Maybe you (or your uncle or your buddy) really need Robert Plant’s new “Nine Lives” box set, complete with his nine solo CDs, a live DVD, an exhaustive 60-page fanbook and more bonus tracks than there were actual Led Zeppelin albums.
We’ll let you make that decision, but we do know that the CD box sets released at this time of year are mostly aimed at hard-core fans.
Here are 10 solid suggestions for this holiday season:
Phish
Colorado ’88
In the ’80s, Phish was just getting its start, and the band rarely traveled beyond the borders of its native Vermont. But something brought them to the Centennial State for seven shows in 10 days, and this three-CD set of live recordings culls the best of the material from those early shows in Telluride and Aspen. $21
The Clash
The Singles
The casual Clash fan can buy one of the multiple greatest-hits CDs on the market, but the collectors should own this box, which features all of the band’s 19 U.K. singles on individual CDs featuring original sleeve art. $80
Sufjan Stevens
Songs for Christmas
For the hipsters who hate Christmas music, the ever-prolific Stevens releases this quiet and quirky five-CD tribute to the holiday. The aesthetic is purely his own, with hushed vocals, asymmetrical compositions and varied instrumentation. $23
Various Artists
A Life Less Lived
Rhino’s relentless pursuit of genre-based box sets continues with this exhaustive tribute to goth rock, a genre so obsessed with death, sex and eyeliner that it made self-pity appealing. The three CDs and one DVD collect singles and videos from the progenitors (Bauhaus, The Cure, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Sisters of Mercy) and their offspring (AFI), plus barely related shoegazer and industrial cousins (Jesus and Mary Chain, Einstürzende Neubauten). Imperfect, but honestly so. $65
The Doors
Perception
This is your average box set on steroids. Six of The Doors’ original albums are here, and they’re remastered, of course. But each CD is also loaded with bonus songs – and that doesn’t even count the accompanying DVDs, six in all, that contain 5.1 mixes alongside your everyday DVD extras. $150
Buddy Guy
Can’t Quit the Blues
Renowned for his snappy yet exploratory guitar solos that positively drip with emotion, Buddy Guy gets the royal treatment on this 47-track, three-disc set. The DVD includes a lengthy documentary and six performances from the Montreux Jazz Festival, shedding light on Guy’s ever- changing, versatile chops. Fans will be well-served to pick up this one. $50
Michael Jackson
Vvisionary
You won’t realize you needed 19 discs of Michael Jackson’s singles until you enjoy these dual-layer CD/DVDs (with the attendant music videos) in your home. The King of Pop may have fallen off his throne a while ago, but it’s fun to remember the time when he still ruled. $150
Various Artists
American Music: The Hightone Records Story
A laundry list of American roots rock, blues, country and folk graces this 95-song, five- disc set from HighTone. A 124-page booklet tells the story of the label, modestly launched in 1983, that went on to release tracks from Robert Cray Band, Dick Dale, Ramblin’ Jack Elliott and R.L. Burnside. The best part? Discovering a host of vital songwriters you’ve never heard before. $60
Vince Gill
These Days
It’s four CDs and four genres – but it’s all brand new and unreleased, which is an accomplishment given its quality. Gill is back in a big way with “The Rockin’ Record,” featuring new rock- centric compositions; “The Reason Why,” spotlighting his smooth country tendencies; “Some Things Never Get Old,” the set’s honky-tonk highlight; and “Little Brother,” an acoustic tribute to Gill’s beginnings in bluegrass. $30
Various Aartists
The Harry Smith Project: Anthology of American Folk Music Revisited
This two-CD, two-DVD set of folk and blues covers features Lou Reed, Elvis Costello, Wilco, Richard Thompson, Beck and others paying loving tribute to Folkways preservationist Harry Smith. Oddly compelling given its inherently derivative nature. $60
Pop music critic Ricardo Baca can be reached at 303-954-1394 or rbaca@denverpost.com.
Staff writer John Wenzel can be reached at 303-954-1642 or jwenzel@denverpost.com.
