Styx: Circling from Above (Alpha Dog 2T/UMe, CD, 41:08). Styx was formed 53 years ago in Chicago, IL. The band had numerous hits in the 1970s, including “Lady,” “Come Sail Away,” “Renegade” and “Babe.” Their sound was marked by rich stacks of vocals, unforgettable tunes and a sound that was both prog and poppy.

Through the years the band has had its share of people leaving and joining. They also took a couple of lengthy breaks in the 1980s and 1990s, but have been consistently touring since the late 1990s. When 2017’s “The Mission” was released, it was their first new studio album in 14 years. “Circling from Above” is the third album in the new cycle, following 2021’s excellent “Crash of the Crown,” and is their 18th studio album overall.

With 13 tracks, “Circling from Above” talks about technology and nature. It features contributions from all seven members of the band, including founding guitarist/vocalist James “JY” Young (known as “The Godfather of Styx”), guitarist/vocalist Tommy Shaw, original bassist Chuck Panozzo, longtime drummer Todd Sucherman, keyboardist/vocalist Lawrence Gowan, guitarist/vocalist Will Evankovich and bassist Terry Gowan. Since the departure of Dennis De Young in 1999, Lawrence Gowan has held down the keyboard and vocal slot and, although the band has multiple lead vocalists, Gowan is often the frontman in concert with his dynamic stage presence.

The new album has nods to other classic bands, starting with the opening title track, with its instrumental start that recalls Pink Floyd. The first single, “Build and Destroy,” follows with classic Styx vocals, discussing technology, but also has a fresh synth solo.

Shaw is responsible for "Michigan," with its nice musical touches and asking whether mankind can “carry the weight of what we’re learning,” and the closing, also nice, "Only You Can Decide." Panozzo offers "Ease Your Mind," with standout bass. Young’s highlight is "King of Love," a planned single that is a rocker that features three vocalists and is very textured.

There is a dancehall sound to "Everybody Raise Your Glass," a collaboration between Shaw, Evankovich and Gowan that is one of several numbers that recall The Beatles. Another is “Forgive,” with very pretty acoustic guitar and harmonies and music that recall The Beatles. Evankovich's pop-rock "She Knows" also has a Beatles influence – plus a playful clarinet solo by Jeff Coffin of the Dave Matgthews Band -- while "The Things You Said," written by Shaw and Evankovich, has a Beatlesque ending.

The Beatles are not the only classic band acknowledged. "We Lost the Wheel Again," with lyrics and music by Evankovich, turns to The Who, with a Roger Daltrey-like vocal and some Keith Moon-like drumming by Sucherman.

“Blue Eyed Raven” is Latin influenced, especially the acoustic guitar.

The album was produced by Evankovich, who also helmed the band’s previous two records before becoming an official member in 2022. In all, it is another solid effort. Grade: B+

Carly Simon: The Best of Carly Simon (1975, Elektra/Rhino, Quadio Blu-ray, 39:10). This is the first of four Quadio, or quadrophonic, reissues of hits and top album tracks from the early 1970s.

Simon has had 13 Top 40 U.S. hits of which “Anticipation” (No. 13), “The Right Thing to Do” (No. 17), “Haven’t Got Time for the Pain” (No. 14), “You’re So Vain” (No. 1) and “Mockingbird” (No. 5) appear in this collection.

"You're So Vain" received Grammy Award nominations for Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female. It also was nominated as Best Engineered Recording. The song also was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2004 and was listed at No. 72 in 2008 on the Billboard Hot 100’s list of the top 100 songs from the chart's first 50 years, through July 2008. For years, there was constant speculation over who the song was about, with most guesses being the Rolling Stones’ Mick Jagger, who sings backup on the song, or actor Warren Beatty.

“Anticipation” had a long afterlife as it was used in a variety of commercials to market H.J. Heinz Co. ketchup. Reportedly, the song was written in 15 minutes while Simon waited for Cat Stevens to pick her up for a date. The pair had become romantically involved shortly after Simon had opened for Stevens at the Troubadour in Los Angeles around the time her debut album was released.

