Carcere Amori Bestiali (1994) Riccardo Schicchi, Ilona Staller, Rocco Siffredi, Miss Pomodoro, Adult

Turbulent, fanciful, and intensely intimate, Schumann's D Minor and F Major piano trios burst with creative energy. This album explores the inner worlds of colour and texture that can only be found in the iridescent pianos from Schumann's time - in this case, an 1830 Streicher. The members of Trio Ilona combine a thorough study of Schumann-circle performance practices, a deep grasp of Schumann's compositional language tied to the art of improvisation, and a shared interest in Schumann's irresistible musical depictions of the otherworldly and the sublime.

Raymond Leppard's recording … has remained for me the benchmark against which other recordings are measured … Janet Baker sings brilliantly as Ariodante. She flies through the coloratura with ease and presents a complete portrayal of the title character … Edith Mathis is a strong Ginevra, beautifully sung. We easily believe that she has the strength to resist Polinesso but is vulnerable enough to despair at the unjust accusations leveled against her … And with Samuel Ramey in his prime we have an excellent King of Scotland.

Balancing mainstream adult pop, grittier rock, and the poetic influence of childhood idols Patti Smith and Kate Bush, Bermuda native Heather Nova charted in the U.K. and the U.S. with her first worldwide release, 1994's Oyster.

A spotty but basically worthwhile three-disc set, Collectables' 1966-1967 Unreleased Masters Collection scours the International Artists vault for previously unreleased songs, alternate takes, rehearsals, and demos of songs that appeared on The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators and Easter Everywhere, and a couple of live cuts for good measure…

Live aus dem Cascade Beat Club in Köln is one of the rarest albums by a hit British Invasion band released near the peak of its popularity. Its existence is unknown even to most Swinging Blue Jeans fans, and the material doesn't even appear on the otherwise thorough four-CD set of their 1960s recordings, Good Golly, Miss Molly! The EMI Years 1963-1969…

On Universal Mother, Sinéad O'Connor tells us more about herself than we probably should know. It's record making as therapy, the byproduct of feelings still only half worked out, a bundle of self-revelations left suspended, twisting in the wind. It wobbles between being an awful record and a remarkable one, and maybe that's why it works: It swings so wildly that it never sinks into that deathly muddy middle ground.