"I have millenniums of material and rivers of rhythm," boasts Cee-lo. Okay, maybe not millenniums, but at least 8 great tracks that mix spirituality and absurdity (he is the first rapper to my knowledge to write about a super chicken) over hypnotic afro-funk grooves.
Top Tracks: Big Ole Words (Damn), Spend the Night in Your Mind, El Dorado Sunrise (Super Chicken)
The Piano Man conquers Broadway, Eminem goes Hollywood, plus the rest of TIME's picks for the best of the year