Holiday Gift-Giving--The Hints of ’92

How does Madonna’s musical product compare with her literary and film endeavors?. . .Which of those Seattle bands offers the best grunge for the buck? . . . Is Garth’s latest album as good as his show?. . .Which rappers are for kids and which are for adults only?. . .Are there some worthy soundtrack albums out there?

Those are the kinds of questions facing holiday shoppers. Calendar’s annual Top 40 Shopping Guide is designed to ease the burden by summarizing The Times’ reviews of 40 of the nation’s most popular and/or critically admired albums, listed alphabetically. The ratings are based on a scale of one star (poor) to four stars (excellent). The comments are from the original reviews, but the ratings sometimes reflect additional staff input.

* * Billy Ray Cyrus, “Some Gave All,” Mercury. Though he doesn’t say anything new in his own songs, the “Achy Breaky Heart” video shows that on the dance floor, this Kentucky hunk can whup Garth, Clint, Alan, et al.

* * * Vince Gill, “I Still Believe in You,” MCA. After some uninvolving vocal calisthenics, Gill sinks his teeth into a six-song stretch in which the cargo is more worthy of the carrier. His beautifully sculpted vocals make the occasional trite phrase sound better than it reads.

* * 1/2 Alan Jackson, “A Lot About Livin’ (And a Little ‘Bout Love),” Arista. Jackson continues to vacillate between being a writer who wants to tap his own experience and a singer who can’t resist a catchy phrase, even at the expense of the truth.

* * George Strait, “Pure Country” original soundtrack, MCA. The music here is as clean and stubble-free as ever. Strait fans lap up every note-perfect lick, but some might prefer country music that’s a little less “pure” and a lot more real.