The $50 Guide

March

Various Artists, “Kill Bill Vol. 1” soundtrack

(A Band Apart/Maverick)

It’s hard to see why film critics were so divided over a movie so taut, witty and entertaining right down to the marvelously unpredictable choice of musical selections that you can revisit in this endlessly pleasurable CD. The lineup ranges from Nancy Sinatra’s oddly touching “Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)” to the rockabilly fever of the 5.6.7.8’s “Woo Hoo.” Added note: The new “Vol. 2” soundtrack also is a treat, with music from Johnny Cash, Ennio Morricone and Charlie Feathers.

*

Franz Ferdinand’s “Franz Ferdinand” (Domino)

This Scottish quartet was so much fun at the Troubadour last month that people weren’t just dancing in the club, they were skipping down Santa Monica Boulevard afterward. There are moments in the music and themes that will remind you of both the artful and playful side of such bands as Roxy Music and Talking Heads, but songwriters Alex Kapranos and Nick McCarthy bring just enough of a personal wink to the proceedings that you’d better listen twice before you think you fully understand every energy-packed tale of romantic setback.

*

Prince’s “Musicology” (Columbia)

Before you rush to the store, beware: This album doesn’t really recapture the multilevel brilliance of Prince’s “Dirty Mind”/”Purple Rain” period. Still, it’s so much better than anything Prince (or any of his funk/pop wannabes -- except OutKast) have given us in years that it is definitely worth attention. If you’re planning to see him on tour, you’ll get the album free at the door. Otherwise, you now can proceed to the store. The CD is fun, funky and fresh.

*

April

Nellie McKay’s “Get Away From Me” (Columbia)

The strange thing about this otherwise knockout debut is how a 19-year-old singer-songwriter talked her record company into releasing this CD as a two-disc set -- just because she thought the music would be better served by doing so -- even though all 60 minutes would fit easily into a conventional one-disc package. Maybe the answer is that you do whatever the artist wants when she is as frightfully promising as McKay, whose words and music sparkle with imagination, and whose influences stretch from Tin Pan Alley to rap.

*

Loretta Lynn’s “Van Lear Rose” (Interscope)

Never count a Hall of Fame member out, whether it’s the rock hall or the country music hall. Still, who expected Lynn, who is at or nearing 70, to bounce back with a record that reminds us of what country music was before Nashville started replacing the honky-tonk elements of country with pop strains? Lynn wrote the songs and sings with the spirit of a 25-year-old, and the White Stripes’ Jack White does the rest. As producer, he dresses the music with aggressive textures without sacrificing the sentimental heart of country music.

*

Kanye West’s “The College Dropout” (Roc-A-Fella)

West, whose hip-hop producer resume took a big step forward this year for his work on Twista’s wonderfully nostalgic, soul-minded “Slow Jamz,” stakes his claim for equal attention as a rapper with this CD and he scores a bull’s-eye. He’s witty and challenging as a rapper, using ideas the way most people use beats, crossing cultural boundaries with a freshness that is reminiscent of the best days of De La Soul.

Hilburn, The Times’ pop music critic, can be reached at Robert.hilburn@latimes.com