From the cool romanticism of 1993's I'm Alive to the textured ruminations of 1996's Looking East, Jackson Browne has explored, with a sense of flash that answers only to itself, just how far a polished singer-songwriter can go. The Naked Ride Home stays in this noble tradition. Looser, warmer and more live-sounding than Browne's recent work — yet still as passionately crafted and sung — the songs take on domestic mysteries (the title drama) and political realities ("Casino Nation") with a varied midtempo dependability that turns richer and more resonant upon re-listenings. "For Taking the Trouble" and "About My Imagination" integrate reggae and soul so unobtrusively that the music mirrors exactly the precise casualness of Browne's voice — he is the sound of unfrantic L.A. cool engaged with the long view.

“Tonight's the Night”

The lead cut and title track from this girl group's debut album, "Tonight's the Night" was written by 19-year-old bandmember Shirley Owens, who sings lead, and producer Luther Dixon. The band from Passaic, New Jersey met in high school, first calling themselves the Pequellos. The song's frank thoughts about sexual and emotional surrender was racy for the time, but that didn't stop the Chiffons from cutting a similar version immediately after the original came out. "We were the first female group to write some of our own material," band member Beverly Lee recalls. "We did have some say-so in our writing."