EDITORS’ NOTES

On her ninth album, Sheryl Crow returns to slick pop-rock, pairing sing-along-ready choruses with her sly soprano and crisp arrangements. The shuffling “Long Way Back” is a motivational anthem for the world-weary; the flirtatious “Roller Skate” revives the breezy vibes of Crow’s earliest hits and adds roller-rink sauciness. Crow’s high-caliber band provide musical flourishes—a soft-focus harmonica on the blues-tinged “Alone in the Dark,” a juicy guitar solo from the virtuosic Gary Clark Jr. on the soulful “Halfway There”—to add potency to her hooks.