Seven Year Itch
The three albums Etta James made for Island Records in the late 1980s are quirky productions, but this compilation culled from those recordings is a winning alternative. The beauty and righteous anger she evokes in "Damn Your Eyes" is alone worth the price. Her romantic side gets tapped for "A Lover Is Forever" and "Out of the Rain." But the best numbers flex her raw vocal muscle. "Beware," "Feel Like Breakin' Up Somebody's Home," and her redo of "Come to Mama" are all fire-breathing performances, worthy of the still-reigning queen of rhythm & blues.--Ted Drozdowski