Adele sparkles on new concert DVD

Adele tops off an astoundingly successful year with the concert DVD and CD "Live at the Royal Albert Hall" ( * * * out of four stars, out Nov. 29 on Columbia), recorded less than two months ago at the prestigious venue in London, England.

The best way to experience this performance is by sitting down with the DVD, which is crisply shot and contains the full 90-minute show, including the down-to-earth British singer's hilarious, often potty-mouthed chatter between songs. Adele Laurie Blue Adkins does fine versions of tracks taken off her two albums, "19" and "21," relying more on material from the latter, this year's hottest selling album by far.

Although in generally good vocal form throughout, she avoids the tough-to-reach high notes on the affecting ballad "Someone Like You," allowing the supportive audience to sing a few choruses. Shortly after this gig, recurring voice problems forced her to cancel all remaining concerts this year and to have surgery to mend damage brought on by a benign throat polyp.

The backstage footage included with the DVD lasts all of 8 minutes and isn't terribly special or revealing. But who really cares when you have Adele's spectacular voice wending its way through the Cure's "Lovesong," Bob Dylan's "Make You Feel My Love" and signature song "Rumour Has It."

Following last year's re-release of the 1971 epic "Exile on Main Street," the Rolling Stones are at it again with the reissue of the band's most commercially successful album, "Some Girls" ( * * * *, out Monday on Universal Republic), which includes a bunch of never-before-released tunes.

Challenged and inspired by the rise of punk and disco in the mid-to-late '70s, the Stones responded on 1978's "Some Girls" with a strong, diverse collection of material, topped by "Miss You," "When the Whip Comes Down," "Shattered" and "Respectable." Although all of these original tracks have been re-mastered, there isn't a dramatic improvement in s! ound qua lity over the widely heard mid-'90s CD reissue, just a bit more clarity in the high and low end.

As with the "Exile" reissue, the focus is on the bonus selections, 12 outtakes recently sweetened and completed with vocal and guitar overdubs. Can't say there are any astounding revelations, although "I Love You Too Much" is a strong, straight-ahead rocker, and "We Had It All" is a lovely ballad with Keith Richards on lead vocals. The top track to my ears is a gritty, bone-crunching version of the old Freddy Cannon hit "Tallahassee Lassie," with a cover of Hank Williams' "You Win Again" close behind.

English singer-songwriter Kate Bush is in stunning, entrancing form on "50 Words for Snow," ( * * * * out of four stars, out Monday on Anti-), her first collection of all-new material in six years.

Over the course of seven expansively spacious, dreamlike compositions, Bush creates a parallel universe of almost matchless beauty. Her astonishing voice as powerful as ever, and just as impressive on piano -- a lead instrument on much of the album -- Bush carves out space for contemplation and reverie on songs having something to do with snow. But don't think of this as some treacly, clich-ridden concept album about sleigh bells ringing and Frosty the Snowman. It's something way more profound than that.

Quick hits on two enjoyable new projects from area bands: Orpheum Bell explores gypsy jazz, folk, country and swing music on "The Old Sisters' Home" ( * * *, self-released). It celebrates the completion of its second album with a concert at Ann Arbor's Lydia Mendelssohn Theatre on Dec. 10. The Meltdowns recall the 1960s British invasion on "Critical Mass" ( * * *, Neurotic Bop), a collection of new songs with a retro feel written by band members Rick Mills, Bill Bowen and Chris Flanagan. The album-release party is Saturday at PJ's Lager House in Detroit.

Contact MARTIN BANDYKE through martinbandyke.com