In Brief

* 1/2 David Crosby, “Thousand Roads,” Atlantic. Hmmm . . . a former member of one of the greatest bands ever (the Byrds) recruits some of the biggest names in the business (Phil Collins, Don Was) to record material by a handful of the most-capable hit songwriters around (John Hiatt, Marc Cohn). Should be a great album. So how come only “Hero” manages to hold the listener’s attention, thanks largely to Collins’ touch? Maybe Crosby’s just better suited to a backup role.

New albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor) to four (excellent).