SOUND CHECK.

VARIOUS: ``Rockin' Bones: 1950s Punk & Rockability'' (Rhino) - Three and one half stars

Rhino's latest box can be seen as something of a sequel to 1999's ``Loud, Fast & Out of Control,'' though this four-disc set's aim is narrower, culling 101 pure rockabilly rave-ups recorded from 1954 to 1969. Well-known songs from Elvis, Gene Vincent, Carl Perkins and Buddy Holly are included, but the set's appeal comes from its rarities from no-hit wonders, 35 of which are making their U.S. debut on CD. Shrieking and shredding, rockin' and wailin', these raw tracks capture the sometimes bizarre and always intense energy of musicians laying down their lives on pieces of plastic. Pure rock 'n' roll doesn't come any finer.

-- Glenn Whipp

FRED J. EAGLESMITH: ``Milly's Cafe'' (A Major Label) - Three stars

Genuine Canadian farm boy Eaglesmith has long been a chronicler of country lives losing ground, and this latest collection is no different. Droughts, long-haul trucker loneliness, nursing-home cowboys, the title small-town waitress off on a robbery spree with her no-good boyfriend and, of course, that faded love -- the loyal fan base known as Fredheads have another soundtrack for their antidepressant hoedowns. It would all be too sad if Eaglesmith weren't such an evocative writer and if his verge-of-a-breakdown voice didn't convey the most dramatic and poignant emotional shadings.

-- Bob Strauss

JOANNA: ``This Crazy Life'' (Geffen) - Two stars

She's got a powerful voice, for sure. Unfortunately this former ``Annie,'' who taped her debut album as the world watched on MTV's ``True Life'' series, is indistinguishable from other pop divas. Her album is not just overly produced, but it's full of sentimental ballads and pop-rock anthems, the kind with big, sweeping choruses, as in the single ``Let It Slide.'' About all that distinguishes one formulaic song from another are little embellishments like children's voices (``Ultraviolet''), or chirping crickets and southern rock guitar (``Let Go''). And just when you thought you'd stumbled onto the lone standout track -- a cover of Dashboard Confessional's ``Screaming Infidelities'' -- the chorus kicks in. Here we go again. Gorgeous voice or not, Joanna is really nothing very special.

-- Sandra Barrera

WORLD SAXOPHONE QUARTET: ``Political Blues'' (Justin Time) - Three and one half stars

The jazz companion to Neil Young's ``Living With War,'' this blistering album rings with the same kind of provocative passion and genius that infused Charles Mingus' great Atlantic albums. Founders David Murray, Oliver Lake and Hamiet Bluiett and guests draw on gospel, funk and blues to lay out their potent protests over the Bush administration's failings in Iraq and New Orleans. And just for fun, guest guitarist James ``Blood'' Ulmer delivers an excoriating version of Muddy Waters' ``Mannish Boy.'' Powerful stuff.

-- G.W.

SOUNDTRACK: ``Snakes on a Plane: The Album'' (Decaydance/New Line) - Three stars

The most ridiculous movie premise since ``The English Patient'' has shed a catchy little soundtrack. The 16-track disc slithers out of its nest with real bite in the shape of title track ``Snakes on a Plane (Bring It!),'' a roaring dance-punk item by an aggregation calling itself Cobra Starship. A second noteworthy moment comes from Gnarls Barkley's Cee-Lo, who drops the snakey dance track ``Ophidiophobia.'' Assembled by Pete Wentz of Fall Out Boy, which happens to be Samuel L. Jackson's favorite rock group, the disc also features remixes of tracks from Panic! At the Disco, All-American Rejects and Fall Out Boy. In stores Tuesday.

-- Fred Shuster

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(1) no caption (``Rockin' Bones: 1950s Punk & Rockability'')

(2 -- 5) no caption (CD covers)