Finally, some decent music in the shops. We look at a must-have best-of set, an offering from Beyoncé's kid sister and the reunion effort of one our favourite bands:
—Forth by The Verve: The Verve were always temperamental, so it was no surprise when they split for the second time in 1999, after releasing the brilliant Urban Hymns.
But neither of the band's two creative forces, Nick McCabe and Richard Ashcroft, came near the group's success while out solo, and they announced a reunion tour and album last year.
Sadly, Forth is not as good as anything that's gone before. It's not really a failure, just a little frustrating. There are anthemic moments to match their most grandiose (I See Houses is particularly moving) and Love Is Noise, while a peculiar choice as comeback single, is a grower.
But there's something missing, perhaps the cocksure swagger we associate with the band, or the aggression and intensity of their first two albums. Let's hope they stay together long enough this time to right that feeling.
—The Essential by Leonard Cohen: His unexpected return to touring has reminded people just how special Leonard Cohen is.
Wise, world-weary, witty, his undeserved reputation for miserablism obscured a poet haunted by the holiness of love and the obscenity of faith, and a voice that said you were listening to a man who'd suffered with the best.
This two-CD set could be accused of playing slightly safe in its selections, but any compilation would have had its omissions; Cohen has had very few duds in his long career, and none are here. Essential indeed.
—Sol-Angel and The Hadley Street Dreams by Solange: Like big sis Beyoncé, it seems Solange isn't really an albums act: there's an awful lot of midtempo filler here, but where Beyoncé would have rendered it actively annoying with various shows of vocal prowess for prowess' sake, Solange is wisely content to let it bubble along in a pleasant, seventies-soul-and-funk-inspired background. Like Beyoncé, when Solange is good she's wonderful – Sandcastle Blues and retro lead single I Decided are both delightful summer pop. One day she'll release a Best Of.