"SOULS ALIKE" BY BONNIE RAITT; CAPITOL

Bonnie Raitt didn't write any of the 11 songs on the first self-produced album of her career, but with an exhaustive search process that rivals Google, she found material that fits her like a second skin.

Full of poignant ballads and rootsy romps, "Souls" draws on Raitt's defiance, grace and earthy authenticity, allowing her to stretch stylistically without crowding the signature attractions of her brandied vocals and stinging slide guitar.

Among the highlights are the weirdly haunting "Crooked Crown," an electro-kicked "Deep Water" and the sly and sultry "Two Lights in the Nighttime." She rocks on "I Will Not Be Broken," brakes for the tender "I Don't Want Anything to Change" and cranks up the funk in "Unnecessary Mercenary" and "God Was in the Water." A wry snapshot of New Orleans' unorthodox charms emerges on the timely "Trinkets."

It's got soul, grooves, heat and sass. All the Raitt stuff.

"CHAOS AND CREATION IN THE BACKYARD" BY PAUL MCCARTNEY; CAPITOL

"Chaos and Creation" recalls some early solo work, particularly "McCartney" and "Ram." But this time, the Cute Beatle plays it less cute. The album's mood and sound may be "very twee, very me," as he sings on "English Tea," yet a darker-than-usual tone saturates the intimate, pretty and (naturally) Beatlesesque pop tunes here. In "Riding to Vanity Fair," there's even a squirt of bile.

Produced with elegance and efficiency by Nigel Godrich (Radiohead), "Chaos" finds McCartney playing all instruments except strings. Some tunes are sugary and tame; others, especially the gorgeous "Too Much Rain" and "Blackbird" knockoff "Jenny Wren," are reminders that Paul McCartney's relevance extends past "Yesterday."