In Brief

** 1/2 Jo Dee Messina, “I’m Alright,” Curb. The Massachusetts-born singer has a country hit with the bouncy kiss-off song “Bye Bye,” but the knockout is “Even God Must Get the Blues,” which she croons with a Bonnie Raitt-like heart and soul. Despite some conventional pop-country material, Messina’s sophomore album has enough grit to keep it a notch above the pack.

Albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good) and four stars (excellent).

Hear the Music

* Excerpts from these albums and other recent releases are available on The Times’ World Wide Web site. Point your browser to: https://www.latimes.com/soundclips