Album review: Emmylou Harris & Rodney Crowell, Old Yellow Moon (Nonesuch)

Emmylou Harris & Rodney Crowell, Old Yellow Moon (Nonesuch)

Rodney Crowell played for years in Emmylou Harris's Hot Band, so it's appropriate that when they should finally get around to making an album together, they should recall that era.

The melody and deep yearning of “Spanish Dancer”, for instance, echoes Harris's breakthrough track “Boulder to Birmingham”, while “Bluebird Wine”, has verses re-written by Crowell to reflect the more adult perspective he now professes.

Elsewhere, “Here We Are” and “Back When We Were Beautiful” treat ageing with wistful nobility, Harris's voice cracking poignantly on the latter, while Crowell delivers a trenchant version of Kris Kristofferson's self-lacerating drug song “Chase the Feeling” .

Download: Back When We Were Beautiful; Open Season on My Heart; Chase the Feeling