When it comes to cheating, the men of ""Slackers"" are too enterprising for their own good. They spend their innovation and expertise orchestrating power outages, fire alarms and faking broken bones to cheat on tests. Dave (Devon Sawa), Sam (Jason Segal) and Jeff (Michael C. Maronna) are 45 days away from their diplomas, having cheated on every midterm and final they could.

Cheating commences through midterms, but Ethan's powerful crush throws a glitch in the scheme. ""Cool Ethan"" (Jason Schwartzman) catches Dave in phase two of the cheating process and gathers some incriminating evidence. Ethan gets this only after he thinks that Dave is moving in on his crush, Angela, played by model/actress James King.

While examining Angela's chair in physics class for a strand of her hair to add to his hair doll, Ethan grabs a crib sheet, as well as the mercy of Dave, Sam and Jeff. What follows is a blackmail proposition to get Angela to like Ethan. If Ethan doesn't get the girl, he squeals like a pig to the administration to get the boys expelled from Holden University.

Here romance crawls into the script and Angela begins to be the object of more than Ethan's desire -- he builds a shrine and films Angela while she's not looking.

The cameos succeed in this film. An intimate look at aging Hollywood pin-up Mamie VanDoren is hilarious, shocking and outrageous -- all rolled into a pair of very augmented breasts. A quick shot of Cameron Diaz with Cool Ethan is almost believable.

""Slackers"" is an off-beat comedy that makes one wonder, ""What are they trying to say to me?"" The movie could be saying that honesty will get you everything, that only the ambitious succeed, that there is a fine line between psychologically disturbed stalkers and crushes, or commenting on the power of love.

It plays like a scene in the mind of every student who always wanted to hack into the system or flip an offensive finger to the teaching assistant

Commercials already in heavy circulation portray ""Slackers"" as a feel-good ""American Pie"" flick, when it actually delivers a very different plot. Schwartzman, who was ""not afraid to expel"" the cheating gang, seems emotionally imbalanced.

The movie does have its laugh-out-loud parts, especially when Sam and the red-haired, sideburned Jeff handle their responsibilities of cheating in the group.

Don't expect a slapstick comedy, but rather a more offbeat comedy that contains imaginary ""Star Wars"" sequences and singing and dancing genitals. ""Slackers"" could really give you some ambition in college -- if you are a stalker or a cheater, that is.

Slackers

***

Starring Devon Sawa, James King and Jason Schwartzman

In theaters Feb. 1

Rated R

Bet you didn't know you could get a tattoo at RIMAC, did you? Well, most mortals can't, but when you are busy rock stars like Sum 41, all the amenities -- tattoo artists included -- come to you. While drummer Steve Jocz got branded in an adjacent room, lead singer Deryck Whibley and bassist Jason ""Cone"" McCaslin sat down for some Q and A, Heinekens in hand.

LB: Now, you guys have reputations for being big partiers on the road. Do you have any good stories to tell me?

Deryck Whibley: Really? We don't drink (laughs).

Cone McCaslin: Well, college people drink all the time, right?

LB: Any hotel rooms trashed?

DW: It all happens. Some bands chose not to do it. I don't know why -- maybe because they're not into it, or they think it's cliche ....

CM: Have you ever heard the sound of a TV breaking?

DW: It's weird. It's a vacuum tube, so they ... implode. It's not like a breaking sound, it's more like a pop sound. So anyway, it can happen. [Some] bands choose not to, and we were just one of the bands that chose to do it, I guess.

LB: Steve did an episode of ""MTV Cribs,"" and showed off his parents' house. Do you all still live at home?

DW: Well, we live on a bus, so we don't really live anywhere. But when we go home for three days, every now and then, we go to our parents' house. We were all just home for a month. I've never even thought of getting a house ... and then when I was home, I thought, ""I need to buy a house,"" because I got bored and I had nothing to do. By the time I found some that I liked, it was like, ""up, you're leaving for tour in two days,"" so I didn't buy a house.

