New and Upcoming Albums Available Only at Barnes & Noble

Silver Lining: The Music of Jerome Kern, by Tony Bennett
Tony Bennett, who could be very accurately described as a living legend, made a career out of singing jazzy showtunes, so it’s only natural that he’d turn his attention to the music of composer Jerome Kern, one of the fathers of modern musical theatre. In this double LP, Bennett pays tribute to Kern by performing 14 of his songs with pianist Bill Charlap. Since Kern was primarily a composer, he didn’t write lyrics for his songs, but he did collaborate with some of the best American songwriters of his era, including Johnny Mercer, Ira Gershwin, and Oscar Hammerstein III, all of whom are honored on this album. As one might expect, Tony knocks every song out of the park, especially “I’m Old Fashioned” and “The Last Time I Saw Paris.”

Family Christmas, by the Piano Guys
The Piano Guys—Jon Schmidt, Steven Sharp Nelson, Paul Anderson, and Al van der Beek—made their name on YouTube, where their piano-and-cello arrangements of pop songs won them millions of subscribers and billions of views, and eventually a deal with Sony. Family Christmas is one of the many fruits of that signing, and has the Piano Guys taking on a mix of traditional holiday songs and their own compositions/arrangements. As it turns out, they’re equally adept at both, making this a fun, upbeat holiday album and a perfect soundtrack to opening presents on Christmas morning. In fact, the song “Christmas Morning” is one of this album’s many highlights.

The Essential Dave Brubeck, by Dave Brubeck
A pioneer of “cool jazz,” Dave Brubeck created classically-infused compositions, sharp improvisational abilities, and use of unorthodox time signatures and tonalities that made him a jazz legend, which you can hear for yourself on this 31-track compilation of his best work. Even if Brubeck’s name isn’t one you immediately recognize, some of his songs (like “Take Five” and the theme from Mr. Broadway) are almost ubiquitous, and are good examples of the man’s talents. Even at its most weird, Brubeck’s music is smooth and relaxed, which makes it more approachable to casual listeners than the harder bebop style he was countering.

Essential Elvis Presley, by Elvis Presley
This greatest-hits compilation, originally released in 2007, is being pressed onto vinyl exclusively for Barnes & Noble, and just in time for what would have been the King’s 80th birthday. Essential Elvis Presley is a comprehensive, two-disc set that spans a pretty wide arc of Elvis’ career, from his beginnings as a rockabilly singer, to his ascent and the peak of his stardom, to his comeback, and finally to his Las Vegas years. Over two discs and 39 tracks, you hear Elvis transition from rebellious rock ‘n roller to legitimate pop star and then pop music elder, and you also hear his voice bloom into full maturity; the Elvis that sang “Hurt” in the 1970s is much different that the one who sang “Blue Moon of Kentucky” in the 1950s.

Blacklisted, by Neko Case
Originally released in 2002, this album—Neko’s third—is being pressed onto limited edition orange vinyl exclusively for Barnes & Noble. This album features some of Neko’s best songs, including “I Wish I Was the Moon,” “Pretty Girls,” and “Deep Red Bells,” an enchanting ballad about growing up in Tacoma during the Green River Killer’s string of murders. Other highlights include the noirish “Look For Me (I’ll Be Around)” and the abstract, bluegrass-tinged “Things That Scare Me,” and really every song on this album is pure dynamite because they all feature Neko’s once-a-generation voice; dusky, versatile, and packed full of emotion without being saccharine.