Turn up the soft lighting; the ultimate diva is back with the 10-track collection What Matters Most: Barbra Streisand Sings the Lyrics of Alan and Marilyn Bergman. The material is set to lush, perfected orchestration as the icon stamps these standards with her trademark delivery. But would Streisand have it any other way? She hilariously had a microphone painted white without approval for a guest spot on The Oprah Winfrey Show.
Her remake of "The Windmills of Your Mind" from The Thomas Crown Affair is the highlight here. "That Face" has a horn arrangement and relaxed jazz groove to it; otherwise, What Matters Most favors hushed strings to focus on Streisand's signature voice with hopes to leave the listener teary-eyed. What Matters Most is out now via Columbia Records. Streisand's movie My Mother's Curse is due out in the spring.
Celebrating its career's fifth decade, Blondie still has it. The New York-based outfit's ninth studio album, Panic of Girls, is due stateside Sept. 13. The only remaining original members are Debbie Harry, Chris Stein and drummer extraordinaire Clem Burke.
Panic of Girls opens with a driving beat on the electro-pop number "D-Day." It is a revisit to the warm reggae influenced sound of the chart-topper "Tide Is High" on "The End The End," "Girlie Girlie" and "Sunday Smile." The single-worthy "Love Doesn't Frighten Me" is upbeat with a sing-along chorus, combining rock and keyboards, while "China Shoes" is ready for adult-alternative radio.
Blondie takes to the stage at The House of Blues, 329 N. Dearborn, on Wed., Sept. 7. In previous tours, the New York genre-deviants have saluted The Ramones by doing "Pet Cemetery" and Michael Jackson with "Don't Stop til You Get Enough." Harry currently is involved in the RockStars of Science campaign.
Another enduring favorite is Stevie Nicks. Her latest, In Your Dreams, finds her in top form with timeless tunes. Once the tame introduction on "Moonlight ( In a Vampire's Dream ) " ends, our heroine is at her best over lively guitar chords. The beautiful "Italian Summer" is sweeping with its strings and drums.
The material of Nicks and her legendary band, Fleetwood Mac, has been covered by many. "Everywhere" has been redone by Chaka Khan and club outfit LnM Projekt with Bonnie Bailey on vocals. Oh his latest Ordinary Alien, Boy George remakes "Go Your Own Way." Glee dedicated an episode to the magnificent opus Rumors. Plus the show's lesbian character serenaded her friend with "Landslide" in another episode. The Irish family group The Coors had done a version of "Dreams."
Club-ready spins of Nicks and Fleetwood Mac's catalog have been popping up on dance label Centaur's compilations Fortitude Weekend and the Party Groove series Gay Days Volume 7, Pride 10 and 11 and Cherry Volume 4. There are "Rumors" that a proper collection full of Nicks and Fleetwood Mac covers will be out this fall on Centaur. Keep an eye out for this set on www.theoutclub.com .
Need more of Fleetwood Mac? Lindsey Buckingham has a show on Sunday, Sept. 18 at The Vic Theatre, 3145 N. Sheffield.
Dave Stewart of Eurythmics fame teams with Nicks on her album In Your Dreams. The track "Cheaper Than Free" also appears on his outing The Blackbird Diaries. On his effort, Martina McBride, Colbie Caillat and The Secret Sisters cameo on "All Messed Up," "One Way Ticket to the Moon" and "Bulletproof Vest" respectively. Stewart offers Eric Clapton-worthy bluesy rock on "Beast Called Fame" and has the dark western ballad "The Well."
The double-disc The Dave Stewart Songbook: Volume 1 was released in 2008. Here, his collaborations with greats like Sinead O'Connor, Shakespears Sister, Tom Petty, Sarah McLachlan and, of course, Eurythmics are celebrated. After working on the Alfie soundtrack together, Stewart is reuniting with Mick Jagger to form the supergroup SuperHeavy with Joss Stone, Damian Marley and A.R. Rahman.
The Concert for Bangladesh is being re-released but, finally, digitally. This time around, the groundbreaking event is providing aid to Africa via the George Harrison Fund for UNICEF. On Aug. 1, 1971, a roster of A-list musicians united at Madison Square Garden for this cause, spearheaded by the late George Harrison. Clapton, Ringo Starr, Leon Russell and Bad Finger are present, but gay soul-rocker Billy Preston steals the show with "That's the Way God Planned It." Prior to the actual concert, it was unsure whether Bob Dylan would actually perform, but he comes through with numbers like "Blowin' in the Wind" and "Just Like a Woman." The Concert for Bangladesh is available now on iTunes.
Out and proud Christian artist Shawn Thomas breaks out of the habit of performing only in places of worship as his Live & Unashamed show comes to The Skokie Theatre, 7924 N. Lincoln, Skokie, on Sunday, Aug. 28. Thomas's double-disc set, Covered and Created, combines pop ( "You Don't Have to Do This Alone" ) , dance ( "Hands Up" ) and contemporary Christian ( "The Lion and the Lamb" ) . Covered and Created opens with his rendition of Cher's "Different Kind of Love Song." The album's lead single, a dance take on Mariah Carey's megahit "Hero," is a free download at www.shawnthomasonline.com .