A Few Words About Our Country from Randy Newman

Thank God Randy made enough money churning out hits for Disney’s Pixar movies to enable him to keep making his own records. It has been awhile but he’s back with a new studio album, Harps and Angels. The first thing you need to know is that Randy Newman is all about the lyrics. If you’re not into lyrics, listening, dissecting, reading along, then you can move onto something else. There are a lot of great songwriters out there, composers who come up with hooks and melodies that we love, but there are only a few that write lyrics like Randy Newman. He’s one of my favorite lyricists, along side Terry Scott Taylor, Bruce Cockburn and Weird Al. But he even beats the politico storytellers like Springsteen and Dylan at their own game. This isn’t a fun, upbeat pop album, but it’s also not a self-important, earthy Americana album or a hip indie rock record. It is an amazing and thematic collection of songs about America, death, God, and a few lighter subjects as well. It’s all done with a touch of sarcastic wit that will make you think. Musically this album is refreshing because it’s a real recording with real instruments. This sounds like a classic analog recording. Mitchell Froom produced and I don’t believe he or Randy Newman have ever sounded better sonically. There’s orchestration, a ton of Randy’s great piano playing and a band. Stylistically it ranges from pop and folk to swing and Americana. It’s not for everyone but it is up there with the best of Randy Newman’s work. He’s not only still got it, I think he’s actually getting more and more witty as time goes by. For Randy fans this is a must, the rest of you need to at least listen to the title track, “Harps and Angels” and the stunning “A Few Words In Defense of Our Country,” and don’t forget to check out the lyrics.
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Find out more here: www.randynewman.com
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