Smokey Robinson Solo Album

One of the most gifted, visionary, and enduring talents ever launched into orbit by the Motown hit machine, Marvin Gaye blazed the trail for the continued evolution of popular black music. Moving from lean, powerful R&B to stylish, sophisticated soul to finally arrive at an intensely political and personal form of artistic self-expression, his work not only redefined soul music as a creative force but also expanded its impact as an agent for social change.

There is no rock star greater than Mick Jagger. There are plenty other as great, but nobody eclipses Mick in terms of art and influence, as he virtually created the modern-day rock & roll rebel. Given that, why is it that almost nobody takes his solo recordings seriously? Even his longtime partner Keith Richards is quoted on record calling Jagger's 2001 album Goddess in the Doorway "Dogsh*t in the doorway," a tacit signal that all the dismissive reviews of Jagger's solo stuff were not only justified, but appropriate – a judgment that may be a bit extreme, but in a way it's understandable, because Jagger's solo recordings showcased his least lovable aspects, particularly his relentless social climbing and obsession with style…

Thanks to their fine-tuned choreography and even finer harmonies The Temptations became the definitive male vocal group of the 1960s; one of Motown's most elastic acts, they tackled both lush pop and politically charged funk with equal flair, and weathered a steady stream of changes in personnel and consumer tastes with rare dignity and grace. The Temptations' initial five-man lineup formed in Detroit in 1961 as a merger of two local vocal groups, the Primes and the Distants. Baritone Otis Williams, Elbridge (aka El, or Al) Bryant, and bass vocalist Melvin Franklin were longtime veterans of the Detroit music scene when they joined together in the Distants, who in 1959 recorded the single "Come On" for the local Northern label.

The Temptations - Get Ready - The Definitive Performances 1965-1972 features for the first time on DVD, 16 classic full-length performances from American television appearances during Motown's golden era. This is the first official DVD anthology of classic archival television performances by one of the most successful singing groups of all time. Beginning with a stunning 1965 performance of "The Way You Do the Things You Do" and concluding with the epic "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone," filmed in concert in September of 1972 (two weeks befor it debuted on the charts), this DVD includes a wealth of vintage performances with re-mastered sound and video.

Although Japan later became one of new romantics' poster children, their 1978 Adolescent Sex LP predated the movement by two years. A remarkable debut, the set snarls with leftover punk intent, a few glam rock riffs, and a wealth of electronics that not only reach back to the band's youth, but also predate much of what would explode out of the next wave of British underground. Sounding absolutely nothing like MTV's mainstream Japan, the quintet snarls across the opener "Transmission," all snotty lads and frazzled hair, setting the stage for what follows…