Jools Holland's long-established Hogmanay/New Year's Eve celebration Later … Hootenanny remains TV's definitive dad-rock haven after 11 years on air. This formidably well-stuffed collection is a best of the best: the easiest way to check out the guest list is to study the cover picture--there really are that many names. Amusingly, the compilation comes close to shooting itself in the foot by opening with Solomon Burke's rip-roaring "Everybody Needs Somebody to Love", thus giving the following 31 turns a near-impossible act to follow. If in doubt, watch it at the end, as the everybody-up-on-stage version of Jeff Beck's "Hi Ho Silver Lining" that closes the disc is unfortunately a shambles. Along the way, though, there are plenty of highlights, the best of which add up to a triumph for the Welsh contingent. Cerys Matthews and Tom Jones do their best smoochy version of "Baby It's Cold Outside" before it began to wear a bit thin, the strapping Matthews managing to come on like a cross between Bambi and that girl you fancied in the lower sixth. Immediately preceding this is a gloriously menacing performance from John Cale in which he turns Johnny Mercer's jazz classic "I Wanna Be Around" into a leering, spitting threat to the listener's personal safety. There's something for everyone here, though, so just enjoy the show.

On the DVD: Later … Hootenanny on disc has nothing much by way of extras other than a handy facility that allows you to programme a sequence of any six tracks of your choosing, which is quite clever. But with over 30 acts performing more than two hours of music on a single disc, you really don't need anything more. --Roger Thomas

Later... with Jools Holland--Giants is a collection of classic live performances from a decade of the late-night BBC music show. Everyone will have their favourites and, no doubt, differing opinions on what constitutes a musical "giant". What is indisputable here is the sheer volume and variety of artists and styles on offer. The 32 performers range from Pete Towshend to Blondie; Paul Weller to Willie Nelson; Leonard Cohen to Jeff Beck; Page and Plant to Ronnie Spector and the Divine Comedy. The acts vary in quality--Brian Ferry's posturing, staccato rendition of "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?" and Georgie Fame's futile, asthmatic efforts to keep up with the beat on "Yeh! Yeh!" are notable low points--but thankfully the few weaker moments are more than compensated for by tour de force performances from the likes of Al Green, REM, Tony Bennett, Dusty Springfield and George Benson. Your enjoyment will obviously depend on a desire to see these greats play, but where else are you going to get both Robbie Williams belting out an impromptu performance of "Suspicious Minds" and Solomon Burke singing "Cry to Me" from an enormous golden throne?

On the DVD: Later... with Jools Holland--Giants comes with a desirable selection of interviews with 10 of the featured performers. Sadly, they are tantalisingly short--never longer than three minutes, some little more than a minute--and never stretch beyond Holland's stock questions or brief, if entertaining, anecdotes. Also included are: a "playlist" feature, which allows you to select six of your favourite tracks and play them in an order of your choice, normal track selection, subtitles and a credit list. --Paul Philpott

A glimpse into the lifestyle of the Latin thugs with a sketch on the phenomena that started out as a group of home boys.