The Sopranos - Peppers & Eggs: Music from the HBO Series

Buy this or else! Includes Every Breath You Take/Theme from Peter Gunn (Mr. Ruggerio's mix) Police/Henry Mancini; My Lover's Prayers Otis Redding; Black Book Nils Lofgren; Baubles, Bangles and Beads Frank Sinatra; Thru and Thru Rolling Stones; Living on a Thin Line Kinks; I Who Have Nothing Ben E. King; Return to Me Bob Dylan; Gloria Van Morrison, and more.

The Sopranos have become considerably more than just the average psychically tortured New Jersey mob family next door. HBO's innovative, if distinctly murderous soap opera has become a modern cultural icon, one whose innovative pop music score is almost an equal supporting cast member. The term dizzying has been overused in describing strong soundtrack collections, but it just might not do this second volume of Sopranos music justice. Show creator David Chase, director Martin Bruestle, and executive producer Brad Grey are credited with this rich, cross-genre, multigenerational collection, but they tellingly thank a few score others. The contributions from usual suspect vets like Frank Sinatra, Dylan, Elvis Costello, Otis Redding, Van Morrison, the Kinks, Keith Richards (and the Stones), the Pretenders, and Ben E. King contain more than their fair share of musical and contextual surprises. But the collection's true appeal lies in its artistically oblique corners, which somehow embrace alt-rock (R&B tinged and straight up, courtesy of Pigeonhed and Cake, respectively), nouveau Aussie country (Kasey Chambers), traditional gospel and swampy blues (the Campbell Brothers with Katie Jackson, R.L. Burnside), Vivaldi (Cecilia Di Bartoli), and contemporary Neopolitan pop (Madreblu, Lorenzo Jovanotti). Even budding star Uncle Junior chimes in, with Dominic "Goldenthroat" Chianese lending a spare, heartfelt rendition of the traditional "Core'ngrato"; hang onto your kneecaps, 'N Sync! --Jerry McCulley