New releases, Sept. 7: Jerry Lee Lewis, Sara Bareilles, Peter Rowan Bluegrass Band, more

In the 1980s, purchasing a ticket to see Jerry Lee Lewis was a roll of the dice.

First off, there was no guarantee that he would show up. Secondly, it was never quite clear what his frame of mind would be and whether he would deliver a full show. Finally, if he was in the mood to perform, was he going to deliver a concert filled with vintage rockers such as "Breathless," "High School Confidential" and "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On," or ease his way through country ballads such as "You Win Again?"

On a great night, the Killer would deliver a show that covered all the bases. At his next appearance -- to support the release Tuesday of his new album "Mean Old Man" on Verve -- he only has to perform one song.

Lewis is scheduled to join the cast of "Million Dollar Quartet" on Sept. 10 at the Nederlander Theater on Broadway in New York, and perform "Great Balls of Fire" during the finale. Levi Kreis, who received the featured actor in a musical Tony Award for his portrayal of Lewis, will step aside for the final number. The theater, naturally, will be selling the new album. Lewis has one other New York City show booked -- Sept. 13 at B.B. King's.

Like Lewis' previous album, 2006's "Last Man Standing," this is a collection of all-star pairings and features an assortment of rock and country standards. Lewis performs "Dead Flowers" with Mick Jagger, "You Can Have Her" with Eric Clapton and legendary Nashville session guitarist James Burton, "Sweet Virginia" with Keith Richards, "Bad Moon Rising" with John Fogerty and "Whiskey River" with Willie Nelson.

Other albums of interest:

Sara Bareilles, "Kaleidoscope Heart" (Epic)

Once again, a sophomore release poses the question few artists want answered: Was their rookie success a case of the singer or the song? Three years ago, Sara Bareilles was one of the first to benefit from the then-new concept of TV as "the new radio." Her "Love Song" became a multi-million-selling hit after appearing in a TV commercial, and "Gravity" was pumped up after it appeared on "So You Think You Can Dance."

She has moved on from TV to Twitter, where she is followed by nearly 1.9 million people and alternates between sharing her world and promoting the new album. Lead single "King of Anything" was the last song she wrote before entering the studio.

Peter Rowan Bluegrass Band, "Peter Rowan Bluegrass Band" (Compass).

Guitarist, mandolinist and singer/songwriter Peter Rowan has been active in bluegrass and bands that bend the rules of the genre since the early 1960s, when he became a member of Bill Monroe's band. He formed Earth Opera with David Grisman, Seatrain with Richard Greene, Old and in the Way with Jerry Garcia and, eventually, the Rowan Brothers.

Rowan's Bluegrass Band, one of three acts he leads, features Rowan on guitar, Jody Stecher on mandolin, Keith Little on banjo and Paul Knight on bass. This release is their first and it includes performances by Del McCoury, Ricky Scaggs, Gillian Welch, banjo player Alison Brown and guitarist Dave Rawlings.

The SteelDrivers, "Reckless" (Rounder Records)

The difference between the debut and the second album from the bluegrass band featuring Mike Henderson, Chris Stapleton, Richard Bailey, Tammy Rogers and Mike Fleming is that "Reckless" follows a considerable amount of successful touring. Their debut earned them award nominations from the Grammy, International Bluegrass Music Assn., and the Americana Music Assn. The band is featured in the Robert Duvall film "Get Low," for which they contributed four songs to the soundtrack. They perform Sept. 8 for the Americana Music Assn. at the Loveless Barn in Nashville, TN.

Brendan James, "Brendan James" (Decca)

Pianist/singer Brendan James made his new album in Los Angeles after moving there from New York, where he had lived for seven years. In his promotional materials he says the move did not change who he is as an artist. "I have tried to write a little more abstractly, but I just can't. You are what you are and my heart is on my sleeve. I am a romantic as well as an optimist. ... So I think my songs have this heaviness meets romance meets positivity." The first single is "The Fall."

Arvo Part, Symphony No. 4 (ECM)

Scored for string orchestra, harp, tympani and percussion, Symphony No. 4 was commissioned and premiered by the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra in January 2009 under Esa-Pekka Salonen . It was nearly 40 years after the premiere of his third symphony. The piece, which the Los Angeles Times hailed as "exceedingly beautiful," was recorded at L.A.'s Walt Disney Concert Hall.

Various Artists, 35 Years!!! Bear Family Records (Bear Family)

To celebrate the German reissue label's 35th anniversary, the family asked friends in the music industry, musicians and songwriters to write and record "bear" songs. They wound up with 68 of them. Deke Dickerson turned in "Bear Family Talkin' Blues"; the Spampinato Bros. delivered "A Bear Is A Bear Is A Bear "; Ray Campi proferred "Bear Me In Mind"; Ian Gomm & Jeb Loy Nichols came up with "Running Bear." You get the picture. In an accompanying book, music critics and experts pick their favorite Bear Family releases.

Other new releases:

Acorn, "No Ghost" (Bella Union)

Ornette Coleman, "Reunion 1990" (AIS)

Dick Dale, Very Best of Dick Dale (Shout! Factory)

Robyn, "Body Talk Pt. 2" (Interscope)

Stone Sour, "Audio Secrecy" (Roadrunner)

Young Buck, Rehab (Reel Talk)