Quick Spins

"The Minstrel Show" is Little Brother's first album for big brother, the trio's major label debut. It's an odd coupling given that the album is packaged as a parody of the black music on which the major labels thrive: "The Biggest Colored Show on Earth," a revue complete with commercials, theme songs and TV Guide-style liner notes.

Little Brother doesn't quite deliver biting satire, nor does it render a breakthrough unto its new corporate massa. But "The Minstrel Show" has genius, from the one-two punch of "Beautiful Morning" and "The Becoming" to the spiritual core of the album, the gorgeous "All for You." Made from chopped-up Michael Franks and the drippy keys of James Poyser, it's a hip-hop hymn of reconciliation -- not so much "be a father to your child" as "be a child to your father."

Little Brother certainly has the talent to pull the trigger. Rapper Phonte is a star, and producer 9th Wonder recently honed a wicked commercial formula on Destiny's Child's "Girl." But Little Brother can't truly be the heir to the early '90s acts it admires -- A Tribe Called Quest, Pete Rock -- unless it mimics those groups' songwriting chops as well as their vibe.

-- Dan Charnas

Little Brother is scheduled to appear Sunday at the Black Cat.

JASPER COUNTY

Trisha Yearwood

In naming her new album "Jasper County," Trisha Yearwood may as well have entitled it "Safe." It's been four years since Yearwood's last release, and the country queen and her original producer, Garth Fundis, had actually charged into the studio to start work on "Jasper County" some time back. But Yearwood wasn't feelin' it, so she decided to scrap the material at hand and start fresh.

The result, named for the Georgia county Yearwood was born and raised in, may not break any new ground, but it'll guarantee the singer's return to the country charts. Yearwood doesn't write her own material, nor is she terribly faithful to any one set of songwriters. So although nothing on "Jasper County" is very surprising, refreshingly, none of these 11 tracks really sounds like the others, either. Naturally, weepy ballads are well represented, including the album's first single, "Georgia Rain," a soaring reflection on revisiting an old love. (Fiance Garth Brooks provides harmony.) More delicate and likable, however, are slow-dances: "Trying to Love You" is a testament of sticking with a relationship through good and bad. "Try Me" nudges the heartbroken to consider a new romance. (Ronnie Dunn lends additional vocals.)

"Jasper County" is more memorable, however, when Yearwood lets loose. The catchy, rocking "Pistol" is a celebration of the irresistibility of bad boys, while album-closer "It's Alright" is a breezy two minutes of honky-tonk piano, electric guitar, and Yearwood playfully singing that she's "more than okay / hey baby, what can I say, it's alright, it's alright, it's alright." Even fans hungry for new Yearwood will likely end up saying the same.

-- Tricia Olszewski