In Brief

*** Various artists, “Tom’s Album,” A&M.; A compilation in which 12 of 13 tracks are variations on Suzanne Vega’s rather slight “Tom’s Diner” may sound like the jukebox in Hell’s Diner. But it turns out to be a wide-ranging delight that can comfortably be digested in toto . International interpreters have made Vega’s a cappella folk tune into a dance, rap or reggae boogie, and even added lyrics about teen pregnancy, the Gulf War and “I Dream of Jeannie.”

New albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor) to four (excellent).