TURN-ONS AND TURN-OFFS IN CURRENT HOME ENTERTAINMENT RELEASES : Excellent Good Fair Poor : COMPACT DISCS

“Smokey Robinson and the Miracles’ 18 Greatest Hits.” Motown. (Original recording: analog. No digital remix.) Another in the label’s highly recommended “Compact Command Performance” series, this CD salutes Robinson--one of the premier singers and lyricists of the modern pop era--by bringing together 13 selections from his days with the Miracles and five from his solo LPs (including the 1981 hit, “Being With You”). While some of the early numbers sound unusually muddy, most benefit from the CD sound dynamics. Robinson’s sweet, falsetto-edged vocals are especially intimate and appealing.