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V IS FOR VICTORY (DISC)

In 1942, with the world at war and the nation's cultural life crippled by an historic musician's strike and recording ban, a lieutenant in the Morale Branch brokered a compromise among the unions, labels, musicians and the Pentagon, which would allow the Army to produce its own music for the troops - V-Discs. The great acts of the day rushed to volunteer and in all, the Federal Government recorded, produced and shipped eight million records to the four corners of the earth.

It's a great story, with a soundtrack featuring standards we love and rarities that, thanks to the smuggling talent of our soldiers and preservation by the Library of Congress, have not been lost to time.

REACHING FOR THE MOON

The story of Irving Berlin is vast and wonderful. In a 65-year career, he lived many lives, giving us a staggering 1,500 songs, 18 musicals and 19 movie scores. George Gershwin called him the greatest songwriter in our history. Jerome Kern said, “Irving Berlin has no place in American music; he is American music.” Sammy Cahn said, “You couldn't have a holiday without his permission.”

The set list includes hits like “Blue Skies,” “Cheek to Cheek", “How Deep is the Ocean,” lovely jazz arrangements of tunes from “White Christmas” and “Annie Get Your Gun,” plus a handful of rarities, like “Pack Up Your Sins and Go to the Devil” and “You'd Be Surprised”.

THE GIFT OF THE VAGI

This autobiographical tale of naughty bits and woe comes replete with a gorgeous thief, a stalwart banker and an irate policeman. The set features the songs of Irving Berlin, Cole Porter, Harold Arlen, George & Ira, Willie, JT, Zeff and others.

Consensus: hilarious, Rated PG-13 for F-Bombs, but it’s not dirty, it’s naughty And tragic. As they say, tragedy + time = comedy, and bad decisions make good stories.