Party Style: 20 Cocktail Party-Perfect Albums

1. MUSICA CUBANA
Look no further than the increasingly popular world of Cuban music to add a Latin beat to your cocktail hour fiesta. Helpful tip: Highly discourage guests from smoking Havanas in su casa -- you'll most likely never get the smell out.

• Ry Cooder/Various Artists The Buena Vista Social Club (Nonesuch)
  If you haven't yet succumbed to the Buena Vista phenom, we urge you to start listening to this amazing Cuban album now.

• Afro-Cuban All Stars A Todo Cuba Le Gusta (Nonesuch)
  This album, featuring the best of Cuban music old-timers, is a great shortcut to a celebratory mood.

2. BOSSA NOVA BEAT
No, it won’t inspire the lambada, but your party guests will feel their booties subconsciously quake when administered the proper dose of the bossa nova beat.

• Stan Getz The Bossa Nova Years: The Girl From Ipanema (Verve)
  Get all the hits from the King of Bossa Nova in one convenient package. Your friends will love bouncing to his samba beat.

• Sergio Mendes Best of Sergio Mendes and Brasil '65 (Curb)
  Just one look at the groovy, goatee-sporting Brazilian studs on this album cover will impart a very important message: Party!

3. DISCO DUCK
Okay, so you've succumbed to the irresistible disco beat. As we all know, each big disco act had only one hit that anyone cares about. So why bother buying 20 different CDs to get 20 danceable songs? Just go for that compilation: Everyone will think you made it yourself anyhow.

• Various Artists Pure Disco (A&M)
  Anyone for the "Grease Megamix"?

• Various Artists Pure Funk (Polygram)
  This compilation contains "Brick House." Need we say more?

4. ON THE SUNNY SIDE OF THE STREET
Looking for popular jazz tunes? Survey the giants of the past.

• Ella Fitzgerald Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Songbook (Verve)
  Fitzgerald's smooth vocals and Porter's urbane lyrics add up to musical perfection.

• Hoagy Carmichael Stardust, and Much More (RCA)
  Celebrate Hoagy's 100th birthday by listening to 1930s hits "Georgia on my Mind" and "Lazy Bones."

5. JAZZY JAZZ
If you're seeking suave background music, nothing beats a great jazz album. (To start a collection, see our list of must-have titles.) Let your guests mingle as they drink cosmos and the CD changer gets on a mellow jag.

• John Coltrane My Favorite Things (Rhino)
  Your guests will chill with Coltrane's breezy, splashy style.

• Charlie Parker Yardbird Suite: The Ultimate Charlie Parker (Rhino)
  This two-CD set will inspire your party guests to bebop with Bird.

6. SUAVE SWINGERS
Want to imbue your shindig with retro flair? Mosey on over to Club Rat Pack for some toe-tappin', finger-snappin' hits. (For a modern spin, check out the new swing sets.)

• Frank Sinatra The Very Best of Frank Sinatra (Warner Bros.)
  This two-CD set lets you spin the Chairman of the Board's best for hours!

• Dean Martin All-Time Greatest Hits (Curb)
  Why the low-rent version of Frank? Well, because he knew that when the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie, that's amore.

7. COUNTRY
To lighten the mood with some Western Swing...

• Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys Best of Bob Wills (MCA)
  Ol' Bob'll have your guests swingin' their hats, kickin' up their heels, and yellin', "Ahhhhh haaaaa!"
  Does contemporary country have you confused? Don't despair, stand by this classic:

• Johnny Cash The Man in Black: His Greatest Hits (Columbia)
  A great pick for the end-of-the-evening wind-down. Your guests will beg you to let them do karaoke to "Ring of Fire." (Don't let them.)

8. R&B
Give your guests something to carry home: They'll be humming these R&B classics for days.

• Al Green Greatest Hits (Capitol)
  Make it easier for single guests to score some digits with the sexy sounds of Mr. Suave himself.

• Stevie Wonder Songs in the Key of Life
  Songs in the Key of Life (Motown)
  This double album, full of wonders like "Ebony Eyes" and "Pastime Paradise," will put a song in the heart of even the most reluctant partier.

9. FUNK FEST
Got to get the funk out? Or up? Or on? Or, well, you get the picture. If you've got the funk, you've got to share. Go for the funky best with these classic albums.

• Sly and the Family Stone Anthology (Columbia)
  If you play "Hot Fun in the Summertime" and your guests don't start grooving, eyes closed and lips pursed in a mmm-mmm good smile, check their pulses, 'cause they're comatose.

• Prince 1999 (Warner Bros.)
  Because even the 21st century can't replace "1999" in our hearts -- and CD collections.

10. DJ HIPSTER
Show off your hipster style with these DJ-tastic selections.

• Air Moon Safari (Source)
  This music may sound familiar because it works perfectly for TV ads, but don't let that dissuade you from the seductive powers of Air's musical persuasion.

• Morcheeba Big Calm (Sire)
  A blend of hip-hop and sweet vocals, Morcheeba will float your guests to seventh heaven.

--Elise Proulx