Here are the week's best releases from the pop-culture universe:
by Michael GallucciTV -- CMT Crossroads: The latest edition of CMT's pop-meets-country program (airing at 9 p.m. Saturday) features Lindsey Buckingham performing with Little Big Town. The collaboration isn't as obvious as past shows (Ryan Adams and Elton John, Lucinda Williams and Elvis Costello), but the Fleetwood Mac guitarist's finger-picking skills mesh nicely with the country traditionalists.
CD -- Hysteria: Deluxe Edition: Def Leppard's 1987 album sold a gazillion copies and spawned six hit singles. This two-disc revisit boasts 15 additional tracks, including live cuts and studio B-sides. The "Rock of Ages" medley -- which includes covers of "My Generation," "Whole Lotta Love," and other classics -- shows off the guys' chops, but it's the extended remix of "Pour Some Sugar on Me" that has us fired up.
BOOK -- One Train Later: A Memoir: Former Police guitarist Andy Summers' biography is a surprisingly captivating read, detailing every breath he and his bandmates took during their nine-year run. There's plenty of sex and drugs, as well as rampant egos (we're looking at you, Sting), but the heart of the tale is Summers' lifelong love affair with music.
CD -- Perception: To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Doors' inception, all six of their studio albums are expanded in this hefty 12-disc box. The original records -- plus outtakes, demos, and live tunes -- are paired with vintage videos and spiffy new surround-sound mixes of the albums.
DVD -- Van Morrison -- Live at Montreux 1974/1980: Morrison's first-ever DVD gathers two complete concerts from the famed Swiss stage. While the earlier set is raggedly charming and bluesier than many of his performances at the time, the 1980 show kills with restructured versions of classics like "Wavelength," "Tupelo Honey," and "Moondance."
COURTESY FLUSH, PLEASE -- The Librarian: Return to King Solomon's Mines: This TNT movie (airing at 8 p.m. Sunday) requires the audience to suspend disbelief long enough to imagine ER's Noah Wyle as an action hero. Can't be done. Granted, Dr. Carter is supposed to be a newfangled action hero (one who has 22 academic degrees, rather than bulging biceps), but does he have to be so boring? The Librarian is sorta like Raiders of the Lost Ark -- except as a book on tape. Yawn.
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