To spare you the potentially wasted minutes and near-certain embarrassment of acquiring crappy music, let’s put on our driving goggles, take a ride down the information superhighway, and listen to some free music. Here’s what you should know about this week’s free songs from iTunes:

The A Team
Ed Sheeran
This man is a great singer and an even better lyricist. The song is not about Mr. T and the gang, in case you were wondering. The lyrics paint a picture of a desperate and impoverished young woman trying to get by, with a mellow and rhythmic guitar accompaniment that is soon joined by understated piano chords. A short and melodic guitar solo toward the end of the song is a pleasant surprise, and contrasts nicely to Sheeran’s soft and slightly breathy vocal delivery.

Bottom line: fans of singer-songwriters will find much to love here.

Keep It For Your Own
POP ETC
This song projects an ’80s aesthetic from the outset, with a synthesizer and drum machine opening the piece and continuing throughout. Once the song gets going, the warm and organic bass guitar is very prominent, which helped lift “Keep It For Your Own” from the realm of worn out nostalgia-pop to a more tolerable modern take on the movement. The vocals are a typical almost-falsetto affair, with a typical “I’m sure this is significant to the singer’s ex-girlfriend, but not so much to me” lyrics. I don’t mean to disparage as POP ETC has crafted a very palatable ’80s-style pop song. If you’re into that kind of thing, then it’s worth listening to.

Bottom line: if you like nostalgic synth-driven pop, you’ll enjoy “Keep It For Your Own.”