LAURYN HILL

The trials and tribulations of Lauryn Hill raise nagging questions. When corporations routinely skip paying their share, why convict Lauryn Hill for tax evasion, and why did she draw a three-month stay in prison when economy-crashing financiers continue to skate? With power and grace, Ms. Hill addresses this injustice, plus the cancer of corporate greed, with “Neurotic Society” and “Consumerism,” a pair of blistering, tongue-twisting tracks that bracket her jail sentence. It’s the first new studio music in years from the artist who changed the mainstream in 1998 by layering flashes of funk, soul, reggae and pop-craft on par with Joni Mitchell over an insistent hip-hop bed on her ground-breaking LP, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. At the same time, Hill’s purported madness and massive ego can’t be ignored. The tortuous hours-long waits audiences have endured to witness Ms. Hill’s onstage arrival are legendary. Her meticulous control of her live band recalls the tight-assery of James Brown, and her folding, spindling and recasting of her back catalog rivals Dylan’s. Despite it all, Lauryn Hill still matters. She’s one of a handful of artists who define our era. (Pat Moran)

Price: $69.50