"Giving the gift of music, as the advertising copy for a Manhattan chain store recommends, is always a temptation for the last-minute gift giver. With a formidable array of performers recording here, CDs by both grass roots acts and international stars with the Hamptons hideaways can round out the holiday list. But what to choose?

On the South Fork the visual, literary, and theatrical arts tend to overshadow the recorded arts, but that should not be the case. With the wealth of local musical talent alone one could stuff stockings with a range of musical styles without having to cross the Shinnecock Canal, so to speak."

What follows is a highly selective roundup of a few of the newer releases by recording artists who could by some stretch of the imagination be called local. Some, like Paul McCartney and Billy Joel, are honest to goodness pop stars. Others like Jim Turner and Littlehead thinks, are still more or less regional attractions.

Nancy Atlas
"Swagger"

Over the course of 11 songs on "Swagger" and in a strong live show, the Nancy Atlas Project transcends its country forebearers and creates a style all its own. "Swagger" has a sound somewhere between Gram Parsons's California Sun and The Rolling Stones at their dirtiest, bluesiest moments. It sounds like the Arizona desert, like snake skin boots, like roadhouse rock and roll.

Ms. Atlas has a strong voice, strong enough that she can also sound perfectly ethereal at times. Throughout the CD her voice echoes over languid guitars, lending the songs the aura of a dream. She delivers sharp, well crafted songs with energy and attitude that impress. -G.V.C.

Billy Joel
"Fantasies and Delusions" with Richard Joo

In an interview on National Public Radio's "Morning Edition" last week, Billy Joel talked a bit about his classical beginnings, starting at the age of 4 on his parents' old piano in their Hicksville House. After a long and fruitful pop music career, the singer songwriter is back to his roots with a CD of classical instrumental pieces performed by the pianist Richard Joo.

You wont find a pop melody among the 12 tracks of "Fantasies and Delusions", though the Piano Man's fans might notice hints of similiar songs: a snippet from "The Strangers" here, a trill from "Vienna" there. This is the real deal, pure classical music with range and complexity. Such as in "Soliloquy(On a Seperation)," the first piece Mr. Joel wrote for this collection.

He told the story on NPR, the song came after a visit with his daughter Alexa, who was returning to Colorado where she was living at the time with her mom Christie Brinklely. Their goodbye was bittersweet, and, when Mr. Joel later put notes to paper he decided that the music, a little sad- a little dark, spoke for itself. It didn't need words. "If you put your own words in and you make up your own story... you can imagine, What was the composer thinking?"

This composer must have been thinking alot: the tracks, which vary in lenght from just under one minute to just over 11, add up to a playing time of more than an hour. And, while "Fantasies and Dleusions" might not be the epitome of classical composition, it is a strong body of work that adds a charming new dimension to the Billy Joel catalog.