MP3 Specials Today Only: $1.99 for New Albums by Gorillaz, John Legend, KT Tunstall, More

The new album by John Legend & The Roots is one of the MP3 albums you can get for $1.99 on Tuesday, Nov. 23rd only.

I know it seems like I'm writing about Amazon.com's MP3 albums every week, but they are having some great Black Friday deals this week. Here's the story: every day this week they're offering five different MP3 albums for $3.99 each. And most of these are new albums.

For Tuesday, however, the five albums are only $1.99 each. Four are new albums (the latest from John Legend & the Roots, KT Tunstall, Gorillaz, and Belle & Sebastian) and one classic album, "Chronicle: 20 Greatest Hits" by Creedence Clearwater Revival.

Check the Amazon Black Friday MP3 albums sale page each day this week for the latest deals.

Suzanne Vega: "People & Places" Out Tuesday; Get It for $3.99 Today

Singer-songwriter Suzanne Vega's latest project is re-recording a number of her songs from throughout her career and releasing them in themed albums. The first album in the series she's calling "Close-Up" was "Love Songs"; the second, "People and Places," comes out tomorrow.

Amazon.com is having a special day-early sale on the MP3 edition of "Close-Up, Vol 2: People and Places (Deluxe Edition)," offering it for only $3.99 for Monday, Oct. 12th only. [UPDATE: The price is still good on Tuesday, Oct. 12th.] (This offer may be good only in the U.S.) This edition has several extra bonus tunes, including a Spanish-language version of "Luka."

As you'd expect, New York is the place that shows up most frequently on the (as in "Tom's Diner" and "New York is a Woman"); and the people include the title characters from her songs "Luka," "Priscilla," and "The Queen and the Soldier."

Suzanne Vega performed a live set at Borders book store headquarters last week; you can view song from the session at the link. Playing with Vega are her longtime collaborators bassist Mike Visceglia and guitarist Gerry Leonard.

Amazon.com $5 MP3 Albums - New Lady Gaga, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Rihanna, and More

I usually point out (um, rather late) Amazon.com's selection of $5 MP3 albums for each month, but right now they're offering more than 800 albums for that price. I'm not sure how many of these deals expire at the the end of the month (that's today), and how many will continue beyond that date. (UPDATE, 1/4/10: Amazon's site still says that "over 800" MP3 albums are available for $5 each, so you can probably assume that all the ones mentioned in the paragraphs below are still at that price.)

One Web page lists 100 $5 MP3 album downloadsfeatures selections including Lady Gaga's The Fame Monster, It's Blitz by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, the self-titled album by Chickenfoot, and more, with genres such as rock, blues, R&B, country, etc. all grouped together. (This may be the December selection.)

Another list of more than 800 $5 MP3 albumsis broken down by genre so you can view, say, all pop or country albums. The 50 $5 pop albums include Lady Gaga's The Fame (not to be confused with The Fame Monster), Rihanna's Rated R, Classic Sinatra: His Greatest Hits, Mandy Moore's Amanda Leigh, Fergie's The Dutchess, and Australian guitarist Orianthi's Believe. Younger listeners may squeal with delight at the chance to get teen heartthrob Justin Beiber's My World for $5.

Among the classic rock titles are some real classics, including Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon.

With more than 800 MP3 albums on sale for $5, I'll be buying more than a couple (am especially interested in that Orianthi album).

2009 Amazon.com Black Friday & Cyber Monday Sales: Music, Movies, and More

For those of you recovering from eating massive amounts of turkey and other foods, the Amazon.com Black Friday sales offer you the chance to shop for your friends and relatives (or yourself) and get some great deals. (What's more, many of the specials will continue through Cyber Monday).

The Amazon.com Black Fridays main pagelists deals available in a number of popular categories: music, movies and TV, electronics, video games, etc. At the top of the page is a "Lightning Deals" offer. These are items available only for a limited time and in limited quantity, and below the item is a countdown timer and a progress bar showing you what percentage of the item has been claimed. If you like the pulse-pounding thrill of chasing down a hot deal and buying it at the last minute, this option is for you.

Check out the Black Friday music salefor information on sale prices running through Monday, Nov. 30 on new releases and bestsellers, boxed sets, and $5 lightning deals on CDs. You'll also see the list of timed specials available.

Amazon always offers a selection of 50 MP3 albums for $5 each month, but for Black Friday they claim to be offering 600 MP3 albums for $5 each. I didn't take the time to count them all, but go to their page to check it out. There are lists of 50 $5 albums in pop, rock, indie and alternative rock, jazz, Christian and gospel, R&B, singer-songwriters, Amazon editors' picks, and more.

Many of these albums seem to have been offered in the monthly $5 sale, but there are also some titles I haven't seen there. These specials, like many other deals, may continue through Cyber Monday.

The Amazon.com Black Friday movies & TV dealshas a bunch of timed specials available through Friday night, Nov. 27. Only a few titles are on sale in any particular time window, but if there's something you want there, you'll want to pounce.

If this all sounds like a bewildering array of products and deals, well, it is. I can only peruse the Black Friday pages at Amazon.com for a few minutes at a time without feeling bogged down with all the choices. But, an overselection of discounted music, movies, and the like to choose from is a good problem. Amazon will likely hold sales after Cyber Monday as well. Happy shopping!

Cheap Music: Discount MP3 Albums at Amazon.com - Limited Time

Amazon.com has special deals every day offering discounts on MP3 albums (as low as $1.99), and while these usually only last one day, here are a few good deals that are still valid a few days later. (Note: prices are still effective as of 1 a.m. Eastern time, Monday, Nov. 16th.)

* Document (R.E.M. No. 5), R.E.M. - Although this album doesn't get the attention of some of the band's better-known sets, it contains some classic R.E.M. tunes you'd recognize, most notably "It's the End of the World As We Know It," "The One I Love," and "Finest Worksong."

* Candy-O, The Cars, $2.99 - Ah, the second album by The Cars... I listened to this LP (yes, LP) many, many times when it came out. Includes "Let's Go," "Dangerous Type," and the title track.

And don't forget Amazon's usual 50 MP3 Albums for $5,a monthly feature on the site. The November offerings include new-music favorites from Heartless Bastards, The Gaslight Anthem, Yo Gabba Gabba, The Decemberists, The Antlers, Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros, and Blitzen Trapper. For hip hop fans, Jay-Z's latest, The Blueprint 3, is also available for five bucks.

There are classic rock/pop albums from Johnny Cash, Heart, The Beach Boys, The Clash, The Band, The Steve Miller Band, and and Minutemen. For jazz and blues fans, there's Nat King Cole, Art Blakey, and John Coltrane.