LB: So have you guys seen the new Rolling Stone Readers' Poll? You guys cleaned up.

DW: I didn't even know what it was. I came home one day ... at Christmas and my mom had it and she just showed it to me.

CM: We have some very die-hard fans, I guess.

DW: And they're clearly the bestdressed.

LB: Many people think it's odd that a Canadian band sounds so much like Orange County punk rock. Who did you listen to growing up?

DW: Uh, bands from Orange County. The whole Fat Wreck Chords, Epitaph kind of stuff is the kind of punk rock we got into.

LB: So what are your top five albums?

CM: Tenacious D, Jimmy Eat World, H20, The Strokes ... So that's top four of the year.

DW: Of all time: Weezer (the first one), Guns 'n' Roses' ""Appetite For Destruction,"" Foo Fighters' ""The Color and the Shape,"" John Lennon's ""Imagine"" and Nirvana's ""Nevermind.""

LB: I wouldn't expect Nirvana to be on there.

CM: That's why we started playing music.

DW: When we started playing music, that was when Nirvana was at their height. It's almost cliche, but the time is now. In a couple more years -- three more years, five more years -- it will be really cool to say you like Nirvana again.

LB: Is there anything else about you that would surprise people?

DW: We're a lot smaller in person.

CM: We're like the smallest band in rock music.

LB: Do your fans pull crazy stunts to get backstage?

CM: They do get crazy. They run after you.

DW: Some people just walk on the bus. They just come on and sit down.

After an impromptu Frisbee session in the drop-off zone of the Hyatt Regency in La Jolla, I was able to stop Devon Sawa of ""Slackers"" and get background information about the set. Fresh from a day of classic ding-dong-ditch in the Hyatt, the 23-year-old Vancouver native settled in and assumed a calm, collected, good interview front -- backward cap and all.

JK: Does a morning of ding-dong-ditch mean that the set of ""Slackers"" was crazy, too?

DS: Yeah, we're making the hotel upset. The set was definitely crazy. A lot of crazy stuff went on.

JK: The classic Hollywood pin-up icon Mamie VanDoren makes an appearance in an intimate sponge bath scene. What was it like working with someone who has been in the business for so long?

DS: I did get to meet her, but very briefly. I was watching the scene from behind the cameras and it was hard to keep the laughter in. That was all improv. Yeah, [Jason] Schwartzman just came up with all that stuff. He just went nuts and she went along with it ... He is just so extremely talented you would often hear the director saying, ""God Devon, stop laughing!"" and I'd say, ""No, I can't. Schwartzman is just so funny!""

JK: How much of the movie was improv?

DS: Oh jeez, I'd say about 80 percent of that film was improvised. There was a lot of acting added to the script.

JK: Was the original script as funny?

DS: When I read the original script and got to the montage sequence, I just thought it was funny as hell. All the different things -- a lesbian make-out session, the singing and dancing penis -- it was raw and original.

JK: Had you ever been in a cheating situation in school or life?

DS: I have not because it was so hard for me growing up because I had a set teacher for most of my life, so you got one guy in a trailer staring at you for three hours. There is no way of cheating there. There is no way of slacking off, there is no way of skipping school or cheating on your test.

JK: Do you see any of yourself in your character Dave?

DS: Not at all. At the high school age, I was about a foot shorter than all the girls and a little quirky and skinny, and so I didn't have a lot of girlfriends. Dave is very smooth; always been the popular guy. We are pretty different.

JK: How did the crew handle all the cast and their practical jokes?

DS: We of course at times were goofing off. We pissed off the props people pretty good. By law, you can't drink beer on film, so they change the beer to water, but we decided to switch it back to beer.

JK: Did that scene make it in the movie?

DS: Yeah, we are all sitting on the couch. They found out, and they were not impressed. The director was having one, too, though! It was the end of the day and we said, ""Why not, let's have a couple of real ones.""

JK: When ""Casper"" came out you were 15, and a lot of girls had pretty big crushes on you. Did you ever have any kind of stalker experience like the one in ""Slackers?""

