On September 11, 2001, Jay-Z’s now classic The Blueprint was born. Backing up by the then-hungry producers like Kanye West and Just Blaze, Jay-Z ran his own show with his impeccable rhymes and ruthless disses. The Blueprint featured only one guest spot (Eminem on “Renegade”) and no club hits (yet the beats were still banging). A year later, Jay-Z followed up with the double-troubled The Blueprint, Vol. 2: The Gift and the Curse and boasted, “Rumor has it, The Blueprint classic / Couldn’t even be stopped by bin Laden.” True, the first installment was unstoppable, but the second was a disaster full of distracting guests. The double disc was so unnecessary long that Jay-Z had to quickly release a 2.1 to trim down the fillers.

The final installment of the Blueprint trilogy is scheduled to release on September 11, 2009. Unfortunately, The Blueprint 3 is more like the second album than the first classic. Guests show up on most of the tracks and nearly every production is a club banger. On a Swizz Beatz’s typical bouncy production, “On to the Next One,” Jay-Z shows that he is still a maestro of flow and he could wrap his swag around any beat even the forgettable ones. The problem is that the beat doesn’t match up to his bravado: “Baby I am a boss / I don’t know what they do / I don’t get dropped / I drop the label / World can’t hold me / too much ambition / Always knew I will be like this when I was in the kitchen.”

One of Jay-Z’s artistic assets is, without a doubt, his braggadocio. The down side is that he uses it way too much already. We already know that Jay-Z doesn’t run rap anymore; he runs the map (“What We Talkin’ About”). We already know that Jay-Z’s the only rapper to rewrite history (“D.O.A.”). We already know that Jay-Z makes the Yankee hat more famous than the Yankee can (“Empire State of Mind”).

What lit the fire under Jay-Z’s ass though are his enemies. On the Kanye-produced “Already Home,” Jay goes hard at rappers and his critics: “Tell me I don’t get it / Everybody could tell you how to do it / They never did it.” Jay-Z obviously still doesn’t get it. If he got it, he would have learned his lesson from The Blueprint 2 and he wouldn’t cut embarrassing tracks like the sex-bragging “Venus vs. Mars,” self-congratulating “Reminder” and age-denying “Young Forever.” Jigga, get your grown-man on!

I am not yet a classical fiend, but I already am hooked on Michel Camilo’s jaw-dropping virtuosity. Backing up by the vigorous BBC Symphony Orchestra, jazz pianist Camilo displays his exemplary classical techniques on Concerto for Piano and Orchestra. The 15-minute opening track alone is captivating and the energetic “Tropical Jam” is highly addictive. Duke and I have been enjoying this album every night until he goes to sleep. Check out “Caribe,” an electrifying solo piano.

Nowadays young singers try to cover timeless songs, but with not much success. Trinh Hoang Hai is an elderly man who could almost do the justice to the classic tunes on his debut Bien Hat. Though lack in techniques and range, he has a raspy voice and an understated approach to ballads. Unfortunately, his use of vibratos killed his effortless delivery. On Tu Cong Phung’s “Mat Le Cho Nguoi” and Pham Duy’s “Thuyen Vien Xu,” he sings like a man in constipation trying to push and pull his way through. His rendition of Trinh Cong Son’s “Ru Em” and Anh Bang’s “Hoa Hoc Tro” are the only two tracks where he sounds less shaky. If he dropped the pulsating effect altogether, his flow would have been so natural.

When a band plays together for 15 years, the members breathe the same air and that was how the Tierney Sutton Band holding down the tiny-ass Blues Alley on Monday night. The band, which consisted of Tierney Sutton (vocals), Christian Jacob (piano), Kevin Axt (bass) and Ray Brinker (drums), performed together as a unit.

