Us Weekly From 17 August 2015

Last time Nellie McKay took a stroll through the past, she doffed her hat at Doris Day, an obvious tribute for a singer as besotted with the stage as Ms. McKay. My Weekly Reader, the album that functions as the sequel to 2010's all-original Home Sweet Mobile Home, is a surprise as it shines a spotlight directly on some of the shadowy corners of the '60s. Despite opening with a cover of the Kinks' "Sunny Afternoon" and a leisurely reading of the Beatles' "If I Fell," McKay doesn't spend much time with the familiar.

Year 2015 marks the 150th Anniversary of the birth of Jean Sibelius (1865–1957), often entitled 'Finland’s national composer'. The fourth album on Ondine by the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir is dedicated to the complete works for mixed choir by Jean Sibelius. The award-winning choir, one of the finest of its kind internationally, is conducted here by one of the leading Finnish choir directors, Heikki Seppänen, who has conducted a large number of professional choirs in Finland and abroad. The Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir’s releases on Ondine have been a critical success: the first release was given an ‘Editor’s Choice’ by the Gramophone Magazine and ‘Disc of the Year’ by the renowned German weekly Die Zeit.

Smoke + Mirrors is the second studio album by American rock band Imagine Dragons. The album was recorded during 2014 at the band's home studio in Las Vegas, Nevada. Self-produced by members of the band along with English hip-hop producer Alexander Grant, known by his moniker Alex da Kid, the album was released by Interscope Records and Grant's KIDinaKORNER label on February 17, 2015, in the United States.

"Stoney End" is the 12th studio album by Barbra Streisand. It was produced by Richard Perry. Released in 1971, it was a change in direction for Streisand with a more upbeat contemporary pop sound. The album hit #10 on the Billboard Top 200, where it was certified Platinum with sales of 1 million copies. In the UK the album entered the chart at #28. The album has sold 1,5 million copies worldwide. The title track, a Laura Nyro composition previously recorded by Peggy Lipton (#121 on Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles in 1968), was released in the US and charted at #6 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #2 on the Adult Contemporary chart and also reached #27 on the UK singles chart. "Time and Love" reached #51 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #3 on the AC Chart. "Hands Off the Man", the final single, was officially titled "Flim Flam Man" (and backed with "Maybe"). It spent 5 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at 82.