You’re making your list and we’ve made ours: tons of ideas for presents--even for those hardest to please. : From Elton to Boyz to Celine to Dylan, It’s an Album Bull Market

Looking for gift ideas? The list of the most popular CDs is always a place to start. For a little guidance, Calendar’s pop staff surveyed 40 of the nation’s most popular or critically acclaimed albums.

* AQUA, “Aquarium,” MCA. Part ABBA, part Saturday morning cartoon show soundtrack, part oddball novelty (“Barbie Girl”). All baloney.

*** 1/2 BOB DYLAN, “Time Out of Mind,” Columbia. Arguably Dylan’s most artful and convincing collection since the ‘70s. There’s a sense of confusion and weariness in these tales of love and life that is compounded by a constant awareness of the passage of time.

** MATCHBOX 20, “Yourself or Someone Like You,” Lava/Atlantic. About the only good thing you can say about the bland “Push” hit-makers is that they seem like a less pretentious Counting Crows.

*** 1/2 BARBRA STREISAND, “Higher Ground,” Columbia. There is a reminder here of the intimacy and character that made Streisand’s live shows four years ago so memorable. The heart of the album showcases the kind of higher aspirations that are all too rare in mainstream pop.

**** PRODIGY, “Fat of the Land,” Maverick. With more identifiable pop structures and more dynamic dance textures than those of the other British dance-rock stars, the album carries you along with the sonic rise and fall of a spectacular roller coaster ride.

** 1/2 LeANN RIMES, “You Light Up My Life: Inspirational Songs,” Curb. Instead of injecting intimacy and character into these dozen inspirational songs, the 15-year-old star pumps them up with melodrama.

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Albums and other items in Gift Guide are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good) and four stars (excellent).