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

“This Is Charly R&B.;” Charly (import). A London-based record company that lovingly re-releases pop-music treasures from the ‘50s and ‘60s, Charly specializes in R&B; and rockabilly but also incorporates jazz and other forms. While much material from that era doesn’t translate well to CD (which can make poor original recording conditions all too evident), this 22-track sampler has consistently good--if understandably never spectacular--sound. Artist quality here is top-notch: Howlin’ Wolf, Little Willie John, Jimmy Reed, Elmore James, Little Esther, Lee Dorsey, Gene Chandler and others of similar stature. The specially priced package chooses well from their repertoires and includes a catalogue of 92 Charly CDs. *** 1/2