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.

* *1/2 Eric Clapton, “Unplugged,” Reprise. This acoustic quickie from an MTV appearance centers on the maudlin but moving “Tears in Heaven” and the seductive recasting of “Layla,” but seven crackling old blues numbers make the most of the intimate setting and make it Clapton’s most passionate collection in years.

* * 1/2 Spin Doctors, “Pocket Full of Kryptonite,” Epic. “Little Miss Can’t Be Wrong,” the hit that’s propelled this New York quartet beyond its Deadhead-like cult, is virtually a dead ringer for Steve Miller’s “Take the Money and Run.” The rest of this 1991 debut album follows suit, spinning hooky boogie-rock, but largely without the muscle to carry it home.