He's not talking about Cleveland. City That Care Forgot is the New Orleans soulman's impassioned lament about the natural destruction of Hurricane Katrina and the man-made tragedy of the aftermath. Over ominous funk ("Land Grab"), gospel-inflected blues ("You Might Be Surprised") and horn-boosted R&B ("Time for a Change," featuring Eric Clapton), Dr. John's bourbon-and-sandpaper vocals reflect the bitterness of a man who can sense that "the smell of death still hangs on the honeysuckle vine." With watery guitars and atmospheric percussion, the title track conjures the loneliness of a place "where music and laughter once filled the air." His anger and sadness are clearly heartfelt, though the lyrics often detour into sloganeering like "The truth will set you free." But when the maestro takes a wide-angle snapshot of his hometown, he conjures up some thrilling moments. "You Might Be Surprised" is a grand Fifties-style ballad infused with rich Ellington-esque horns and gallows humor: "Life is a near-death experience," he quips. It's a bittersweet dispatch from just above the waterline.

“1999”

“I don’t consider myself a great poet,” Prince told Rolling Stone. “I just know I’m here to say what’s on my mind.” In the case of the apocalyptic party anthem “1999,” he was worried about then-president Ronald Reagan’s foreign policies. The song’s melody is based on a riff borrowed from the Mamas and Papas’ “Monday, Monday,” and Prince originally envisioned the first verse with three-part harmony but later split the vocals between himself and members of the Revolution. Because Warner Bros., with whom Prince was locked in a contractual battle, owned the original’s masters, Prince rerecorded the song and appropriately released that version in 1999.