New Recordings

nolead begins Rick Ross
nolead ends nolead begins God Forgives, I Don't
nolead ends nolead begins (Maybach Music/Def Jam ***1/2) nolead ends

Without challenging Bruce Springsteen's stature, it's apt to call Rick Ross "the Boss." The rapper and Maybach Music mogul is a self-proclaimed chieftain who's got several singles announcing his top-tier managerial role, and the guy certainly has the goods to back up his boast. God Forgives entered the Nielsen SoundScan charts at No. 1, his fourth album to do so.

Ross' deep growl wraps itself around the dark, stark realities of "Hold Me Back," and warms up for the play-it-cool romanticism of his Usher duet "Touch 'N You." Ross takes to Drambuie-smooth grooves and slippery OutKast-ish funk (with Andre 3000 on "Sixteen") with equal aplomb.

Yet there's an urgency at work here. "Ashamed" would wallow in tearful self-loathing if Ross didn't come out victorious at its operatic finale. And it seems as though every hard beat, every choice of rap partner - save for the dull misstep of "3 Kings" with Jay-Z and Dr. Dre - is all part of his plan.

- A.D. Amorosi

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nolead begins Just Tell Me That You Want Me: A Tribute to Fleetwood Mac
nolead ends nolead begins Various Artists
nolead ends nolead begins (Hear Music ***) nolead ends

It's rare that you pick up a tribute album with no idea what you're going to get. But this celebration of Fleetwood's Mac's music uses many alternative bands (Washed Out, Tame Impala, Gardens & Villa). And they've ventured into the remoter regions of Mac's catalog - the collection closes with, of all things, a Bob Welch song covered by MGMT - so it's all pretty revelatory. Highlights include Antony's tremulous, votive take on "Landslide," the Kills' merciless deconstruction of "Dreams," and the New Pornographers' fizzy, fuzzy do-over of Christine McVie's "Think About Me." A tribute? It's more of a transformation, with moments both strange and wonderful.

- David Hiltbrand

nolead begins James Luther Dickinson and North Mississippi All-Stars
nolead ends nolead begins I'm Just Dead, I'm Not Gone nolead ends

nolead begins (Memphis International ***1/2) nolead ends

"I'm just a country boy and I like to play the blues," Jim Dickinson tells the crowd on this live set. Of course he was a lot more than that. Dickinson, who died at 67 in 2009, was a Memphis legend - as a sideman to the stars, a producer, and an American music master on his own recordings.

I'm Just Dead, I'm Not Gone chronicles a June 2006 show at a Memphis theater. Dickinson and the North Mississippi All-Stars, led by his sons, Luther and Cody, turn that theater into a roadhouse. Roadhouse heaven, to be precise. Dickinson, a bear of a man with a growly voice to match, rolls through blues and R&B numbers by Mack Rice, Furry Lewis, Sleepy John Estes, and B.B. King, as well as the workingman country anthems "Red Neck, Blue Collar" and "Truck Drivin' Man." He also delivers a chilling take on Buffy Saint Marie's drug-addiction dirge, "Cod'ine." All in all, it's a performance that brims with wit, passion, and personality, leaving a lasting impression that more than backs up the declaration in the album title.

- Nick Cristiano

Soul Live

(self-released ***1/2)

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nolead begins Blues Live
nolead ends nolead begins (self-released ***)

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On his four studio albums, John Németh established himself as a supremely gifted singer of soul and blues. These two live sets, on which he is backed by the same crisp band, show that the Bay Area-based vocalist and harmonica player also excels in a live setting.

Both discs showcase the suppleness and rich tone of Németh's voice - he can go from grit and growl to a sweet falsetto, just as the music and moods range from swaggering to supplicating. While he's a sharp interpreter of Fats Domino, Magic Sam, and Robert Johnson, among others, Németh here sticks mostly to his best originals, which further allows him to put his own stamp on these vintage styles. And, underscoring the connections between the soul and the blues, on both sets he tells the audience that it's time to "get a little funky."

- N.C.

nolead begins Fred Hersch Trio
nolead ends nolead begins Alive at the Vanguard
nolead ends nolead begins (Palmetto Records ***1/2)

nolead ends Pianist Fred Hersch reaches some rarefied heights on this wise trio recording with bassist John Herbert and drummer Eric McPherson. Recorded in February 2012 on the hallowed ground of the Village Vanguard in New York, this two-disc set is a kind of an oral Facebook tour through Hersch's many "likes," from saxophonists Ornette Coleman, Wayne Shorter, and Sonny Rollins to drummer Paul Motian and pianist Thelonious Monk.

Typical of his derring-do is how he puts together Coleman's mysterious "Lonely Woman" with the haunting Bill Evans/Miles Davis tune "Nardis." Hersch's unique amalgam is quite cool. Hersch had a dream about Monk, and his song about his reverie is earthy and old-school, while Rollins' fiery persona gets a doff of the cap on "Doxy."

Even the title of this intelligent session riffs on a past recording by Hersch, Live at the Village Vanguard, along with his own recovery from AIDS dementia.

- Karl Stark

nolead begins Olivier Messiaen
Turangalila-Symphonie
nolead ends nolead begins Steven Osborne, piano; Cynthia Millar, ondes Martenot; Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, Juanjo Mena conducting. nolead ends nolead begins

(Hyperion ***)

nolead ends This is the symphony that brought Olivier Messiaen to international prominence after World War II and remains a calling card of sorts. But that doesn't mean that its discography is terribly distinguished. Though most modern recordings have all the notes in the right place (which is saying a lot in this layered, rhythmically hectic, 10-movement piece), very few have the sort of communicative urgency to suggest what the piece could mean. This is one of them.

The Bergen Philharmonic sonority is lean and gets to the point of every passage with a directness that's rare in orchestral Messiaen performances. The dreamy slow movements never drag. Repetitive passages never pall. And the interplay between the numerous instrumental choirs in this wildly heterogenous piece has a playful elasticity. Even the eccentric ondes Martenot (similar to, and potentially as creepy as, a Theremin) is so well balanced with the rest of the ensemble that every entrance lands beautifully within the overall cosmology of this complex musical rain forest. The sound engineer captured everything.

- David Patrick Stearns