Album Review: Rogue's Gallery

While working on the Pirates of the Caribbean films, director Gore Verbinski and Johnny Depp became fascinated with the lore and fable of pirates and sailors and decided, along with Anti and Epitaph boss Brett Gurewitz, to create a compilation of songs paying tribute to life on the high seas. Needing a captain for their vessel, the trio enlisted legendary producer Hal Willner, who - just as he did on the fantastic Disney compilation Stay Awake - began matching up maverick musicians with extraordinary songs.

The artists clearly savour the opportunity to play pirate and each give it their own stamp. So, we have Bill Frisell's languid, haunting take on Spanish Ladies and Sting's hoary growl on traditional worksong Blood Red Roses, while Nick Cave snarls his way through Pinery Boy and Fire Down Below.

Never one to shy away from a chance to tackle traditional material, Richard Thompson clearly relishes Mingulay Boat Song, while his son, Teddy Thompson, performs Sally Brown. The family theme continues as Rufus Wainwright and his mother, Kate McGarrigle, play Lowlands Away. Rufus' dad, Loudon Wainwright III, also turns up to play the disgustingly funny Good Ship Venus and Turkish Revelry.

Other highlights include Gavin Friday from The Virgin Prunes' rambunctious take on Baltimore Whores and Antony's (of Antony & The Johnsons) astonishing vocal talents sitting alongside Bryan Ferry's monaural drawl on Lowlands Low. Jarvis Cocker's 7-minute A Drop Of Nelson's Blood is staggering, while the lilting hum of Bono's A Dying Sailor To His Shipmates is perhaps the track most likely to instigate a bout of seasickness.

Rogue's Gallery offers a look at the hardships, the horrors, the lusts, the lurid depths and the beauty that led men down to the sea for hundreds of years. In piratical terms, think of it as a treasure chest overflowing with bounty.