James Taylor is involved in three of the tracks, including writing “Night Owl” and adding lyrics to “Mockingbird,” on which he duets with Simon. Taylor also plays lead acoustic guitar on the softer “Haven’t Got Time for the Pain.” Among the backing singers on “Night Owl” are Bonnie Bramlett and Paul and Linda McCartney.

The Quadio separation is most evident on “The Right Thing to Do,” with the backing vocalists on their own speaker. Grade: A-

The New Seekers: The Best of The New Seekers (1973, Elektra/Rhino, Quadio Blu-ray, 35:20). The New Seekers was a British pop group, formed in London in 1969 by Keith Potger after the break-up of his group, The Seekers. The new group consisted of Laurie Heath, Chris Barrington, Marty Kristian, Eve Graham and Sally Graham. Potger also performed and recorded with the group. After one album and a failed TV series, the band was reformed.

The new, successful lineup included Eve Graham, Kristian, Lyn Paul, Peter Doyle and Paul Layton. This line-up found instant success with its debut release, a cover of Melanie Safka’s "What Have They Done to My Song, Ma" (re-titled in the U.S. as "Look What They've Done to My Song, Ma"), which became a top 20 hit here. I was a big fan of Melanie, which is probably why I enjoyed this album so much back in 1973, as its first three songs were all written by Melanie, including “Beautiful People” and “Nickel Song.”

They also had a hit with “I’d Like to Teach the World to Sing (in Perfect Harmony).”

Another favorite rocker of mine, Roy Wood, who formed The Move and co-founded Electric Light Orchestra, before leaving ELO to form Wizard, wrote the excellent “Blackberry Way,” with its massed vocals and strings, and “Tonight,” both featuring Doyle’s lead vocals.

Other songwriters I liked included contributing here are Paul Williams with the piano ballad “A Perfect Lover,” Neil Young with “Beg, Steal or Borrow,” Harry Chapin with “Circles” and Delaney Bramlett with “Never Ending Song of Love.” There are plenty of strings throughout the album. Grade: B

Bread: The Best of Bread (1973, Elektra/Rhino, Quadio Blu-ray, 34:11). Bread was a four-member American soft rock band from Los Angeles that had 13 songs chart on the Billboard Hot 100 between 1970 and 1977. The band was fronted by David Gates (vocals, bass guitar, guitar, keyboards, violin, viola, percussion), with James Griffin (vocals, guitar, keyboards, percussion) and later members Mike Botts (drums) and Larry Knechtel (keyboards, bass guitar, guitar harmonica).

The hits included here are the chart-topping “Make It with You” and the 3rd-ranked “Baby Im-a Want You.” Also reaching the Top 40 were “It Don’t Matter to Me” (No. 10), “Let Your Love Go” (No. 28), “If” (No. 4), “Mother Freedom” (No. 37), “Everything I Own” (No. 5) and “Diary” (No. 15). Of the 12 songs in this collection, Gates wrote eight and co-wrote a ninth. The second half of the album is more upbeat than the mellow first-half. Grade: B-

Judy Collins: Colors of the Day: The Best of Judy Collins (1972, Elektra/Rhino, Quadio Blu-ray, 46:38). Collins is known for her eclectic tastes in the material she records, which has included folk music, country, show tunes, pop music, rock and standards, as well as for her social activism. She has made 36 studio albums and nine live albums.

That variety is evident in this 12-song collection, which includes her hits of Joni Mitchell’s “Both Sides Now” (No. 8, a Grammy winner) and the hymn “Amazing Grace” (No. 15). Other strong efforts here are her versions of Ian Tyson’s “Someday Soon” and Leonard Cohen’s “Suzanne.” She also covers Donovan’s “Sunny Goodge Street,” Sandy Denny’s “Who Knows Where the Time Goes,” John Lennon and Paul McCartney’s “In My Life” and Jacques Brel’s “Sons of.”

Her owns songs here are “Since You Asked,” “My Father” and “Albatross.” Grade: B+