Josh Groban releases his third album this week, Awake. I can't remember any of his previous songs, but he's sold a bazillion records. This looks like "uplifting" music of the most insufferable kind. I'd rather listen to Cristy Lane. As music goes this week, I'm most impressed with Josh Groban's tight pants on the album cover. As Horatio Sanz used to say to Chris Kattan's version of Antonio Banderas, it is too sexy. Naturally, this is the #1 album at Amazon. Eric Clapton has finally gotten around to one of his more obvious moves- an album with JJ Cale, The Road to Escondido. Mr Cale is author of "Cocaine" and "After Midnight." Keith Urban has a new album this week, Love, Pain & the Whole Crazy Thing. I'd mock him, but he's so utterly bland and generic as to leave me with no material. There's just nothing there even to make fun of. He's got so little personality that he could be an American Idol. I'm sure he'll sell millions. Here's the complete list of this week's major new album releases, courtesy AMG: J.J. Cale/Eric Clapton The Road to Escondido Reprise Album Rock, Blues-Rock, Adult Contemporary, Pop/Rock Josh Groban Awake 143/Reprise Classical Pop, Adult Contemporary, Vocal Pop, Euro-Pop Pavement Wowee Zowee: Sordid Sentinels Edition Matador Indie Rock, Lo-Fi, Alternative Pop/Rock, Noise Pop Sugarland Enjoy the Ride Mercury Nashville Contemporary Country, Country-Rock Keith Urban Love, Pain & the Whole Crazy Thing Capitol Contemporary Country, Contemporary Singer/Songwriter, Country-Pop Cannonball Adderley Riverside Profiles Riverside Hard Bop, Soul-Jazz Claudia Antonelli Händel, Dittersdorf, Boïeldieu: Harp Concertos Arts Concertos for Harp & Orchestra Louis Armstrong Wonderful World of Louis Armstrong Time Life Classic Jazz, Dixieland, Vocal Jazz, Traditional Pop, Swing, Pop Mickey Avalon Mickey Avalon Myspace Pop-Rap, Hip-Hop Chet Baker Riverside Profiles Riverside Mainstream Jazz, West Coast Jazz, Ballads Matthias Bamert Christian Cannabich: Symphonies Chandos Classical Symphonies The Bee Gees The Studio Albums 1967-1968 (Box Set) Rhino Baroque Pop, Pop, Psychedelic Pop Mary Black Full Tide Curb Contemporary Folk, Contemporary Singer/Songwriter, Contemporary Celtic, Irish Folk Andrea Bocelli Under the Desert Sky Sugar Classical Crossover, Adult Contemporary, Vocal Pop, Classical, Opera Bowling for Soup The Great Burrito Extortion Case Jive punk-Pop, punk Revival Brubeck Brothers Quartet Intuition Koch Mainstream Jazz, Post-Bop Cadillac Don & J-Money Look at Me Asylum Dirty South, Southern Rap, Hardcore Rap Isobel Campbell Milk White Sheets V2 Indie Pop Dick Dale Surfer's Choice (Bonus Tracks) Sundazed Surf, Instrumental Rock Karen Dalton In My Own Time Light in the Attic Folk-Rock, Traditional Folk Bobby Darin The Definitive Pop Collection Rhino Traditional Pop, Brill Building Pop, Pop, Folk-Rock Dredg Live at the Fillmore Interscope Alternative Metal, Indie Rock Duke Quartet Steve Reich: Different Trains Black Box Modern Chamber Music Bill Evans Riverside Profiles Riverside Modal Music, Post-Bop, Ballads, Cool Gnarls Barkley St. Elsewhere (Deluxe Edition) Downtown Neo-Soul, Alternative Rap, Underground Rap, Alternative Pop/Rock, Hip-Hop PJ Harvey The Peel Sessions 1991-2004 Universal/Island Alternative Pop/Rock, Singer/Songwriter, Indie Rock Jim Jones Hustler's P.O.M.E. (Product Of My Environment) Koch Hardcore Rap, East Coast Rap, Gangsta Rap Lithops Mound Magnet Thrill Jockey IDM, Experimental Techno The Manhattan Transfer The Definitive Pop Collection Rhino Harmony Vocal Group, Vocal Jazz, Mainstream Jazz, Vocalese, Contemporary Jazz, Adult Contemporary Ricky Martin MTV Unplugged Norte Latin Pop, Dance-Pop Dave Matthews The Best of What's Around, Vol. 1 RCA Jam Bands, American Trad Rock, Adult Alternative Pop/Rock Ralphie May Girth of a Nation Warner Bros. Standup Comedy Michael Mayer Immer 2 Kompakt Club/Dance, Microhouse, Tech-House, Techno Mila J Split Personality TUG/Universal/Motown Urban Thelonious Monk Riverside Profiles Riverside Bop Wes Montgomery Riverside Profiles Riverside Hard Bop, Jazz-Pop, Crossover Jazz, Soul-Jazz MoZella I Will Maverick Adult Alternative Pop/Rock Original Soundtrack MTV Presents Laguna Beach: Summer Can Last Forever Interscope punk-Pop, TV Soundtracks, Pop/Rock, Alternative Pop/Rock Original Soundtrack Shout! The Mod Musical Rhino Girl Group, Cast Recordings, British Invasion The Residents The River of Crime: Episodes 1-5 Cordless Recordings Radio Shows, Drama, Radio Plays Frank Sinatra Sinatra: Vegas Reprise Vocal Jazz, Traditional Pop, Standards, Show Tunes Various Artists Disney: The Music Behind the Magic Disney Film Music, Sing-Along, Television Music, Fairy Tales Various Artists Now, Vol. 23 Sony Dance-Pop, Urban, Pop-Rap, Contemporary Country, Alternative Pop/Rock Dionne Warwick My Friends & Me Concord Smooth Soul, Adult Contemporary, Pop-Soul Unreformed hawkish Hoosier hillbilly and sometimes candidate Al Barger runs the still squeezin' down the psychodelic Kentucky moonshine at MoreThings.com, what with the paranoid religious visions and the Pentacostal music and visions of God and anarchy running amok and such. Somebody oughta call the cops. Drop Al a note, and try to talk some sense into him, will ya? gadfly at morethings.com