SOUND CHECK : BING CROSBY/``BING'S GOLD RECORDS''.

Between the years 1937 and 1950, Bing Crosby racked up 21 No. 1 hits for Decca, a string that has never been surpassed. All of those original recordings have been collected on this nicely annotated set, which places the ever adaptable crooner in an endless variety of settings: putting on the green with the Irish ballad ``Too-Ra-Loo-Ra-Loo-Ral (That's an Irish Lullabye)''; cowpoking around ``Don't Fence Me In'' with the Andrews Sisters; gently swinging the marching tune ``MacNamara's Band''; and, most effectively, accompanied only by Carmen Cavallaro's piano and a rhythm section, delivering a romantic ``I Can't Begin to Tell You.'' Ba-ba-Bing

three stars

?13- Terry Lawson

Detroit Free Press 

Various/``Crime Jazz: Music in the First Degree'' and ``Crime Jazz: Music in the Second Degree''

Contracted for a hit or maybe just a little arson, but can't seem to get in a properly malignant mood? Simply pick up one of these smoky little scene setters, slide it in the CD player, pour one neat and wait for inspiration - or perhaps arrest: When Count Basie's theme for the gritty 1950s cop drama ``M Squad'' came blowing out of my speakers, I was ready to turn myself in for a shoplifting incident from my youth. Although these two volumes of music associated with television crime shows and film noirs are hardly the first of their kind, they are the first to acknowledge the symbiotic relationship between the black-and-white bluster of crime drama and those blaring trombones and tympanies that defined benchmark themes such as ``Peter Gunn,'' (heard here in the Quincy Jones arrangement rendered immortal by countless high school pep bands) and Elmer Bernstein's scores for ``The Man With the Golden Arm'' and ``Sweet Smell of Success.'' The major suspects - ``Touch of Evil,'' ``Perry Mason Theme'' - are mostly accounted for, but licensing problems mean that Duke Ellington's groundbreaking score for ``Anatomy of a Murder'' is still at large. Three stars

?13- T.L.

Detroit Free Press

The Blasters/``American Music''

Forget roots rock. The Blasters were one of the best bands of any style to emerge in the early '80s, though they never achieved the success they deserved. This is a reissue of their ultra-rare first album, with six extra tracks as a bonus. The Blasters got even better, but all the elements of their greatness are evident on this low-budget affair. They display a firm grasp of rockabilly, blues and r&b, and they play it all with lethal, punkish energy. Phil Alvin sings in a distinctive, piercing tenor, while brother Dave contributes brilliantly concise songs that often sound like instant classics, especially the rallying-cry title track and ``Marie Marie,'' which became group staples. Two and one half stars

?13- Nick Cristiano

Philadelphia Inquirer

Bryan Adams/``MTV Unplugged''

Once you've heard Adams rasping his way through tired anthems and sappy new arena-style ballads that MTV now avoids, you know that the unplugged format is through. One could argue that Adams wants to show how broad his (actually tiny) palette is with this release, but if he wanted to do that he'd dig up obscure greats (yes, even Adams has some) like ``This Time'' or ``Victim of Love.'' More likely he's trying to appear hip; most of his recent hits have been more popular with the VH1 crowd. Still, this album is full of wasted opportunities. How about deconstructing ``Run to You'' into a snarling blues number or slowing ``One Night Love Affair'' down to a seductive regret? But that would take an artist of vision and insight. One and a half stars

?13- Ben Wene

Orange County Register

Joey Baron/``Down Home''

Even postmodernists get the blues. Drummer Joey Baron, a favorite of New York's exploratory downtown scene, turns auteur, writing and arranging what essentially is an homage to those irresistible boogaloo dates from the '60s. Baron's sometimes irreverent sense of humor is absent here; the cats play it straight. An inspired Ron Carter lays down the funky bass ostinatos, guitarist Bill Frisell adds the tasty fills (sans his typical delay effects), alto saxophonist Arthur Blythe riffs obliquely and Baron grooves on do-wacka-do rhythms. There's one straight-ahead 4/4 blues number, as well as a couple of moody, angular ballads to add some sophistication to the rent-party atmosphere. Three stars

?13- Mark Stryker

Detroit Free Press

Soundtrack/``Titanic''

``Titanic'' is foremost a love story, and composer James Horner's melodic and majestic score certainly works as a seductive romancer. The marquee value of Celine Dion's love theme, ``My Heart Will Go On,'' is refreshingly understated and will sell CDs, but it's Horner's moving music - using synthesizers, voice and full orchestra - you'll savor. Three stars

?13- Howard Cohen 

Miami Herald

Cockeyed Ghost/``Neverest''

If rock has flat-lined during the past few years, Cockeyed Ghost is here to resuscitate it. The band is perfect for those who like their rock full of good times and smart-alecky wit. The group's sophomore effort, ``Neverest,'' takes its cues from classic '70s rock (minus the megalomania) and the Beach Boys at their most wistful. The fun starts aptly with a song called ``Buzz'' and plateaus even more aptly with the joyful ``Special.'' With a few power chords and a light organ, the track completely captures the intoxication and trepidation of the first flush of romance. ``Neverest'' is slowed by a few sludgy numbers, but the less-inspired songs do not scuttle the album's intent. Cockeyed Ghost could be one of the Southern California bands to watch in 1998. Three stars

?13- Andrew Asch

Orange County Register

Horace Silver/``A Prescription for the Blues''

This CD is almost a Brecker Brothers recording. The brothers, trumpeter Randy and tenor saxophonist Michael, do the front-line horn chores, and they are generally slinky and magnificent on tunes such as ``You Gotta to Shake That Thing.'' Pianist Horace Silver assembles a great rhythm section - bassist Ron Carter and drummer Louis Hayes - and provides a bevy of witty tunes and arrangements that recall his old Art Blakey partnership. There's only one major caveat. Silver plunks the same style of comping over and over. He takes a chord and beats it, changes a note, and beats it some more. If you tune into it, tedium sets in, then boredom. Two and a half stars

?13- Karl Stark

Philadelphia Inquirer

Soundtrack/``Scream 2: Music From the Motion Picture''

It's the soundtrack to a rushed-to-theaters sequel, so it's not surprising that much of ``Scream 2'' would sound like half-baked leftovers from other, better collections. What's amusing is that so much of what's worth hearing here doesn't come from the heavyweight names but from the second-string players. A few of the big guns come through: Dave Matthews tosses in some snaky riffing that puts ``Help Myself'' over the top, old spooky standbys Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds have murderous fun with ``Red Right Hand,'' and the Eels' ``Your Lucky Day in Hell'' is a strong piece of seeping melancholy. But selling points such as Everclear, Collective Soul, Foo Fighters (sounding mysteriously like Eric Matthews), Less Than Jake's obnoxious cover of the Partridge Family's ``I Think I Love You'' and D'Angelo's oddly heavy-handed treatment of Prince's ``She's Always in My Hair'' - well, none is worth more than a few crumpled bills, let alone $15. Two stars

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6 Photos

PHOTO (1) The Blasters' hard-to-find first album, ``American Music,'' from the early 1980s has been re-issued on CD with some song versions added.

(2 -- 6) no caption (record cover art)