DS: Luckily, no. But I have had some weird fans. I had one girl that sent her brassiere and a lock of her hair. The bra was just gigantic and the lock of hair was red and it ended up being a big red-haired bra because in the mail ... it was just a big hairy bra. Things like that -- nothing too threatening. Nothing too Ethan in ""Slackers.""

JK: What does the movie say to the college kids?

DS: We are not trying to send a message. We want to entertain and get them to relax. Have a couple of beers if you can, and go see it.

Patricia Rincon and Jean Isaacs aren't just at the forefront of the modern dance community of San Diego, they're valuable members of the UCSD dance department.

Courtesy of San Diego Dance Theater

Rincon is the founder and artistic director of Patricia Rincon Dance Collective. As a producer, she has brought renowned artists to San Diego since 1982. Her company also regularly tours the United States, Mexico and Europe. She recently completed the 10th in a series of instructional videos titled ""Rincon Method of Dance Training.""

Isaacs' involvement in the San Diego modern dance community dates to 1969. She helped found the San Diego Dance Alliance.

She has also choreographed for the La Jolla Playhouse, the San Diego Repertory Theater, The Globe Theaters and Sledgehammer Theater. In addition, she has been part of various panels of the California Arts Council of Dance, Artists-in-Residency, Touring and the Challenge panels.

After serving as artistic director of San Diego's ""3's Company"" for 17 years and ""Isaacs/McCaleb & Dancers"" for six years, Isaacs is now the artistic director of the San Diego Dance Theater.

Though both have taught for many years, they consider themselves artists rather than teachers. Rincon says that she ""started as an artist, but had to teach to survive.""

Isaacs says that although she has taught for 30 years, it has only been in the last 10 that she has regarded herself as a teacher.

However, such attitudes are valuable to the students who learn from these professors. Because their work outside of the classroom is such a major part of their lives, these instructors use that work while teaching. Rincon says that working outside of school gives her ""greater scope for other issues in art and society,"" and that her traveling gives her an international perspective that she tries to bring back to students.

Isaacs says that working outside school keeps her fresh as a teacher. These instructors also gain valuable ideas from their students, and often put these ideas into their companies. Rincon says that working with the students leaves her ""recharged"" and that her students help inspire her professional work. The students also interpret her work and experiment with it.

Rincon and Isaacs don't believe that it is impossible to completely separate these two parts of their lives. Rincon says that it is her philosophy to try to incorporate the two. ""Joint ideas feed off of each other ... it's one big fabric,"" said Isaacs.

Both instructors believe there are many advantages for students to be taught by such active members of the dance community. Rincon believes that the students benefit because the instructors' work ""does not become stale"" and that they are ""constantly pushing the envelope of their craft.""

Isaacs noted more practical advantages for students. She says that working with professionals gives students ""access to professional pay work."" She also says that dancers she has taught make up at least two-thirds of her company.

Of course, just because they are artists first doesn't mean they don't enjoy teaching. Rincon's favorite class to teach is ""History of Modern Dance.""

""It gives a theoretical understanding of how modern dance was formed and the effect it has on dance today,"" said Rincon.

Isaacs most enjoys teaching ""Choreography for Dramatic Text"" because it links text-based work with choreography.

Both instructors feel students should take advantage of the many dance performances in San Diego.

Isaacs performs in the Plaza Cafe on Feb. 11, and as all college students love to hear, admission is free.

For more information on dance events happening on campus check out http://www-theatre.ucsd.edu/

onstage/ or http://ucsdnews.ucsd.edu/

calendar.

Say the word ""opera"" and watch the majority of college-age students go running in the other direction. The very word is enough to bring to mind images of antiquated, irrelevant plots, dusty and ostentatious costuming, and drama that would make most teenagers' lives seem dull by comparison.

Courtesy of San Diego Opera

San Diego Opera's production of Giuseppe Verdi's ""Rigoletto"" may change all that. Enter a production supervised by the Oscar-nominated director of ""Driving Miss Daisy,"" transplanted to modern-day Los Angeles, with sets ranging from Bel Air mansions to Venice Beach bars, and with costuming by Giorgio Armani.

