Some years ago I compiled a list of what I consider the 100 worst hit songs of the rock era. But this countdown to mediocrity — which began with Andy Gibb’s “(Love Is) Thicker than Water” and ended with the unfathomably abysmal Paul Anka anthem “(You’re) Having My Baby” –…

Albita Una Mujer Como Yo (Crescent Moon/Epic) Albita Rodriguez used to open her local club shows by joking that she would give a three-part performance: Cuban music, followed by Cuban music, wrapping it up with Cuban music. The singer’s allegiance to the classic Cuban sound made for good shtick, but…

Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup Look on Yonder’s Wall Magic Sam The Magic Sam Legacy Roosevelt Sykes Feel Like Blowing My Horn Big Joe Williams Piney Woods Blues (Delmark) Slickness is bad for practically every type of music, but for the blues it’s fatal. The appeal of blues is rooted in…

Puff Daddy & the Family’s No Way Out is as stunningly slack a piece of work as has ever been issued by a major rap act. Puff Daddy, born Sean Combs, has one of the weakest verbal flows of all time; he mouths wan rhymes in a pinched monotone that…

Bridges to Babylon The Rolling Stones (Virgin) Although they’ve never really gone away, the Rolling Stones have had more “comebacks” than Richard Nixon. Every time they emerge from their cocoon of luxury for a new album, Rolling Stone magazine assures us that they’re back, that previous Stones records may have…

Bob Dylan Time Out of Mind (Columbia) There’s a federal statute prohibiting anyone who doesn’t admire Bob Dylan from becoming a rock critic, so it’s no surprise that I’m crazy about a great many of his recordings. Highway 61 Revisited and The Basement Tapes are my favorites, followed by Bringing…

Elegantly Wasted INXS (Mercury) It’s sort of endearing the way Michael Hutchence thinks he’s still sexy, kinda like that fading jock who gets all decked out for a sandlot game and insists on hitting cleanup. The ball may not carry as far as it once did, but the swing’s always…

The collaborations between trumpeter Miles Davis — one of the most restless (and brilliant) figures in the history of jazz — and Gil Evans, a composer/arranger/pianist who was attracted equally to innovation and traditionalism, have spawned plenty of arguments among critics over the years. There’s no question that the three…

Various Artists America Is Dying Slowly (Red Hot/Eastwest) After releasing seven successful AIDS benefit compilations that focus on genres ranging from dance and jazz to indie rock and country, the Red Hot Organization has put out its first hip-hop record: America Is Dying Slowly (note the acronym). But with African…

“It’s kinda hectic, man,” says Wyclef “Clef” Jean, rapper, songwriter, and sonic engineer for the Fugees. “A lot of things are going on.” And, Jean should have added, those things are pretty damn nice A the kinds of things that happen only to a band experiencing a commercial breakthrough. The…

Iggy Pop Naughty Little Doggie (Virgin) Wayne Kramer Dangerous Madness (Epitaph) As punk rock’s generational cycle spins ever onward, with last week’s angry young thing replaced by this week’s rabble-rousing shaver, it’s reassuring to know that two of the music’s fortysomething architects are still around spewing bile and caustic protest…

The music that makes up John Coltrane: Heavyweight Champion — The Complete Atlantic Recordings, a six-CD boxed set just released on the Rhino imprint, was cut over the course of a relatively brief period of time. Coltrane, fresh from several years spent as a member of bands led by Miles…

There’s nothing like an artist’s early death to prompt critical reconsideration A and the reputation of Frank Zappa, who succumbed to cancer in late 1993 at the age of 52, has gotten a major boost as a result of this phenomenon. At the time of his passing, the music made…

Only a few short years ago, when the word VJ simply meant the end of W.W. II, songs created for TV series or commercials regularly made the pop charts. The trend got its start in the Fifties, churned up a head of steam during the Sixties, and made listening to…

When it comes to music, words get in the way. It’s easy to understand why: Our reactions to music usually are visceral and instinctive, not logical and quantifiable. As a result, it’s all but impossible to make someone feel the same sensations by describing a sound as he would feel…

Christmastime is supposed to be a season of joy, love, and happiness. It’s also a season to get ripped off. Executives from music companies — which derive a huge chunk of their annual profits from Yuletide purchases — know that moms, dads, and other people who never buy albums for…