts loose a pair of guitar solos that are as fluent as they are nasty. For something in a quieter vein, check out Trout’s acoustic rendition of “Turn Your Eyes to Heaven.” —Philip Van Vleck”

Chromeo - Fancy Footwork / Fancier Footwork

“If 2007’s “Fancy Footwork” was Chromeo’s go at a slick dance party, then “Fancier Footwork” is the duo’s attempt to keep you bouncing in the club all night long. The reissue’s bonus disc packs cuts from Chromeo’s first album, 2004’s “She’s in Control,” and a number of remixes from the likes of DFA and Crookers. See the chill vibe of “Needy Girl” and “Rage!” or the tongue-in-cheek jazzy swagger of “You’re So Gangsta” for a glimpse of where these boys got their start. Elsewhere the hardened edge that MSTRKRFT gives to “Tenderoni” and DFA to “Destination Overdrive” are perfect late-night thumpers, and Yuksek’s treatment of “Bonafide Lovin” oozes with even more ’80s cool and bright splashes of electro. It might not be all that more fancy, but it sure is just as fun. —Jill Menze”

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