""Rigoletto"" traditionally tells the story of an eponoymous court jester who tries to protect his sheltered daughter from his philandering master, the Duke of Mantua, only to find that his zealousness has repaid him with tragedy by the end.

The plot is compelling enough in its native 16th century setting, but the move to a locale more relevant to modern viewers makes it all the more captivating. Rigoletto becomes a fawning agent; ""Duke"" Mantua is a superstar movie producer; the assassin Sparafucile, who seals the fate of Rigoletto and his only daughter, is a Hollywood stunt man.

San Diego Opera's production of this classic retains everything of the original vocals, music and plot. It is the sets and costuming that receive the most distinct overhaul: soaring ceilings and shiny metal decor for Duke Mantua's Bel Air mansion and a grimy, neon-lit bar and hotel at the water's edge for Sparafucile's Venice Beach haunt.

Many characters look as though they would be at home in some pocket of modern Los Angeles, whether it be at the Beverly Center shopping for a luxury watch or on a corner of Hollywood Boulevard beckoning suggestively to passersby.

The sets are appealing eye candy, but the singers often do not make full use of the area allowed to them; as is typical in traditional productions, they may loiter for many minutes within a small confine. The use of the bar area in Venice Beach is a rare time in the performance when the singers exploit the ingenuity of the set construction, moving throughout the area and interacting with the objects around them.

The cast and crew of ""Rigoletto"" include a diverse array of talent, including many who have worked with San Diego Opera before.

Baritone Mark Rucker, who sings the title role, made his San Diego debut in 1996 and has subsequently worked around the United States and Austria.

The show-stealer, however, is soprano Maureen O'Flynn, debuting in San Diego as Rigoletto's daughter Gilda. Her soaring vocals contribute just the right quality of sweetness and power to the role of Gilda. O'Flynn's singing recently appeared on a CD called ""Operatica: 'O',"" a compilation of classical music and opera songs combined with electronic music.

Of relevance to UCSD is Department of Theatre and Dance instructor Jean Isaacs' involvement with this production of ""Rigoletto."" Isaacs has choreographed plays at San Diego's Old Globe Theatre and at La Jolla Playhouse. Her work in ""Rigoletto"" is her first involvement with San Diego Opera.

A night of opera is perhaps not everybody's idea of fun. However, it may be time that the preconceptions holding some back be shattered. San Diego Opera's ""Rigoletto"" serves as an excellent introduction to what opera can be -- soaring, entertaining and just as moving as film or theater.

Further performances of ""Rigoletto"" are scheduled for Jan. 25, 27 and 30. Student discounts are available for Tuesday evening performances for the remainder of the winter season. For more information on ""Rigoletto"" and future productions, visit www.sdopera.com.

How appropriate it is that ""I Am Sam"" lead character Sam Dawson (Sean Penn) works for a Starbucks franchise? Both the film and the coffee are predictable, calculated and a cheap fix.

Courtesy of New Line Pictures

Like Starbucks, the film leaves you somewhat content, but it could have been better if it wasn't reduced to the same old tried-and-true formula.

Penn plays a mentally challenged father who manages to raise his charming daughter, Lucy Diamond Dawson (Dakota Fanning), with a little help from his friends. When Lucy reaches the age of seven, she has already eclipsed her father in terms of intellectual capabilities. Social services recommend that Sam lose parental custody of Lucy and she should be adopted.

Sam refuses social services' suggestions and hires hard-nosed, overwrought lawyer Rita Harrison (Michelle Pfeiffer) to get Lucy back. Sam believes that all you need is love to be a good father.

Instead of trying to deal with a subject that is heavy-handed and difficult, ""I Am Sam"" is a deliberate tear-jerker that doesn't carry that weight. The plot stretches on as it tries to squeeze out every tear left in your eyes.

