The latest, from jazz to Jewish Latin

Juicy jazz, teeny pop, blues rock, Jewish Latin hip-hop. We got it all this week in new releases-ville.

THREE BASS HITS: Philadelphia bass legend Stanley Clarke fronts strictly on standup (a first!) in his new trio with Japanese pianist Hiromi and longtime drummer buddy Lenny White for the foray "Jazz in the Garden" (Telarc, A-).

Articulate in content and engineering, Clarke's "Paradigm Shift (Election Day 2008)" sets an inspired tone evocative of Horace Silver and Leonard Bernstein works. And while previously known for her crossover fusion, Hiromi surprises (well) as a straight-ahead player and collaborator.

Drummer Carl Allen and bassist Rodney Whitaker and a sizeable cast of cohorts rekindle the era of bopping, blissful soul jazz at its snappiest, sweetest and (let's face it) commercial best on "Work To Do" (Mack Avenue, B+). Turns frowns upside down.

It took a brassy, all-star, 30-member band, including two bassists (!) to do justice to Charles Mingus' "Epitaph" at the 1989 concert of the same name finally available on Eagle Eye Media DVD (A). Reconstructed a decade after the legendary bassist/composer's death, the Gunther Schuller-conducted work opens in Mingus' most disruptive "third stream" vein. But it soon shifts into more accessible and synchronized territory. And it sure doesn't hurt that every solo (by the likes of Wynton Marsalis, Jerome Richardson, Randy Brecker, John Abercrombie and others) is an homage to Mingus' liberated genius.

FATHER & SON: If the stomping-through-the-backwoods North Mississippi Allstars were to tangle with the more urbane, blues-rockin' Allman Brothers, the resulting hybrid would sound just like the Hill Country Revue, the sideline project that Cody Dickinson and Chris Chew have taken on with "Make A Move" (Razor & Tie, B), while brother and NMA partner Luther Dickinson is off working with the Black Crowes.

Meanwhile, the Dickinsons' famous producer/session-man dad, James Luther Dickinson, has pulled off an even bigger change of face with "Dinosaurs Run In Circles" (Memphis International, B+). The focus here is on the Southern regional novelty hits - pop-, blues- and country-flavored - all sung and played on piano by Jim with a snappy little bass and drums rhythm section. Fans of Dr. John will connect.

POP NOTES: What kind of album should "American Idol's" leading contender Adam Lambert make if/when he wins? I'm thinking the guy could join Queen. Or star in a new "Grad School Musical" for Disney.

For "A.I.'s" season five third-placer, Elliott Yamin, the path has been more obvious. That yearning, bell-clear, slightly tremulous tenor takes him straight to blue-eyed soul-pop-ville. I wasn't crazy about the material on his debut set, but a stronger crop on "Fight For Love" (Hickory, B), makes this a rare sophomore studio set that's actually better than the first.

Looking for a new boy band you can entrust to not corrupt the kids? Try Vancouver's My Favorite Highway and their pumping pop-rock debut, "How to Call a Bluff" (Virgin, B-). I started out "uh oh," but they won me over with tunes increasingly Billy Joel-ish.

TRIBUTE TIME: Steve Earle pays homage to his hero - the craft conscious, brutally honest, Texas singer/songwiter Townes Van Zandt - with an understated collection "Townes" (New West, B+) that gives the material freedom to breathe.

Celebrate the twisted greatness that is the Latino/Jewish/urban music collective Hip Hop Hoodios with "Carne Asada" (Jazzheads, B+), a best-of collection pumped up with five new tracks.

Smithsonian Folkways honors the 90th birthday of Pete Seeger with a five-disc collection of his formative years performances, "American Favorite Ballads" (A-). A treasure trove.

"The Smithereens Play Tommy" (E1, C+) boils down The Who's hits to a single disc. An accurate replica that doesn't venture anywhere new.

Don't know how intentionally they've meant it, but Dexateens' "Singlewide" (Skybucket, B) is the best Wilco or Jayhawks album those guys have yet to make.

Cracker carries on in the grandly sarcastic/ironic traditions of Bob Dylan, the Rolling Stones and the Grateful Dead with a fresh set of vocally rough hewn, guitar and organ-scorched rockers, "Sunrise in the Land of Milk and Honey" (429 Records, A-). Welcome back.

A re-formed (but not so reformed) New York Dolls pay homage to . . . themselves on "Cause I Sez So" (Atco, B). *