We can all breathe a sigh of relief.

Ed Sheeran will still be musical guest this weekend on “Saturday Night Live.” Sheeran was diagnosed with COVID and quarantined for some amount of time. But I guess he’s feeling better, and it’s ratings sweeps, and he has a new album out, so “SNL” is a must.

Sheeran’s new album is called “Equals,” it’s part of his New Math trilogy and came out last Friday. It shot straight to the top of the iTunes Album chart based on two hit singles over the summer.

Here’s the thing about Ed Sheeran. He hasn’t got a thought in his head. He writes light bubblegum music that wants to be Van Morrison or Cat Stevens, but can’t be, so becomes a lot of Hallmark greeting cards set to music.

In the last week I’ve gone to hear Elvis Costello and then Graham Parker, two lads with 40 plus year careers. Their songs are composed of words made from ideas and personal sentiments, observations, story telling, and so on. They are literate and passionate. None of their songs, not one, starts off with a recollection of being a star or singing at Wembley Stadium. There’s also nothing about being a father and how it’s changed their life, perhaps the great cliche in modern culture.

Listening to Costello and Parker, you realize how far we’ve fallen in 40 years. Pop music now is just a junk bin of platitudes and self-awareness about commercial success. It’s very sad. Parker’s songs last night were not even his “best of.” In fact, he cheekily played what he called the worst song he ever wrote and never recorded. That song was more original than anything Ed Sheeran has even thought of.

Anyway, Parker I don’t think has ever been on “SNL” and Costello, of course, had a famous appearance there in the late 70s but is now considered too old to return. So buy their records, listen to them, revel in their songs, and try not to take what’s happening now seriously.

Adele has released a tracklist for new album, “30.”

There are no duets– though fans kept speculating– but Adele does the only singing on the album. There is, however, a bonus track with Chris Stapleton, of all people. Go figure. She’s trying to reach the country market, obviously. It’s a duet on her current hit, “Easy On Me.”

The real surprise is a credited performance by late great jazz pianist Erroll Garner. It’s on a track called “All Night Parking (Interlude) featuring Garner. Now, that should be interesting.

She does have a song called “I Drink Wine,” which could be humorous. Watch the third and fourth tracks for singles. “Cry Your Heart Out” does not sound like much fun, just more hankies. And “Oh My God” may be something we’re hearing all year.

Update: “To Be Loved” is not the famous song. It’s one cooked up Adele’s writers.

One big question will be about the song listed here, “To Be Loved.” Jackie Wilson, of course, had such a famous song that Berry Gordy wrote. If Adele has covered it, it will be on my playlists forever.

01 “Strangers By Nature”
02 “Easy On Me”
03 “Cry Your Heart Out”
04 “Oh My God”
06 “Can I Get It”
07 “I Drink Wine”
08 “All Night Parking (Interlude)” (With Erroll Garner)
09 “Woman Like Me”
10 “Hold On”
11 “To Be Loved”
12 “Love Is A Game”
13 “Wild Wild West” (Bonus Track)
14 “Can’t Be Together” (Bonus Track)
15 “Easy On Me” (With Chris Stapleton) (Bonus Track)