Penn's acting is nothing short of spectacular. Penn is one of the best actors today and his performance shows why. He acts naturally as a mentally handicapped father. With a childish glee yet loving heart, Sam is a lovable character.

However, it is the adorable Fanning, who plays the little child of Sam, that captures the heart of the audience. Played with such emotional charm and loving care, it's no wonder why Sam does everything to keep her.

But even great acting can't save this film. The script and directing don't come together. All the characters are one-dimensional without depth and insight. After a while, the characters are so predictable and formulated that you don't really care about them anymore.

Beyond Fanning, the only thing that this film has to offer is a wonderful soundtrack. Songs from The Beatles, covered by other artists, are mixed throughout the film. The music is an homage to the vision and enduring strength of The Beatles.

""I Am Sam"" is unfortunate in that it tries to give an altruistic message, but pulls conventional and manipulative strings to strike the heart but not the mind. The plot drips with emotional baggage and by the end, it's all too much.

I Am Sam

**

Starring Sean Penn, Dakota Fanning and Michelle Pfeiffer

In theaters Jan. 25

Rated PG-13

Every couple of years, a movie will take such a huge, progressive step in special effects technology that it will draw in viewers solely to for a big-screen spectacle.

When it was released in August of 1982, Steven Lisberger's film ""Tron,"" which sported a dramatic leap in computer animation, was one of these films.

These days, however, the popularity of the film has been relegated to a very small group of fans because of an obvious lack in quality acting and a drawn-out plot, not to mention far too many blatant ""Star Wars"" rip-offs.

Would not then an extravagant, two-disc collectors edition DVD of ""Tron"" be a little much, considering the film's inherent flaws and small fan contingent?

Fortunately, Disney understood the iffy status of its product and focuses its recently released ""Tron: 20th Anniversary Collector's Edition"" DVD almost exclusively on its special effects.

The DVD is replete with attention-grabbing special features on ""Tron"" special effects, which still remain visually stunning despite their age, ranging from interviews with higher-ups to step-by-step demonstrations of processes. Several of these features were created specifically for the DVD.

The features not related to special effects, however, are not nearly as impressive. The audio commentary drags and the deleted scenes are uninteresting, further convoluting the film's focus.

The ""Tron 20th Anniversary Collector's Edition"" DVD, unlike many other DVDs of similar name, is exactly what it claims to be: only for ""Tron"" collectors. Fans of the movie ""Tron"" will appreciate the extra footage and special features, but casual movie viewers will want to save their money. The special effects and the subsequent features are not enough to overcome the film's other flaws.

Tron

***

Starring Kevin Flynn, Jeff Bridges and Alex Bradley

now in stores

rated PG

Reality-based suspense films are often the most frightening, however, ""The Mothman Prophecies"" doesn't adequately depict the disturbing atmosphere of the actual events on which the film is based.

Courtesy of Columbia Pictures

Based on a book by John A. Keel, ""Mothman"" recounts a series of paranormal events that occurred in Point Pleasant, Va. in 1967, but updated to the present day. Depressed newswriter John Klein (Richard Gere) finds himself inexplicably in the quaint yet eerie town.

He is pulled into the haunted world of the frightened villagers. When he discovers that many have reported sightings of mysterious humanoid creatures in the dark, he decides to stay to investigate, believing that the visions are somehow linked to his wife's death.

Director Mark Pellington succeeds in giving the film a creepy and mysterious feel with the dark scenes and intermittent flashes of relatives of the elusive Mothman. However, the film does not fully accomplish Pellington's goal of making a ""psychological mystery"" instead of a ""'creature' movie.""

The disturbing aura that envelops every scene can only depict the Mothman as an inhuman creature with unknown motives and destructive outcomes, but not as a stereotypical monster like King Kong or Godzilla. Pellington is reminiscent of Hitchcock in creating suspense by alluding to the unknown instead of trying to evoke fear by using sheer gore.

Gere adequately portrays a husband and reporter haunted by past events, but his actions often evoke frustration and are unexplained. The rest of the cast, which includes Will Patton and Debra Messing, are convincing.

