A Lighter Shade of Blue

For the past few years, Cherry Red imprint Morello Records has been reissuing the Epic Records catalog of county legend Tammy Wynette on a series of twofers (or more). With its latest release, out now, Morello is taking a look at the late 1960s and early 1970s with a 2-CD set featuring the four albums The Ways To Love a Man, Tammy's Touch, My Elusive Dreams and Inspiration.

Shelby Lynne's early career on Epic Records frustrated fans of her rich, soulful contralto because, though she placed three albums and nine singles in the country charts between 1988 and 1991, she never scored the big hit needed to propel her to star status. Not all collections are hit oriented, of course, but Epic Recordings makes a particular point of second-guessing Epic's singles choices.

Less is more with Ultimate… Acoustic, 68 stripped back tracks across 4 CDs. Shakira, Kansas, Leona Lewis, Jeff Buckley, The Byrds, Hurts and many others.

Steve Vai played with a wide variety of acts during the '80s – Frank Zappa, David Lee Roth, John Lydon's PIL, and Whitesnake, among others – as he became one of rock's most sought-after hired guns. In addition, Vai launched his own solo career, which come the '90s would be his sole career focus. The 2003 double-disc set Infinite Steve Vai: An Anthology is comprised almost entirely of Vai's solo work (save for a Whitesnake song, "Kitten's Got Claws," and one by the obscure outfit Alcatrazz, "Lighter Shade of Green").