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A product of the post-teen-pop, pre-Kevin Federline Britney Spears of early 2004, "Toxic" was the second single from Spears' fourth studio album, In the Zone. No longer apologetic or defensive for breaking away from her '90s virginal teeny-bopper image and sound, the Spears in "Toxic" is out to have a good time on her own terms.

Once upon a time, an NPR Music series called JazzSet With Branford Marsalis visited clubs, concerts and festivals across the country and around the world. Today, our founding host runs his own record label, and JazzSet visits the Marsalis Music Stage at Newport, where Chilean-born Claudia Acuna sets political folk songs to the sounds of jazz.

La Roux is a British pop duo — 21-year-old singer Elly Jackson and synth player-producer Ben Langmaid — with a style that blends passionate vocals with strict mechanical beats. The pair's self-titled debut album went No. 1 in England and Europe this year, and now it's out stateside. Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews.

Norah Jones became an immediate star after the release of her 2002 album Come Away With Me. Having sold more than 36 million records, Jones decided to move in a different direction with her new fourth album, titled The Fall. Rock critic Ken Tucker says it's an improvement over her last two.

At age 4, Bruno Mars was delighting crowds with his "Little Elvis" impersonation. His success as an adult didn't come as quickly, but fame came calling after he produced several big hits.

He grew up with John Coltrane, gigged with Art Blakey and shared the silver screen with Tom Hanks. Now, on the eve of 80, illustrious saxophonist and jazz composer Benny Golson is re-creating his greatest ensemble: the six-person Jazztet.

He didn't see it coming when his sensitive crooning launched him to pop fame in 1996. But with one Tony Award-winning musical in the books and another production on the way, his work as a stage composer has put him in the spotlight again.

They run the increasingly influential Merge Records, but Superchunk band mates Mac McCaughan and Laura Ballance have still managed to squeeze in some recording time. They've just released Majesty Shredding, their first new album of guitar-fueled rock in almost a decade.

Rock critic Ken Tucker says that Beyonce's new album, titled 4, is something of a risk – it's not merely a collection of new songs, but a personal reassessment of the kind of pop star she wants to be.

Action-Refraction, the bassist and composer's new album, is mostly covers. He says that putting a personal spin on the songs he loves often requires breaking them apart.