Runs in the family

Jakob Dylan

Did Jakob Dylan have any choice about becoming a musician like his father Bob? Was it written in his DNA?

Success didn’t come immediately for Jakob and his band The Wallflowers, but they didn’t have to wait long. T-Bone Burnett produced their second album, 1996’s “Bringing Down The Horse,” providing them with their first hits, including “One Headlight” and “6th Avenue Heartache.” Even though the three albums that followed were decent, they didn’t provide hits on the same level.

The Wallflowers’ retrospective “Collection 1996-2005” (Interscope) collects 14 of their most popular tunes and tosses in a couple of previously unreleased tracks for good measure.

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Hipster parade

“Album”

This new release from Girls (True Panther Sounds/Fantasy Trashcan) adds some vibrant colors to the hipster palette. A male duo, Girls breathes much-needed life into the California sound, reviving and renewing it. The bright and bratty “Lust For Life” kicks things off and is followed by the refueled retro of “Laura” and “Ghost Mouth.” The squealing surf of “Big Bad Mean Motherfucker” repeatedly kicks sand in the listener’s face before it comes to an abrupt halt.

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Music reviews

“Animal”

That didn’t take long! The first of the Lady Gaga imitators, the (low) classy Ke$ha (who “threw up in the closet,” but doesn’t care, according to the song “Party At A Rich Dude’s House”) has arrived to try to swipe the mirror ball crown from La Gaga’s head. Stir in the worst aspects of Katy Perry and you have Ke$ha’s debut album from RCA/Kemosabe.

Swede-pop beats and subhuman suburban tales of bad behavior (“Tik Tok,” “Take It Off,” “Ki$$ N Tell,” “Blah Blah Blah,” Hung Over” and “Boots & Boys”) fuel these mainly club-crafted tracks. Gays had a hand in putting Lady Gaga over the top and will probably play a part in Ke$ha’s rise. No doubt she’ll be huge.

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New releases

“Dolly”

I recently saw a 1978 interview with the late Dusty Springfield in which she called herself “the Dolly Parton of the ’60s,” referring to her piled-up blonde hair and elaborate makeup techniques. It was one icon acknowledging another, with respect.

In the more than 30 years since that interview, Dolly Parton has surpassed her own iconic status to become a living legend, with countless accolades to her credit. The four-disc box set “Dolly” (RCA Nashville/Legacy) includes 99 tracks and spans a period of more than 40 years. Among the gems are such beloved Parton classics as “Just Because I’m A Woman,” “Down From Dover” (recently covered by Marianne Faithfull), “Coat of Many Colors,” “My Tennessee Mountain Home,” “Jolene,” “I Will Always Love You,” “The Seeker,” “Light of A Clear Blue Morning,” “Here You Come Again,” “Two Doors Down,” “Baby I’m Burnin’” (her disco hit). “9 to 5”
and the Kenny Rogers duet “Islands In The Stream.” The set also includes previously unreleased tracks and much more.

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