Benefit Beat

By Sidney Urquhart

Ever since George Harrison gathered with Ringo Starr, Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan and Ravi Shankar at Madison Square Garden for the 1971 benefit concert for Bangladesh, philanthropic pop has been a booming business. And in the caring, sharing '90s, a new formula has emerged: the compilation album. Among the best:

FOR OUR CHILDREN

For:

Pediatric AIDS

Theme:

Children's songs

Stars:

Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Paul McCartney, Elton John, Sting, Ziggy Marley, Bette Midler

Best Cuts

Dylan's quirky This Old Man, Little Richard's sassy Itsy Bitsy Spider, Elton's jazzy The Pacifier

DEADICATED

For:

Rainforest Action Network

Theme:

Songs by the Grateful Dead

Stars:

Elvis Costello, Bruce Hornsby & the Range, Suzanne Vega, Cowboy Junkies, Midnight Oil, Jane's Addiction

Best Cuts

Los Lobos' exultant Bertha, Lyle Lovett's Friend of the Devil, Costello's Ship of Fools

) RED HOT + BLUE

For:

AIDS research and relief

Theme:

Songs by Cole Porter

Stars:

The Neville Brothers, David Byrne, Tom Waits, Lisa Stansfield, Annie Lennox, Debbie Harry and Iggy Pop

Best Cuts

U2's galvanizing Night and Day, k.d. lang's torchy So in Love, Fine Young Cannibals' silky Love for Sale

TAME YOURSELF

For:

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals

Theme:

Songs by animal lovers

Stars:

The Pretenders, Howard Jones, k.d. lang, the B-52s, Belinda Carlisle, Exene Cervenka

Best Cuts

A live version of B-52's Quiche Lorraine, lang's Damned Old Dog, Cervenka's Do What I Have to Do

With reporting by Linda Williams