"I'm crazy, but you like it," whoops Shakira on her new single, "Loca." Nuttiness has always been part of her appeal, with a warbling voice and lyrics that border on surreal. (She once compared herself to "a coffee machine in an office.") But mostly, her new album is businesslike, serious, sane. The music blends Latin rhythms, clubland electronica and lots of rock guitar. (Check out the heavy-riffing "Tu Boca.") Shakira largely produced the album herself, and she squeezes big emotions into ballads like "Devoción." She's not so crazy, this time — but you like it.

“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.