Free Album Streaming: New CDs from Gang of Four and Wanda Jackson

Gang of Four's first new album in over 15 years is available for free streaming.

There are only a couple of new albums streaming that I came across this week, but they're from two time-honored, well-established artists. The first is Gang of Four, the punk/rock/funk group that formed in the mid-1970s. It apparently hasn't made an album of all-new material since 1995, but it's back with "Content."

As it did 30 years ago, Gang of Four tackles issues such as unbridled capitalism and government oppression in catchy tunes. As their website says in talking about the new album, "The record is called Content, in recognition of the way every creative form has been reduced to just that: content, the obligatory filling for the advertising sandwich." In the case of Gang of Four, it's a pretty tasty sandwich.

Wanda Jackson, the "queen of rockabilly" who's been singing and playing guitar since the 1950s, is back with a new album of cover songs, "The Party Ain't Over," that shows she's not ready to stop rocking just yet. And the album is produced by Jack White of the White Stripes, who a few years ago worked with another female legend, Loretta Lynn, on her album "Van Lear Rose."

Oh, and Wanda Jackson will be appearing this week in the Jan. 20th performance of Broadway's "Million Dollar Quartet," about the legendary 1956 recording session featuring Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Elvis Presley.

KCRW Album Preview: 
"Content" by Gang of Four (streaming until Feb. 15)
(Note: You can get a free download of "You'll Never Pay for the Farm" from "Content" by signing up for the band's mailing list at the Gang of Four website.)

NPR First Listen:
"The Party Ain't Over" by Wanda Jackson (streaming until Jan. 25)