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Bebo Valdes left Havana 50 years ago, but at the piano, it's as if he's still there. He's not reviving anything; he just kept on doing it the old way, long after music in Cuba had moved on. On Live at the Village Vanguard, Valdes shares billing with his frequent duo partner, bassist Javier Colina.

When asked about Swedish pop music, one might pick out names like the sweetly whimsical Jens Lekman or the playful chamber pop outfit I'm From Barcelona. But on Na Na Ni, the debut album from experimental sextet Fredrik, the band from Malmo, Sweden shows that its country's musical output is capable of offering up even more.

The Ting Tings' debut album, We Started Nothing, has propelled the British duo to worldwide fame on the strength of some of the catchiest pop songs in recent memory. The British duo layers together synths, powerful drum beats and catchy melodies in a session from WXPN.

Artists typically known for their careers in adult-oriented musical genres occasionally venture into writing songs geared toward kids. Children's-music blogger Stefan Shepherd previews a few new notable releases from They Might Be Giants, The Nields and others that parents and children can both enjoy.

Lyrics Born, an indie rapper from San Francisco, recalls a time when hip-hop was almost invariably fun, brisk, and at least somewhat lighthearted. "I Like It, I Love It" speaks to a moment when hip-hop, pop, R&B, and a sing-along hook rolled together as one.

It'd be easy to dismiss the Athens, Ga., band Nana Grizol as yet another twee college rock group from a town that churns out cutesy artists with yawn-inducing regularity. But from the opening bars of the first track, "Circles 'Round the Moon," with its frolicking guitars and sing-along melody, it's clear that Nana Grizol exudes earnest and irresistible charm.

The Donkeys' lazy, country-tinged Americana sound is a perfect match for the band's San Diego home. The group's second album, Living on the Other Side, is a simple and soothing summer set — music for driving with the top down, sunbathing in the sand and napping in a hammock.

The debut, self-titled album from Oklahoma City-based band The Uglysuit is refreshingly bright and cheery, replete with huge spirit-raising piano and guitar anthems. With a blend of spacey dream pop and a few alt-country flavors (lead singer Israel Hindman's voice mimicks Jeff Tweedy one minute, Conor Oberst the next), the group's sound draws comparisons to the Flaming Lips and the Shins, but the grandiosity of the music is that of space rock proportions.

At first listen, it's hard to tell if Great Plains, the third album from Chicago-based band Head of Femur, is wildly ambitious in its eccentric, incredibly catchy sound, or is simply a good, old-fashioned pop and rock record. The songs sound new and energetic while taking enough cues from the past to sound like a tribute album. The result is a record that is recognizable, but fresh and surprisingly accessible, despite offering plenty of surprises.

Twenty-five years after its first album, the New Jersey band is still selling out Madison Square Garden and putting out chart-topping singles. But these days, its sound is a little more country, and it's recording in Nashville. That may be because pop and rock songs have left behind the working-class, everyday guy, while country music sings straight to him.