Hit parade — Box sets and greatest hits

Gonzo journalism, making the journalist the central figure of an experience, can be traced back to the maverick writer Hunter S. Thompson. His ideas were basically "write what I know, and what I don't know, do it and then write about it." This five CD box set is more like a recorded journal of the man, with slice-of-life scenarios that could only happen in his nonlinear lifestyle. The collection is a companion to the Magnolia Pictures feature film treleased this past summer in limited markets. The recordings captures Thompson's sporadic and anarchic personality. It does not settling things like the movie does, but instead, adds fire to his myth. — S.I.

VARIOUS ARTISTS; "Boots, Buckles & Spurs: 50 Songs Celebrate 50 Years of Cowboy Tradition" (Sony/BMG Nashville/Legacy) ***

These three discs are pretty much loaded with the recorded history of country music, something audiophiles and country-music fans will enjoy. The collection, kicks off with Gene Autry's "Back in the Saddle Again" and Patsy Montana & the Prairie Ramblers' "I Want to Be a Cowboy's Sweetheart" and runs through Brooks & Dunn's "Cowboy Town" and Michael Martin Murphy's "Born to Buck Bad Luck." In between, it focuses on the restless and rowdy lives of cowboys. Suzy Bogguss, "Someday Soon," Clint Black and Roy Rogers' "Hold on Partner" and David Allen Coe's "Ride 'em Cowboy" are all sequenced in a comprehensive track list. Along with the CDs is a booklet filled with country-music history and tidbits that add to the collection. — S.I.

VARIOUS ARTISTS; "Hard & Heavy" (Time Life/Universal) **

The funny thing about this eight CD box set is the fact that, aside from the disc dedicated to dismal power ballads (Kiss' "Forever," Europe's "Carrie" and Honeymoon Suite's "What Does It Take," to name a few), some of the songs aren't metal. While Cheap Trick's "Surrender" and Boston's "Don't Look Back" are staple rock songs, they aren't metal. And the fact that George Thorogood & the Destroyers' "Bad to the Bone" and Heart's "Never" is included will make metal fans scratch their collective heads. However, Anthrax's "Among the Living," Dio's "Rainbow in the Dark," Judas Priests' "You've Got Another Thing Comin'" and Motorhead's "Ace of Spades" are here. And those songs are polar oppposites of songs like Scandal's "The Warrior." That song, written by Nick Gilder, is a part of the collection but is definitely not metal. — S.I.

VARIOUS ARTISTS; "It All Started with Doo Wop" (Time Life/Rhino) ***