Hit parade — Box sets and greatest hits

In the early days of pop music, way before Backstreet Boys, New Kids on the Block and the like, there were groups like the Dell-Vikings, the Drifters and the Cadillacs. The groups focused on rhythm and harmony, which became known as Doo Wop. In these nine CDs and one DVD, Time Life attempts to bring some of the best-known Doo Wop hits together. The Dell-Vikings' "Whispering Bells," the Drifters' "On Broadway" and the Cadillacs' "Speedo" are a few tracks. But the set then expands its perimiters by including groups that were inspired by Doo Wop. The Impressions' "Gypsy Woman" and Little Anthony & the Imperials' "Goin' Out of My Head" are a couple of examples. The DVD, culled from TV performances of groups such as the Platters, the Penguins, the Cleftones and Jimmy Beaumont & the Skyliners bring faces and action to this melodic Golden Age of pop — S.I.

VARIOUS ARTISTS; "Love Train: The Sound of Philadelphia," (Philly Soul Classics/Legacy) ***

During the '70s, the TV show "Love Train" featured artists such as the Delphonics, the Manhattans and the Spinners. Now there'a a four-CD box set that rounds up the Philly sound in one neat package. Gems such as the Delphonics "La-La — Means I Love You," the Manhattans' "There's No Me Without You" and the Spinners' "The Rubberband Man" is mixed in with the O'Jays' "I Love Music" and Wilson Pickett's "Don't Let the Green Grass Fool You." As with most box sets, this one comes with a liner-note booklet with far-out photos and a comprehensive history lesson in Philly Soul. — S.I.

VARIOUS ARTISTS; "The Motown Collection" (Time Life) ****

The title says it all. This is "The Motown Collection." The five CDs are chock full of the Detroit soul of the Supremes, the Temptations, Smokey Robinson, Gladys Knight, Marvin Gaye, Four Tops, Stevie Wonder and the Jackson 5, to name a few. The CDs also contain liner notes about the groups that made Motown a family. In addition, the box set contains a DVD that celebrates "Ed Sullivan's Rock 'n' Roll Motortown Review" mini-documentary. Performances by the Temptations, Smokey Robinson & the Miracles, the Supremes and the Jackson 5 (its song "Who's Lovin' You" was mistitled "Who's Lovin' Her Now" in the original airing) are some of the highlights of this time-capsule DVD. — S.I.

VARIOUS ARTISTS; "100 Greatest" (Shout Factory) ****