(FORTUNE Magazine) – Go ahead, put away that laptop. (Admit it: You were just playing solitaire, anyway, weren't you?) Here's some ear fodder to help keep you sane on those long hauls. --J.G.

BETH ORTON, Central Reservation (Arista): Both soothing and eerie. Imagine a campfire balladeer with a taste for sick ghost stories from the English moors.

STEVE EARLE AND THE DEL MCCOURY BAND, The Mountain (E-Squared): In tribute to Bill Monroe, the late "godfather of bluegrass," Nashville renegade Earle mows up a storm with McCoury, Monroe's heir apparent.

THE ROOTS, Things Fall Apart (MCA): Hypnotic grooves and haunting jazz harmonics make this a hip-hop album even a rap hater might love.

MEAT PUPPETS, II (Rykodisc): A re-release of 1983's sloppy and sun-zonked masterpiece by the dharma-punk trio from the Arizona desert. Nirvana revived three of these tunes during its mighty Unplugged session in 1993.

VAN MORRISON, Back on Top (Virgin): The reclusive Belfast-born troubadour is like a mole. He just keeps burrowing through the dark roots of the blues until he finds a patch of illumination.

And one CD to avoid at all costs:

ALANIS MORISSETTE, Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie (Maverick): About as pleasant as a crow perched on your shoulder, squawking into your ear just after it's had a marathon session with its psychotherapist. Utter torture.