The Danny Elfman & Tim Burton 25th Anniversary Music Box ($500, http://www.burtonelfman.com)
The Warped Tour remains one of the better bargains on the summer tour circuit, at least for those who like punk rock. The tour's genre focus makes committing to tickets before a lineup is announced less of a risk, and through Wednesday, you can guarantee the skateboarder/Bad Religion fan on your list a spot on the 2011 jaunt via the Warped Tour site. The gift package comes with a commemorative ticket, as well as an ornament and a pair of socks.
— TM
Warped Tour gift package ($45, warpedtour.com/)
Yes, you could give your budding music fan a banjo, or a ukulele, or a drum kit. But if said obsessive is in his or her teen years, chances are each will be met with a grumble, a fake smile and an eye roll. These days making music is all about creating beats, remixes and mix tapes, and the Ableton Live software can do all three on a professional level but without a ridiculously expensive setup. Just purchase the software, take a few weeks to master the wonderfully intuitive design, and soon your budding superstar will have all the tools to make music. Teenagers are perennially plugged into their computers anyway; why not offer them the gear to be creative too?
— RR
Ableton Live (download, $379, http://www.ableton.com)
Some gifts are cool just because of the way they look, and the Crosley Revolution Record Player has a design to die for: sleek, portable and perfect for your crate-digging needs. Whereas before, any self-respecting vinyl lover would have to lug around a big box turntable to flea markets, used vinyl stores and the occasional sock-hop or slumber party, the Crosley Revolution's design makes it perfect for on-the-go listening — that is, as long as you keep that vinyl out of the sun.
— RR
Crosley Revolution Record Player ($149.95, http://www.crosleyradio.com)
Fun fact: Did you know that fey British crooner Morrissey once turned down an offer by Dennis Hopper to appear nude and painted blue in a film the actor/director was making? Or that Morrissey's two-night stint at the Hollywood Bowl in 1992 sold out in 23 minutes — besting the previous fastest sellout by the Beatles? Or that he has had a long love affair with Los Angeles? The Mozipedia, lovingly, obsessively compiled by British journalist Simon Goddard, provides insight into lyrics, settings, travels, recordings, gossip and history of the British band the Smiths and its former lead singer.
— RR
Simon Goddard, "Mozipedia: The Encyclopedia of Morrissey and the Smiths" (Plume, $30)
— RR
For the Miles Davis fan who has everything — and there's a lot of Miles Davis on the market — this mega collection isn't actually a box set. It is, more accurately, a trumpet case set featuring eight different box sets. More specifically, according to Sony, the set is "the most comprehensive and lavishly packaged collection ever dedicated to a single musical artist." Davis was a prolific artist, and the limited edition "The Genius of Miles Davis" lovingly compiles his entire Columbia Records oeuvre from 1955 to 1985. That's 43 CDs comprising 384 recordings, along with an individually numbered, exact replica of Davis' trumpet case, a T-shirt, a previously unpublished lithograph of the trumpeter's visual art, and a Gustat Heim horn mouthpiece identical to the one Davis used throughout his career. That's a lot of Miles.
— RR
"The Genius of Miles Davis" (Columbia, $1,199)
