TOP PICK
The Rolling Stones 2009 Remasters
(Universal)
These eight albums have been reissued on CD before, but they're among the greatest rock records ever made. Sticky Fingers, Some Girls and Tattoo You are the ones to buy first, but you'll find some great songs on It's Only
Rock 'N' Roll, Emotional Rescue and Undercover too. Just one question: Where's Exile on Main St.?
CD
Elizabeth & the Catapult:
Taller Children
(Verve Forecast)
This NPR-approved NYC group rolls its influences all over its debut album. You'll hear classical, folk, pop, rock and a few other old-school genres melding on this laid-back mix. Frontwoman Elizabeth Ziman is the focal point here — sultry and jazzy one minute, spunky and poppy the next. Plus, she smack downs spoiled little rich boys on one of the album's best songs.
DVD
Flight 666
(UMe)
Last year, veteran metalheads Iron Maiden played 23 concerts in 45 days. This documentary chronicles the tour that took them from Sydney to Tokyo to Los Angeles to Toronto (and pretty much every place in between). The whole thing was made possible by the band's big-ass plane, Ed Force One — the movie's real star. There's also lots of music.
VIDEOGAME
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10
(EA)
Hot on the heels of the U.S. Open, the world's best golf sim (for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Wii) doesn't really break any new ground this year, but it's still loads of fun. And it's getting more realistic every year. You can even hear crowd reaction to other
golfers' shots while you're trying to sink that crucial putt. Talk about pressure.
VIDEOGAME
Virtua Tennis 2009
(Sega)
This series (for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Wii) improves on its last outing by throwing more players, courts and tourneys into the mix. But it's still pretty much the same game, with plenty of practice and training modes to get you ready for the big match. Best of all, the mini-games — like Alien Attack and Meat Defender — are equal parts goofy and fun.
