Succinctness has rarely been a strong suit of Jane's Addiction, a pioneering alt-rock quartet well-steeped in the L.A. tradition of being fearlessly larger than life. This is true of this elaborately packaged but bloated box set: Amid early blueprints of Nothing's Shocking and Ritual de lo Habitual classics, only a wailing 1986 rendition of "Jane Says" and the folky "City" add anything to the original lineup's skimpy yet hugely influential output. Frontman Perry Farrell's absurd outfits and acid-addled charisma drive a DVD of videos and live clips, but a ferocious 1990 live set argues more forcefully that too much of a beautifully fucked-up thing is never enough; the rest of this set, not so much.

“The A Team”

This debut track from the then-20-year-old British singer-songwriter has a dark story behind it. Sheeran says he culls songwriting inspiration from "viewing other people's situations," which, for the heroine in "The A Team," involves drug addiction and prostitution that began as a teen. Sheeran paints the woman's trials with haunting imagery such as "But lately her face seems/Slowly sinking, wasting/Crumbling like pastries." "I did a gig at a homeless shelter, [and the song] is about one of the women there. It's her story," he said.