Pop Music : Record Rack : In Brief : ** John Prine, “In Spite of Ourselves,” Oh Boy.

Prine is a magnificent songwriter but a limited singer. Unfortunately, it’s the latter role he occupies on this offbeat outing (due in stores Tuesday). The idea is intriguing--Prine teams with some interesting duet partners, from Iris DeMent to Emmylou Harris to Melba Montgomery, to record some classic country tales about troubled relationships, including such lively numbers as “(We’re Not) the Jet Set” and “Loose Talk.” Yet little in this sweet but minor collection, which also features one goofy Prine composition, quite matches the charm of the original recordings.

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Albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good) and four stars (excellent). The albums are already released unless otherwise noted.