The fifth studio album from these British trip-hop pioneers suggests a dream sequence set in a posh club, delivering meticulously fabricated electronica full of whispery vocals and cushy synths. Tracks like "Joy Factory" a blend of busy drums and sci-fi sound effects, give off a dark, sleek vibe that gets old by album's end. Night is best when it rocks (witness "The Answer" an arena-ready stomper) or when a guest knocks it out of the park: Austin psych band The Black Angels help out on the very strong "Natural Selection" which mixes up futuristic trans-pulse with an earnest, richly harmonized tune that seems nicked from lost Sixties gem.

“All Along the Watchtower”

Jimi Hendrix got hold of Bob Dylan's early John Wesley Harding tapes and in late 1967 recorded a version of "All Along the Watchtower" with the Experience in London. Dissatisfied with that first development, Hendrix brought those tapes with him to New York in early 1968 when he began work on Electric Ladyland. Eddie Kramer, Hendrix's engineer at the time, told Rolling Stone that Hendrix "was still looked upon by his basically white audience as the mammoth black guitar hero. There was a constant fight within him to expand himself." Hendrix's successful take on Dylan's work has long been recognized by the songwriter. "I liked Jimi Hendrix's record of this and ever since he died I've been doing it that way," Dylan wrote in the liner notes to his Biograph box set. "Strange how when I sing it, I always feel it's a tribute to him in some kind of way."