Have One on Me

I don't think I've taken to a full album as much as I've taken to Joanna Newsom's Have One on Me in years. A little bit Kate Bush, a little bit Joni, a little bit Tori Amos, a little bit Bjork, and entirely itself--without a boggy patch in its full two hours. Every moment alive with feeling, nuance, intelligence, innovation. A little liturgical. That rare sense of Classic even though it's only been out a day.

You can stream the whole album here for free.

From NPR'S Bob Boilen:

Some make music because they want to, but Joanna Newsom makes music because she has to — at least that's my guess. Newsom possesses the sort of artistic bravado that could only come from inner passion. She's just released her latest vision: A work called Have One on Me, it's two hours long, it fills three discs, it hardly has a hook or a hit, and you simply must hear it.

Actually, I'll rephrase that: You must hear Have One on Me when you're ready for a musical adventure. This isn't casual listening, and while that's usually code for "This record is hard to get through," this isn't a difficult record. It's even pleasant enough to put on in the background, but what you lose from a casual listen is the poetry and grace of an album filled with love and loss.