His astuteness also extends to matters closer to home as he ponders such obscurities as the afterlife on the title track (“You never know”) and his unconditional love of women on “Potholes” (“Apparently I don’t care how I’m treated”).
And with a heavy heart on his sleeve, he sings “Losing You” and “Feels Like Home” – the latter a studio version, not the live take from The Best of Randy Newman – as unflinchingly heartfelt as any love song in his canon. In fact, it’s during songs like these that one could almost question his motives on the other ones.
If you can’t distinguish between sincerity and satire, though, chances are you won’t comprehend much on Harps and Angels either. Those who can, however, will appreciate this album as – to cop a Newman song title – “something special” indeed.
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