Belle and Sebastian

It’s no secret Belle and Sebastian know their way around the BBC. Since 1996, the darling Scots have repeatedly been in and out of the Beeb, doing their bookish pop for the lads and lasses, and doing it well. Now that action on the airwaves is finally getting a proper rendering with The BBC Sessions, a collection of 14 tracks from the band’s glory years. Made up of three different sessions between 1996 and 2001, Belle and Seb deliver some of their most beloved classics, including a stunning, sans-synth "Sleep the Clock Around,” a touching "Slow Graffiti” and a clever rework of "Lazy Jane.” But it’s the closing John Peel session that’s the real draw. It includes some of the group’s last moments with now-departed vocalist Isobel Campbell and several non-album gems like "The Magic of a Kind Word” and the Go-Betweens’ cover "Shoot the Sexual Athlete.” But sadly, this collection is not a definitive one, and several prime BBC performances are excluded, making The BBC Sessions enjoyable but not as enjoyable as it could have been.