New Releases, Nov. 7: Keith Urban, J.J. Cale and Eric Clapton, Josh Groban
Keith Urban “Love, Pain and the Whole Crazy Thing”
The New Zealand-born country singer has received much publicity for stuff that has nothing to do with music over recent months. First, there was his marriage to Tom Cruise’s ex, Nicole Kidman. More recently, he made headlines when he checked into a rehab center last month.
Now, he will try to make news with the release of his fifth CD, “Love, Pain and the Whole Crazy Thing.” The record follows the immensely successful “Be Here” (2004). Many folks are predicting that “Love, Pain and the Whole Crazy Thing” will top the country charts and, quite possibly, the overall Billboard 200 album chart as well.
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J.J. Cale and Eric Clapton “The Road to Escondido”
The two great guitarists team up on this new set of original tunes. The artists have enjoyed success together in the past–most notably when Cale penned two of Clapton’s best-known hits, “After Midnight” and “Cocaine.”
Cale wrote 11 of the 14 tracks on the new album. The record features a number of guest musicians, including guitarist/vocalist John Mayer, who turns up on the blues number “Hard to Thrill.”
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Josh Groban “Awake”
The multi-platinum-selling pop/classical vocalist returns with the follow-up to 2003’s “Closer.”
Most are expecting big things from “Awake,” Groban’s third studio recording. His previous studio sets, 2001’s eponymous debut and “Closer,” have each sold more than five million copies.
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Andrea Bocelli “Under the Desert Sky”
This two-disc CD/DVD set captures Bocelli’s first-ever pop concert, which was performed on a floating stage in Lake Las Vegas. “Under the Desert Sky” features the Tuscan-born superstar singing such songs as “Somos Novios” (a tune that Perry Como recorded as “It’s Impossible”) and “Can’t Help Falling in Love,” the old Elvis Presley hit done here as a duet with Katharine McPhee.
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Sugarland “Enjoy the Ride”
The popular country act is hoping for another successful spin on the charts with its sophomore outing, “Enjoy the Ride.” The set follows 2004’s “Twice the Speed of Life,” a work that featured the smash hit “Baby Girl.
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Other new releases:
Mickey Avalon, “Mickey Avalon” (Myspace)
Blackmore’s Night, “Winter Carols” (Locomotive)
Bowling for Soup, “Great Burrito Extortion Case” (Jive)
Karen Dalton, “In My Own Time” (Light in the Attic)
Foo Fighters, “Skin and Bones” (RCA)
PJ Harvey, “Peel Sessions 1991-2004” (Island)
Ricky Martin, “MTV Unplugged” (Panda Local)
Dave Matthews Band, “The Best of What’s Around, Vol. 1” (RCA)
Pavement, “Wowee Zowee: Sordid Sentinels Edition” (Matador)
Pet Shop Boys, “Concrete: In Concert at the Mermaid Theatre” (EMI)
Alejandro Sanz, “El Tren de los Momentos” (Warner Bros.)
Shortbus, “Shortbus” (Team Love)
Michael W. Smith, “Stand” (Reunion)
Various artists, “Now That’s What I Call Music 23” (Sony)
Frank Zappa, “Trance-Fusion” (Zappa)
Soundtracks and scores:
“The Departed” (Warner Bros.)
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