Tune in to The Strand on the BBC World Service tonight to hear Ben Folds and Nick Hornby discuss their forthcoming album, Lonely Avenue. The Independent gives Lonely Avenue four stars, saying it "proves to be an intelligent, sometimes amusing, sometimes moving, but always engaging collection of songs, pitched somewhere between Randy Newman and an Anglo-American Divine Comedy." The Daily Express calls it "heavenly."
Ben Folds and Nick Hornby's forthcoming album, Lonely Avenue, due out from Nonesuch on Tuesday, had its premiere on MySpace yesterday, where you can continue to hear the album in its entirety today. Fans who listened to the album may have noticed something familiar on the new CBS series $#*! My Dad Says, starring William Shatner, last night: the Lonely Avenue track "Your Dogs" is the series' theme song.
For more on the new album, tune in to The Strand on the BBC World Service tonight at 10:30 PM BST / 5:30 PM EST, when Folds and Hornby will discuss their writing partnership. You can listen in live online at bbc.co.uk.
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In the UK, The Independent gives Lonely Avenue four stars. "The first of what one hopes will be many collaborations between Ben Folds and Nick Hornby proves to be an intelligent, sometimes amusing, sometimes moving, but always engaging collection of songs," writes The Independent's Andy Gill, "pitched somewhere between Randy Newman and an Anglo-American Divine Comedy."
Gill finds "Hornby's knack for distilling the essence of a situation into a few telling lines" and "Folds's ability to find the apt setting" to be well matched on the album.
Read the complete review at independent.co.uk.
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London's Daily Express gives the album four stars as well. "What a lovely record," writes Express reviewer Simon Gage. He describes the result of Folds and Hornby's collaboration as "Magic ... Heavenly." Read more at dailyexpress.co.uk.
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The Irish Times gives the album four stars as well. "These sort of collaborations always look good on paper but never seem to work," warns reviewer Brian Boyd. "Lonely Avenue could be the exception that proves the rule." He, too, hears hints of Folds label mate Newman, saying: "Throughout you’re reminded of a young Randy Newman as the pair conjure up a set of atypical songs that feature skewed humour and playful melodies."
Boyd concludes: "Lonely Avenue is an eccentric collection with hidden depths and surprising charm."
Read the review at irishtimes.com.
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There are also just a couple of days left to pre-order Lonely Avenue in the Nonesuch Store and receive the limited-edition printed Folds/Hornby manuscript of the song "Picture Window," with a select number signed by the artists. Reserve your copy of the album on vinyl, CD, or in the special deluxe edition with four short stories by Hornby and images by acclaimed photographer Joel Meyerowitz. Nonesuch Store pre-orders also include audiophile-quality, 320 kbps MP3s available for download on release day.
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