Turns out, John Lennon – who would have celebrated a birthday today – was just as mercurially intriguing to his sidemen as he was to everyone else.

“Crosseyed and Painless,” released as part of ‘Remain in Light’ on Oct. 8, 1980, got at something deeper about the ’80s – and the Talking Heads.

With ‘Break Up the Concrete,’ released Oct. 7, 2008, the Pretenders found their old edge – but not with a return to hard-driving punk styles.

Swinging, grooving and bursting with courage and enthusiasm, the Turnback’s ‘Are We There Yet?’ is a power-pop goldmine.

“White Sister,” a stand-out moment from Toto’s sophomore album ‘Hydra,’ combines hard-rock strut and progressive rock obliqueness.

Kiss’ ‘Sonic Boom,’ released on Oct. 6, 2009, was packed with hooks, anthemic choruses, and a lifetime supply of innuendo. What’s not to like?

Not many people realize that the Them carried on after Van Morrison left for a solo career in 1966. We reach back into an overlooked period.

‘Goodbye Yellow Brick Road,’ released on Oct. 5, 1973, illustrates why – and how – Elton John became Elton John.

Noah Preminger’s own story is increasingly that about a tenor saxophonist of unquestioned talent with passion and an appetite for risk taking. All of those things are on display on ‘Pivot: Live at the 55 Bar’.

An expanded reissue of GTR’s self-titled 1986 debut finds Steve Hackett and Steve Howe making the surprising choice to take on a Yes classic.