CD reviews: Kelly Clarkson; Nat King Cole compilation

Kelly Clarkson, "All I Ever Wanted" (RCA)

So if the first album by the first "American Idol" was the obligation, her second the breakthrough and her third the reaction, then "All I Ever Wanted" plays out as Clarkson's concession. The most immediate parts of this CD read a bit like Kelly Clarkson karaoke: Back are the Swedish writers and producers and their laser-guided arrangements, with dynamics that are particularly well-suited to her voice, broad, nimble and gale-force strong.

Even though the lead single -- produced by Dr. Luke and Max Martin, it recently topped the Billboard Hot 100 -- is a proclamation of love, it still bears what have become Clarkson's trademark scars: "I know that I've got issues/But you're pretty messed up, too."

The rest of the album is a catalog of letdowns and ne'er-do-wells. "Cry" is a shouter of a breakup song, and on "I Want You," slithery with girl-group swing, Clarkson, culpable but smitten, falls for a bad boy. And on the excellent "Don't Let Me Stop You," about a man who won't commit, Clarkson tartly observes, "I couldn't help but notice/The last time you kissed me/You kept both eyes open."

But it requires a certain deftness to harness Clarkson, a gift not all her collaborators display. The most surprising assist comes from pop star Katy Perry, who is known for blithe pop candy but wrote two songs here that are appealingly dark. "I Do Not Hook Up" is about falling for an addict and dangling love as a tool for recovery, and "Long Shot" documents a relationship that constantly falls short. These songs acknowledge that, after all these years, Clarkson's identity is finally firm: spurned, hurt and torn.

JON CARAMANICA, NEW YORK TIMES

Nat King Cole and others, "Re: Generations" (Capitol/EMI)

A few semi-tragedies resulted, including Cut Chemist's butchering of Cole's vocals at the end of "Day In Day Out," the Roots' inept song-ending fragmentation of "Walkin' My Baby Back Home" and TV on the Radio's transformation of "Nature Boy" into amped-up ambience.

But in general, these producers make it oddly interesting, as when cosmically surrealistic overhauls emerge in the orbiting layers of Cee-Lo's spin on "Lush Life," when Nas knifes a swaggering rap into the peppy "The Game of Love" and when Brazilian Girls process the tango of "El Choclo" into an echoing romp.

The collection also triumphs with its more authentic-sounding tracks, such as will.i.am's jumping take on "Straighten Up and Fly Right" (with Natalie Cole scat singing) and a "Brazilian Love Song" that ingeniously incorporates the vocals of Brazilian Bebel Gilberto.