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Jun 1, 2011Harris, who was inducted into the Country Hall of Fame in 2008, wears her best hat here: that of the melancholy raconteur.
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May 19, 2011Nashville's harmony constant wrote/co-wrote all but two of the 13 tracks on her latest career high, though the Ron Sexsmith cover titling Hard Bargain demands its very own songbook.
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May 18, 2011Hard Bargain is a gorgeous album.
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Apr 29, 2011It's a fitting way to round out an album that, remarkably, builds new momentum on an already extraordinary 40-year musical career.
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Apr 27, 2011At the age of 64, Emmylou Harris has made an album as fresh and distinctive as any in her catalog, and Hard Bargain is a reminder that her evolution into a songwriter is one of the most pleasant surprises in a career that's produced rewarding music for nearly 40 years.
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Apr 26, 2011A solidly sung, played and written collection of songs, it is a very fine release that will almost certainly find a welcome reception from her longtime fans.
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Apr 25, 2011Though her voice has begun to show some signs of wear, Harris remains one of popular music's most compelling, evocative vocal stylists, and that makes Hard Bargain an easy sell.
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Apr 25, 2011The 13-track set, produced by Jay Joyce, assures us that she's more than OK, with a still-luminous voice that can make the phone book sound like Puccini.
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Apr 25, 2011She just needs to dig up some big old songs again, as those here aren't consistently up to the standard fans have rightly come to expect.
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Apr 22, 2011Some of the story-songs are drippy, but that voice remains dry.