k.d. lang

Maybe she wasn't the reincarnation of Patsy Cline, as she once claimed, even heading up the Reclines ("Big Big Love"), formed in 1983 as a Cline tribute band. But when k.d. lang sings, you forget all the hype. Whether she's piling on the cow-punk or letting her sumptuous voice carry standards ancient and modern, as she does here, she's one of the great vocal stylists. Ease into the hits from her international breakthrough album, Ingénue, then try lang's Next Steps.

She used to rock like the young Elvis. Then she became an architect of glorious modern pop. And when she wants, she's a torch singer who can outdo the best of the crooners — check out the country torch of "Black Coffee" from 1988's Shadowland and the covers from her nicotine-themed 1997 release, Drag. Whichever k.d. lang is in the house, these tracks will touch your soul. For the full gamut of lang, tread lightly among the softer tracks of her Deep Cuts.

She was briefly a tabloid heroine when she came out, but k.d. lang has always been an icon for those who appreciate the art of a singer and a song. These cuts reveal the remarkable range of her music, from the assured, gorgeous, low-key ballad "This" on 1995's All You Can Eat, to the sparkling pop of "Curiosity" (Invincible Summer) to the incredible chorus (with lang providing her own backing vocals) of "Once in a While" from 2008's Watershed.

Kathryn Dawn Lang is one of pop's great non-conformists, able to flourish in most any realm she chooses, destined to delight listeners of every persuasion with a voice of rare power and purity. She came out of Alberta, Canada, on a mission to revive the legend of Patsy Cline, even hooking up with Cline's former producer, Owen Bradley, on Shadowland; she left Nashville impressed (if a little confused by what the establishment considered her unorthodoxy) before conquering the mainstream with Ingénue; and, since then, she's delighted with a succession of flawless releases, including her outstanding tribute to fellow Canadian songsmiths, Hymns of the 49th Parallel. Explore the brilliant canon of k.d. lang via these splendid tracks.