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Between his various standards albums of the '90s and the heavily collaborational Anutha Zone from 1998, by the end of the millennium it'd been nearly a decade since Dr. John's last record of straight-ahead New Orleans R&B. Creole Moon rectifies that situation nicely - it's "a personal interpretation of New Orleans" (as he says in the liner notes), and these 14 vignettes of New Orleans life are soaked in Crescent City soul. Creole Moon is also a return to the sound of his classic mid-'70s records (Dr. John's Gumbo, In the Right Place), right from the spidery electric piano and testifying back-up vocals on the opener "You Swore." Most of his band, the Lower 9-11 Musician Vocaleers, have been playing with him for close to 20 years, and provide solid accompaniment…

Dr. John has recorded many great albums, but it's difficult to argue with such a perfect distillation of his catchy, grooving, slapdash pop work as this Rhino set. Coming out of the R&B studio subculture of New Orleans, the former Mac Rebennack possessed songwriting smarts and reams of recording expertise, each of which had reached their peak by the early '70s. Focused squarely on that prime era, 1970 through 1974, the collection begins with his only Top Ten hit, 1973's irrepressibly fatalistic "Right Place, Wrong Time." Two others come from his best album (1973's In the Right Place), the jaunty "Such a Night" and "Qualified." 1972's Dr. John's Gumbo also rates three tracks: the New Orleans classics "Iko Iko" and "Tipitina," plus "Junko Partner." The compilers were also wise to choose three songs from Gris-Gris, his unjustly neglected psychedelic debut, including "Mama Roux" and "I Walk on Guilded Splinters" (but unfortunately, not the glorious "Gris-Gris Gumbo Ya Ya"). A version of Jimmy Liggins' jump-blues classic "Honeydripper," from 1981's Dr. John Plays Mac Rebennack, spotlights his sparkling boogie-woogie piano, and the set closes with a pair of standards from his latter-day Warner Bros. years (one of which is the unofficial Mardi Gras theme "Goin' Back to New Orleans"). Whether it's for a first listen or the perfect road-trip disc, The Very Best of Dr. John has all of the New Orleans master's best recordings in one spot.

Recorded in 1995 with Germany's WDR Big Band, the album features 16 tracks with over 60 minutes of music including an a bonus track on the CD only. Dr. John arguably has never sounded better. Hisvocals are crisp and clear and joyful, as if he turned back the clock toanother time and to a jubilant state of mind.

This 40-song assortment will definitely appease those who want a hefty one-stop of Dr. Hook's best material, but it also makes for a worthy summation of the band's career. All but the last two of Dr. Hook's Top 40 singles appear here, led by "Sylvia's Mother," "The Cover of the Rolling Stone," and "Only Sixteen," while excluding later efforts like "Girls Can Get It" and "Baby Makes Her Blue Jeans Talk." All of their second-bests are also present, including fan favorites such as "More Like the Movies," "The Radio," "Jungle to the Zoo," and "On the Way to the Bottom." Their absurd lean toward rock & roll throughout the '70s is well-covered in songs like "I Got Stoned and I Missed It," "Bad Eye Bill," "You Make My Pants Want to Get Up And Dance," "Walk Right In"…

Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show (shortened to Dr. Hook in 1975) was an American rock band, formed in Union City, New Jersey. They enjoyed considerable commercial success in the 1970s with hit singles including "Sylvia's Mother", "The Cover of 'Rolling Stone'" (both 1972), "Only Sixteen" (1975), "A Little Bit More" (1976), "Sharing the Night Together" (1978), "When You're in Love with a Beautiful Woman" (1979), "Better Love Next Time" (1979), and "Sexy Eyes" (1980). In addition to their own material, Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show performed songs written by the poet Shel Silverstein…

Unlike his In a Sentimental Mood, which swung wildly from Tin Pan Alley standards to supper-club blues, Afterglow is mostly interested in recapturing the late '40s and early '50s, when jazz, blues, and pop intersected with sophisticated ease. The choice of material is impeccable–songs made popular by Nat "King" Cole, Louis Jordan, and Duke Ellington–and the playing is superb throughout. However, "Ain't I Been Good to You," "Just a Lucky So and So," and a stark read of "I'm Confessin'" are particularly effective. And on his original, "I Still Believe in You," Dr. John proves just how influenced he is by West Coast blues legend Charles Brown, who once recorded at Cosimo Matassa's studio where the future Night Tripper got his start.