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Songs to energize a road trip

Veteran soul singer Bettye LaVette, who stole the show at the 2008 Kennedy Center Honors with her rendition of Pete Townshend's "Love Reign O'er Me," sticks to an English beat with Interpretations: The British Rock Songbook, featuring spins on the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, and Led Zeppelin.

A blues-rock band with a shimmering pop finish (and a lead singer who evokes Bonnie Raitt and Lucinda Williams), Grace Potter & the Nocturnals revel in the heat and sweat of summer on their new self-titled album.

And anyone who's ever shimmied—or made out—to a Curtis Mayfield song will adore the ultradanceable funk of Milwaukee's Kings Go Forth on their debut album, The Outsiders Are Back.

Going away? Get prepared for your vacation with O's essential summer travel tips