Ms. Sutton was not just a jazz singer. She was an integral part of the group. She used her voice as an instrument. Trading lines with the instrumentalists, Sutton always played around with her vocals, especially on the up-swinging tunes. On “What a Little Moonlight Can Do,” Sutton showed her remarkable sense of rhythmic by scatting and catching up with Ray Brinkers’s speedy tempo. Together the dynamic duo gave the standard a complete makeover. “Cry Me a River” also got a fantastic cover with an original arrangement and vocal treatment. “I Got a Kick Out of You” was fun, energetic and very unique. Love the opening bass solo, sensational piano improvisation, vigorous brushwork and Sutton’s playful scatting.

Alternating between fast swing and slow meditation, the band played some of the materials off its latest album, Desire including “It’s All Right With Me,” “Then I’ll Be Tired of You” and “Heart’s Desire.” The show was a perfect escape for a Monday night. My only dissatisfaction was that it was way too short. I wish the band covered my favorite “You Are My Sunshine.”

Luong Gia Huy’s Vua Nhac San should be translated as King of Crap. From the robotic dance beats to the ear-deafening use of Autotune, the album truly is a piece of crap. And of course the lyrics are crappy as hell too: “Khi doi ta ben nhau, I love you / Khi doi ta khong yeu, say goodbye.” Strangely, the only groovy track is the hilarious remix of “Thang Bom.”

Quynh Vi’s solo debut is like a pack of bubblegum with flavors coming from different parts of the world: China, America and Enchilada. The melody on the opening track, “Yeu Khong Hoi Tiec,” is Chinese and the chorus is a mixture of Vietlish: “Vi khi da yeu la khong bao gio noi I am sorry.” And for the rest, it’s a forgettable first listen. A second return is unnecessary.

With droopy vocals backing up by drowsy arrangements, Tuan Hung’s Nhac Xua seems primarily to put people to sleep. Play this album on a hot, lazy afternoon and you’ll be snoring before the first track is over. The mixture of the synth and the smooth sax on the jazzy rendition of “Toi Di Giua Hoang Hon,” is soothing enough for a massage parlor. On “Co Ua” and “Niem Khuc Cuoi,” Tuan Hung murmurs his way through the tunes so he could go to bed as well.

Steve Kuhn gigged briefly with John Coltrane, but the leader’s profound influence never left him. On this respectful, tasteful tribute to the jazz legend, Steve Kuhn Trio and Joe Lovano bring their own chops to Coltrane’s compositions. Lovano gives a reserved yet gorgeous solo on “Song of Praise” and the rhythm section gives the tune a cool, relaxed swinging vibe. On “Spiritual,” Lovano plays the tárogató, a Hungarian instrument, for a softer, yet warmer sound than a tenor while the trio swings gently behind him. Covering Coltrane is not an easy task, yet Steve Kuhn and his men had done the justice to Mostly Coltrane.

Without a Song captures some of the finest live performances from trumpet virtuoso Freddie Hubbard backed up by his impeccable rhythm section: Roland Hanna (piano), Ron Carter (bass) and Louis Hayes (drums). While title track displays Hubbard’s quicksilver solo over the band’s hard-swing tempo, “Body and Soul” shows off their lyrical balladry. “Space Track” and “Hub Tones” are among the unreleased gems.

Trieu Hoang’s seventh release, Xuc Cam, takes damn near three years to complete, yet the quality pays off. The lyrical contents are forgettable, but the flows and the productions are memorable. Right off the opening track, “Buong Xui,” producer/songwriter Nguyen Hong Hai crafted a wicked beat (rock-pop with a club flavor) to go with Trieu Hoang’s throaty voice. The result is stunning. The title track gets even better with just Trieu Hoang pouring is heart out on nothing else but the solo piano. Unfortunately Trieu Hoang’s own tunes bring down the album. “Hen Uoc” is straight Chinese-melody jacked and “Yeu” is just ill-rhymed. Even a top-notch production can’t save lyrics like this: “Moi dem anh ngu anh mo / Chi thay em ma thoi (Every night I sleep I dream / I only see you).”