Although all the ingredients are there, ""Mothman"" disappoints. It is beautifully filmed with scenes and its settings evoke fear and concern, but the story lacks the cohesiveness that would properly conclude the movie.

The Mothman Prophecies

***

Starring Richard Gere, Laura Linney and Will Patton

In theaters Jan. 25

Rated PG-13

Thursday 1/24/02

Loudon Wainwright III has a son with the more recognizable name of Rufus Wainwright. But the elder Wainwright is the one with the show at the Belly Up Tavern. Loudon Wainwright III sings songs that blend humor with painful honesty. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. and tickets are $14.

Think Ricky Martin but with some more musical credibility - Luis Miguel plays at Cox Arena. His smooth Latin sounds have earned him three Grammys and 35 platinum records. The show starts at 8 p.m. Jan. 24 and 8 p.m. Jan. 25. Tickets start at $48.25. This show is all ages.

Friday 1/25/02

Punk imported from Canada? But it's true. Sum 41 has come through with infectious punk-pop hits and heavy MTV airplay, and have brought along Unwritten Law to open. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. and the performance is at RIMAC Arena. Tickets start at $16.50. Look to the Hiatus article on page 9 for more.

Costumes and charisma. Eek-A-Mouse is guaranteed to put on a fantastic show. Smooth reggae sounds along with great vocals provided by Eek make the trip to the Belly Up Tavern well worth it. The show starts at 9:15 p.m. and tickets are $15.

The Watts Prophets were spawned out of the violence of the Watts Riots in 1965. This project has developed into a full production with spoken word poetry injected with jazz and hip-hop. The Watts Prophets will be at the East County Performing Arts Center in El Cajon. Tickets start at $12 and the show starts at 7:30 p.m. The performance is open to all ages.

Thick, bluesy guitar sounds are accompanied by the gruff vocals of Billy Thompson. He will be at Dizzy's in Downtown San Diego. The event starts at 9 p.m. and the cover is $8. The event is all ages. Contact Dizzy's at (858) 270-7467 for more information.

Saturday 1/26/02

Jazz guitarist Ed Johnson will be accompanied by his 11-piece band, Novo Tempo, at Dizzy's. The show starts at 8 p.m. and the cover is $12. Call (858) 270-7467 for more information.

Sunday 1/27/02

He's diagnosed as a chronic schizophrenic. American Records gave him a record deal and told him to just play tunes and tour. Today, Wesley Willis maintains a strong cult following with his wild lyrics. He will be at The Casbah at 9 p.m. Call The Casbah for more ticket information at (619) 232-4355.

Guitar master John Stowell will be accompanied by Rick Helzer and Gunnar Biggs at a special afternoon performance at Dizzy's. The show is from 3 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. and cover is $6 for students. General admission is $8. Call (858) 270-7467 for information.

Enjoy the birthday tributes for Bobby Hutcherson & Garyburton at Dizzy's in Downtown San Diego. Vibraphonist Patrick Burke & his jazz quartet will do sets of each performer's compositions. The event will also feature Tom Bishop, Steve Baker and Ronnie Stewart. The show runs from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Cover is $8 and you can call (858) 270-7467 for more information.

Thursday 1/31/02

Drummer Billy Mintz has played with the likes of Lee Konitz, Eddie Daniels and Charles Lloyd. Mintz will team up with former Zappa trombonist Bruce Fowler. The cover is $10 and the show starts at 8 p.m. at Dizzy's. (858) 270-7467 has all the information.

Singer-songwriter Jonathan Brooke has a lot to sing about. Her solo release, ""10 Cent Wings,"" touches upon the sudden death of a close friend, failed relationships and a marriage heading downhill. Her most recent solo album, ""Steady Pull,"" has also incorporated a drum machine with her backing band for a more modern musical sound. Brooke will be at the Belly Up Tavern and her show starts at 8 p.m. Tickets start at $15.

When talking to Ray Manzarek, you get an eerie feeling that there might be a ghost in the room. As he sits in a Borders bookstore in Northridge, Calif., the mystical energy of The Doors still surrounds him, and one can't help but wonder if the Lizard King is not looking over his shoulder.

