Love = drama + melodrama on Glen Hansard's moonstruck solo debut, as it is in his songs for the breakout film-turned-musical Once, and for his bands The Frames and the Swell Season. "I want to do what's right," he sings on "Maybe Not Tonight," adorably ready not to, conjuring the Seventies country-pop vibe of Glen Campbell around stock images: pretty eyes, an August night, "the long grass where we lay." More striking are the unsettling string arrangements by a coterie of indie-rock/classical fusionists (Thomas Bartlett, Nico Muhly, Rob Moose) and a quietly riveting duet with Once co-star Markéta Irglová ("What Are We Gonna Do"). As for many of us, a woman makes all the difference.

Listen to 'Rhythm and Repose':

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• Videos: Glen Hansard Plays New Solo Tunes

“Satisfied”

Only the genius of Tom Waits could combine the subject of mortality, a reoccurring theme in his work, with wordplay that name checks both Mick and Keith, whom he calls "Mr. Jagger" and "Mr. Richards," and the title of their magnum opus, "Satisfaction." And to show just how cool Waits really is, he even got Mr. Richards to play along, one of nine guest appearances the guitarist has made on three Waits albums. "This growling roadhouse stomp is a late-breaking response to the Stones' greatest hit," Rolling Stone said of the track.