L-Tunes: Music From & Inspired the L-Word
This cool collection of songs should appeal even to those who have little or no interest in the Showtime drama it's tagged to. The first thing you notice listening to the CD is how rare it is to get a compilation entirely focused on female voices. The second is that though the stylistic range is fairly wide--going from Nina Simone to Pink via Fiona Apple and Kelis--there's also a strong sense of consistency throughout because most of the tracks tend to deliver big doses of fun. The best moments are the most unexpected ones: French trio Prototypes's "Je Ne Te Connais Pas" is handclappingly infectious, while Pink bursts out with a full-throated anthem, "Long Way to Happy," that Melissa Etheridge fans will likely enjoy. Best news of all: the widely disliked theme song is nowhere to be heard, though its author, BETTY, contributes the CD closer, "Barnyard."--Elisabeth Vincentelli