Courtesy of Jane Eyre publicity

Manzarek never tires of reminiscing about his old friend, Jim Morrison, and every anecdote is charming and fascinating. In ""Light My Fire: My Life with The Doors,"" Manzarek tells the true story of the band. In his new book, ""The Poet in Exile,"" Manzarek adds a provocative (albeit fictitious) final chapter to the saga of The Doors.

While ""The Poet in Exile"" is a work of fiction, Manzarek admits its plot closely resembles the story of The Doors.

""It's very close,"" he said. ""It's almost the same characters."" In the book, a keyboardist named Roy from a famous 1960s rock band starts to receive cryptic postcards signed only with the letter ""J."" Roy believes that this could only be the correspondence of his band's lead singer, the ""Snake Man."" Except there is a catch -- the Snake Man died in Paris ... or did he?

Convinced that the Snake Man is alive, Roy traces the postcards to the Seychelles Islands in the Indian Ocean. There Roy is reunited with the former rock god, who tells him the story of how he faked his death to find enlightenment and love in a remote tropical paradise.

While ""The Poet in Exile"" leaves you wondering just who -- or what -- is buried in Morrison's grave, Manzarek points out the underlying message of the book: ""The most important thing of the book is what happened to the poet after he stopped drinking,"" Manzarek said. ""This book is actually an excuse to talk about consciousness. This is a man's journey into consciousness. There's nothing more important for you, or for me ... and I [wrote] it in a rock 'n' roll fable.""

At this book signing in Northridge, fans of The Doors -- many of them in high school and college -- are just as excited by Manzarek as their parents were in 1966. When asked to explain the timelessness of The Doors, Manzarek's answer is simple.

""They represent freedom, freedom from convention."" he says. ""Freedom to stand free as a man or a woman on the planet if you have the courage and can break free of your conventional religion, politics, education. We represent freedom. I think it's as simple as that.""

***

With the end of the 1960s also came the end of one of the most influential groups in music, The Beatles. George Harrison and John Lennon moved on to successful solo careers. Within a year after the split-up of The Beatles, Paul McCartney formed Wings, which went on to produce many hits.

After the break-up of Wings in the late 1970s, McCartney went on to produce many other solo albums. He recently released a selection of covers on ""Run Devil Run"" (1999) and ""Flaming Pie"" (1997) to strong reviews and modest sales.

It has been four years since McCartney has released a proper studio album. ""Driving Rain"" was released late last year and is filled with classic McCartney pop songs. The sounds are stripped down and there are some odd chord progressions that give a slightly darker edge to the entire album.

The production of ""Driving Rain"" is raw, which creates a more intimate element to McCartney's voice and the rest of the music. This is especially evident in the rocking tune ""About You,"" when McCartney counts off the beats before launching into the song, which features an almost Doors-esque organ sound.

McCartney continued a Beatles-pace with this new album and played more bass guitar. The entire album was recorded in about five weeks with a band that McCartney had never worked with before.

""Lonely Road,"" ""I Do"" and ""About You"" are spawned from McCartney's trip to India early in 2001. McCartney's son James helped him pen ""Spinning on an Axis"" as well as ""Back in the Sunshine Again."" Memories of his late wife Linda still linger in ""There Must Have Been Magic,"" which is about McCartney's first encounter with Linda at a club in 1967.

""Driving Rain"" is an album filled with mid-tempo songs that offer relaxing melodies, but the last track, ""Rinse the Raindrops,"" is a great way to end the album. This rocking song jams past the 10-minute mark.

This album probably won't go down as one of the best McCartney albums of all time, but it's filled with 15 quality songs that make for a kick-back afternoon.

-- Joseph Lee

Various Artists

I Am Sam

V2

*****

The soundtrack for the upcoming film ""I Am Sam"" introduces a new generation to the brilliant song- writing of The Beatles. Sam's obsession in the film with The Beatles' songs allows the soundtrack to be comprised entirely of cover songs by artists ranging from industry legends such as Eddie Vedder to fresh faces such as Rufus Wainright and Heather Nova.

