2002 Band

The band that eventually became the Children began life as a pair of competing garage combos on the often-overlooked San Antonio rock circuit in 1965. The Stoics came together in the spring of that year. Guitarists William Ash and Rufus Quillian were upper-middle-class kids while singer Al Acosta, drummer Sam Allen, and bass player Michel Marechal all came from the city's predominantly Hispanic northeast side…

The Dave Matthews Band may not have released the Lillywhite Sessions – the semi-legendary soul-searching album recorded in 2000 but abandoned in favor of the heavy-handed, laborious Glen Ballard-produced Everyday – but they couldn't escape its shadow. Every review, every article surrounding the release of Everyday mentioned it, often claiming it was better than the released project – an opinion the band seemed to support by playing many numbers from the widely bootlegged lost album on tour in 2001. Since they couldn't run away from the Lillywhite Sessions, they decided to embrace it, albeit on their own terms. They didn't just release the album, as is. They picked nine of the best songs from the sessions, reworked some of them a bit, tinkered with the lyrics, re-recorded the tunes with a different producer (Stephen Harris, a veteran of post-Brit-pop bands like the Bluetones, plus engineer on U2's All That You Can't Leave Behind), added two new songs, and came up with Busted Stuff, a polished commercial spin on music widely considered the darkest, most revealing work Matthews has yet created.

As he gained more and more respect and critical recognition in the early years of the 21st century, Dave Holland took a leap and expanded his music outward into a big band format. The word "expanded" is key here, for what Holland has mostly done on What Goes Around is send his quintet format through an expansion process, where there are more pieces in the puzzle, yet the same overall conception of sound remains. All but one of the pieces here are rewrites of earlier, previously recorded selections, dating from 1983 all the way to 2000. All of the charts are composed with a sureness and a grounding in tradition that belies the fact that this is Holland's first big band album.

For his 2001 All-Star Band outing – his fourth captured on album – Ringo Starr is joined by fellow old-timers like bassist Greg Lake, Ian Hunter on guitars, Sheila E., Howard Jones, and Supertramp's Roger Hodgson (who contributes three songs, with the rest relegated to a single track apiece). It's an eclectic group, but all deliver fine, if predictable, readings of their biggest hits, with Sheila E.'s ten-minute version of her "Glamorous Life" a concert and album highlight.

For his first solo project after replacing Dickie Betts in the Allman Brothers Band, 23-year-old Derek Trucks pushes the stylistic envelope even further than on his last diverse release. Prodding into Latin, Indian, and fusion jazz, this stylistically varied effort exudes enough blues and funky R&B to keep the Allman Brothers Band fan's attention while expanding their boundaries – sometimes radically – beyond what the typical Southern rock fan might expect or even tolerate. It's a brave and largely successful experiment, due in part to the vocals of his guest stars, since Trucks himself does not sing. Opening with the title track, a funky Meters-style bubbler that employs a gospel chorus to frame Trucks' searing slide work, it sounds like the guitarist is working within borders he established on his two previous albums.

The rare 1970 album from obscure UK rock band Someones Band. Acoustic guitars meet wild electric guitar solos with a vocalist reminiscent of Steamhammer's Kieran White. Bluesy with a spacey production this should appeal to fans of 60s UK blues and heavy 70s progressive UK rock. Eleven tracks including "Blues For Brother E" and "Manhunt". This group got together via word of mouth and an advert in Melody Maker. They made a demo for Decca, who then sanctioned this album, which is now a monster rarity. Given that it was recorded in the course of a single night, it's a surprisingly polished and varied collection of progessive blues and soul. Also the influence of jazz, funk and African music is evident. Acoustic guitars meet wild electric guitar solos with a bluesy vocalist.

For his 2001 All-Star Band outing – his fourth captured on album – Ringo Starr is joined by fellow old-timers like bassist Greg Lake, Ian Hunter on guitars, Sheila E., Howard Jones, and Supertramp's Roger Hodgson (who contributes three songs, with the rest relegated to a single track apiece)…

Having made several changes in their business and musical efforts in 1972, Grand Funk Railroad made even more extensive ones in 1973, beginning with their name, which was officially truncated to "Grand Funk." And keyboardist Craig Frost, credited as a sideman on Phoenix, the previous album, was now a full-fledged bandmember, filling out the musical arrangements. The most notable change, however, came with the hiring of Todd Rundgren to produce the band's eighth album. Rundgren, a pop/rock artist in his own right, was also known for his producing abilities, and he gave Grand Funk exactly what they were looking for: We're an American Band sounded nothing like its muddy, plodding predecessors.

Combining the Sensational Alex Harvey Band's third and fourth albums, The Impossible Dream and Tomorrow Belongs To Me, offers perhaps the archetypal vision of Alex Harvey, as his long-nurtured alter-ego, the comic book hero Vambo, finally burst out of imagination to take on a life of his own on stages across the world. Yet what would become the group's most successful albums also stand as their patchiest.