Gordon Lightfoot Book, Music and More!

His tremulous, quasi-operatic tenor has always been one of rock’s most stirring sounds—and a favorite of romantics everywhere. Tom Waits once said, “When you were trying to make a girl fall in love with you, it took roses, the Ferris wheel and Roy Orbison.” This three-disc set features all of Orbison’s hits, from heartbroken ballads like “Only the Lonely” and “Crying” to his signature rocker “Oh Pretty Woman,” along with great B-sides like “Love Hurts” and the first-ever DVD release of a 1965 concert. Sweet melancholy.

Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel were pop’s odd couple of the 1960s. Tall and angelic Garfunkel, with his choirboy tenor, seemed an unlikely partner for the short and bookish Simon, with his literate lyrics. But, together, they made some of the decade’s most memorable sounds. Their chart-topping, Grammy-winning final album, with hits like “Cecilia” and the soaring title track, is now available with an added DVD featuring a 1969 TV special and a documentary about the duo’s magical sound, appropriately called The Harmony Game.

Musicians have always been quick to support charitable causes. When George Harrison called for help to raise funds to aid homeless Bangladeshi refugees in 1971, Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton and others rushed to join a benefit concert and live recording. Since then, charity albums have become a pop staple, from We Are the World’s African famine relief effort in 1985 to last year’s Hope for Haiti Now, which benefited earthquake victims. Now, with the Japanese devastating earthquake and subsequent tsunami, the world’s music community has joined forces on Songs for Japan, Featuring 38 tracks by leading artists such as U2, Madonna and Michael Bublé, Songs for Japan is a two-CD set that mixes modern hi...

The pop-punk band’s 2004 album Chuck was inspired by the Congolese war. Here, Sum 41 frontman Deryck Whibley finds inspiration in his divorce from Avril Lavigne. “Take the pictures off the wall, erase the thoughts, forget them all,” he sings on the piano-laced “All Comes to an End,” while on “Exit Song” he laments “there’s nothing left to say, cause you don’t want to try and I don’t want the pain.” Happily, Whibley’s pain has led to some refreshing vulnerability in his songs and the band’s most grown-up album to date.

With eight Juno and four Grammy Awards—including two for duets with Tony Bennett and Roy Orbison, Canada’s k.d. lang has become synonymous with songs of love and desire, notably on her 1992 classic “Constant Craving.” Mostly, she’s done this solo, perfecting her lush sound with various musicians-for-hire. Now, the gifted vocalist has her own band (her first since the Reclines over 20 years ago) and the new collaborative spirit has produced some striking results. Romantic nuggets like the breezy title track, the aching “I Confess,” the dreamy “Sugar Buzz” bristle with a palpable creative energy.

Hers is one of pop’s most inspirational stories. A contestant in the third season of American Idol in 2004, Jennifer Hudson came in seventh and lost—surprisingly—to Fantasia. But the gifted singer bounced back, landing the role of Effie White in Dreamgirls and winning the Oscar in 2007 for Best Supporting Actress, one of the few performers to have ever achieved this for a debut screen appearance. Then tragedy struck, when Hudson’s mother, brother and nephew were brutally murdered in 2008 at her mother’s Chicago home. Devastated, Hudson withdrew from public life, re-emerging to movingly sing the “Star Spangled Banner” at the 2009 Super Bowl. She then triumphed at the Grammys, winning Best R&B...

Mark Ronson was only a child when he first fell in love with Duran Duran. Now the producer of Amy Winehouse, Lily Allen and others has scored the gig of his dreams, producing the ’80s synth pop legends’ latest album. The results are staggeringly good, from the disco funk of “Safe (In the Heat of the Moment)” and the throbbing dance grooves of “Girl Panic!” to the dreamy balladry of “Leave the Light On,” featuring Simon Le Bon’s tender vocal. It’s Duran Duran at their best since 1982’s classic Rio.

With 24 million songs downloaded and nine million albums sold, Glee is breathing life into the music business. The TV show’s latest CD promises more hits, including covers of Michael Jackson, Katy Perry and Justin Bieber songs and two originals: “Get it Right,” a Lea Michele ballad, and “Loser Like Me,” a bouncy ensemble number that promises to become a Gleek anthem. But actress Gwyneth Paltrow, who plays substitute teacher Hollie Holiday, steals the show with her falsetto-laced cover of Prince’s erotic “Kiss.”

In the pre-Gaga days of divas, Britney Spears reigned supreme. But that was before her failed marriages, substance abuse, drug rehab, shaved head and custody battles. The “Oops!…I Did it Again” singer’s life became a train wreck and regular tabloid fodder. Since then, the spotlight has shifted to other pop princesses, while Britney put her house in order, visiting her sons (in the custody of ex-husband Kevin Federline) and finding new romance with her former agent, Jason Trawick. Now Spears, who has sold over 100 million albums worldwide, is poised to reclaim the crown with her latest CD, Femme Fatale. Assisted by hitmakers Max Martin and Dr. Luke on seven of the disc’s 12 tracks, the dark, ...

Reflecting the changing mood of 1960s America, TV’s Mad Men has been hailed for its historical accuracy. This two-CD set captures the cocktail party sounds of the era, from the boozy croon of Dean Martin and chauvinist swagger of Tom Jones to Roger Miller’s lazy, finger-snapping “King of the Road.” Although later ’60s hits are included, it’s songs like Jack Jones’ dated classic “Wives and Lovers,” in which he sings “men will always be men,” that seem tailor made for the cigarettes and whiskey world of ad man Don Draper.