The soundtrack simultaneously introduces The Beatles and a number of artists that the general public are unfamiliar with. Each cover has a distinct sound; at the same time, none stray too far from the original sound or detract from The Beatles' original work. This album is a must-buy for any Beatles fan as well as anyone who enjoys discovering the music industry's great young artists before they gain mass appeal.

While every song on the album deserves a listen, the standout single is undoubtedly ""You've Got to Hide Your Love Away,"" covered by Eddie Vedder. Already receiving plenty of airplay, this song captures the spirit of The Beatles and their era with a modern, sombe sound that Vedder has made his own over the last decade.

Other possible singles on the album come from solo acts Ben Folds and Sarah McLachlan, who cover ""Golden Slumbers"" and ""Blackbird,"" respectively. Folds' cover stands out because he stands to popularize a song that was never given the appreciation it deserved among the list of neverending hits created by The Beatles.

McLachlan's cover is poignant for nearly opposite reasons. McLachlan lets the song create her sound instead of trying to overpower it with her tremendous vocal talent. She tastefully recreates ""Blackbird"" in homage to Paul McCartney.

This album should be a part of every music collection.

-- Dave Bynum

Bad Religion

Process of Belief

Epitaph

*****

Now that Mr. Brett is back, it's hard not to be a true believer.

Bad Religion's first album since the return of guitarist/songwriter Brett Gurewitz, ""The Process of Belief,"" is the hardest and deepest record these staunchly antibullshit L.A. punks have ever made. Its 14 tracks hold more substance than any of the group's holy trinity of late '80s releases (""No Control,"" ""Suffer"" and ""Against the Grain""), and they hold together better than any of their successful early '90s albums.

Until 1995, Bad Religion had been a two-man show. But in 1993, the band moved from Epitaph to Atlantic. Two years later, Mr. Brett defected back to his company to manage its growth into the most successful independent record companies of the 1990s.

On ""The Process of Belief,"" Gurewitz's literary, folk-inspired songs make a welcome return, but Graffin's compositions -- sometimes ungraceful and pedantic in the past -- now hold their own. In fact, this is the first Bad Religion album where the songs' authors are not formally revealed. We can be reasonably sure that Gurewitz penned the idealistic, emotional single ""Sorrow,"" and ""Prove It"" has Graffin's academic signature all over it. But other tracks, such as the surprisingly moving protest ""Kyoto Now!"" could belong to both.

Irony and contradiction abound, such as religious chanting behind lines like ""I'm materialist/Call me a humanist/I ain't no deist,"" or the antispiritualist spiritual yearning in ""Sorrow."" These subtleties drive home the band's philosophy: Theism, society and government may be ""bad religions,"" but hey, so is rock 'n' roll. Graffin has said, ""You have to believe in something, or you cannot live."" ""The Process of Belief"" is a good starting point.

-- Lawrence Marcuss

was only a few months old when John Lennon was shot and killed. I had no idea what it felt like to have a Beatle pass on. But when George Harrison died late last November, I realized what it felt like to lose a Beatle, a cultural icon and one of my favorite musicans.

Harrison was probably one of the most underrated guitar players of all time; he tends to be overshadowed by the likes of Eric Clapton and Jimi Hendrix. But Harrison maintained his own melodic style, which is evident in Beatle songs such as ""Something"" and ""Here Comes the Sun."" Harrison also launched a successful post-Beatles career with songs such as ""All Things Must Pass"" and ""My Sweet Lord.""

Harrison was my favorite Beatle. Maybe it was because, to me, he was the underdog of The Beatles. The casual fan seems to praise the talents of Lennon and McCartney but forgets how weak The Beatles sound would have been if it weren't for the lead guitar talents of George Harrison.

But fans should be able to celebrate life the way that Harrison celebrated life. As Harrison reminded us, ""All Things Must Pass.""