Randy Newman's Harps and Angels has already garnered acclaim from critics across North America and Europe, and new praise now comes from The Australian, which calls him "the crown prince" of his musical form, the new album "testimony to his craft," and its songs "so vibrant, musically and lyrically, ... that his catalogue would seem incomplete without them." All About Jazz says the new album shows that Randy "just keeps on getting better," and Paste calls him "one of America’s most important songwriters," while Slate credits the "uproarious" song "Korean Parents" with offering "a more enjoyable way forward" in the highly charged discussion of satire and race.

Randy Newman recently spoke with Rolling Stone for a feature article in the September 4 issue, in which Harps and Angels, Randy's first album in nine years, is described as "a welcome return to form for Newman, one of the greatest songwriters of the rock era—though his songs rarely rock and often have more in common with Tin Pan Alley and show tunes."

Randy Newman helped open this week's Democratic National Convention in Denver yesterday, performing for delegates at a pre-Convention kick-off event. The New York Times says of Randy: "He prefers to wield a lyrical scalpel rather than a hammer, and he blends humor and politics in ways few songwriters would dare." The Knoxville News Sentinel calls him "one of modern music's true treasures" and credits him with having written "some of the most viciously hilarious and biting songs of the past 100 years."

Randy Newman is the subject of a feature article from Newsweek that describes Randy's new album, Harps and Angels, as "an immensely gratifying CD, one that recalls his early work without mimicking it." ABC News calls it "a remarkably strong record" and compares Randy, "a great storyteller," to the likes of Bob Dylan and Tom Waits: "an ace writer who goes by his own set of rules."

Randy Newman was recently asked by Blender magazine to comment on the two Presidential candidates' lists of their top 10 favorite songs. Specifically, he was asked which candidate would get his vote "based solely on this list," to which Randy responded, in a statement that was edited down for the article, that, while he likes Senator McCain's musical choices, "you can't tell anything about a person from the music they like."

Congratulations to Randy Newman, whose new release, Harps and Angels, debuted at #30 on Billboard's Top 200, a career high. Randy is SPIN magazine's Artist of the Day for the "brilliantly written pop standards" on Harps and Angels, a "musically, as well as lyrically, intricate and intriguing" album from "one of the most respected songwriters this century." The Cleveland Free Times concludes that "Harps and Angels is both a great Randy Newman album—which is an impressive feat on its own—and a brilliant and important album in the wider context of popular music."

It's been a week since the release of Randy Newman's Harps and Angels, and the Toronto Star, in its four-star review, calls the new album "prime Newman, a work of astonishing bravery, anger, humility and humanity ... with complex arrangements and orchestrations that elevate simple instrumentation, music-hall melodies, and vintage folk forms ... to proportions Weill and Brecht might have imagined." The Detroit Free Press deems it "a masterpiece, with brilliantly written songs that run from the satirical to the achingly sincere."

Nonesuch.com has launched the remaining segments of the video interview and performance of Randy discussing and playing songs from his latest release, Harps and Angels. On today's videos, Randy talks about writing the title track, how Jackson Brown's name makes its way onto "A Piece of the Pie," and making the record with producers Lenny Waronker and Mitchell Froom; he also performs the newly updated version of "Laugh and Be Happy" that appears on the new record. You can watch all of the videos now at nonesuch.com/media.

Randy Newman brings the music of his latest Nonesuch release, Harps and Angels, to the WNYC studios to perform live on The Leonard Lopate Show today. He discusses the pros and cons of political commentary on NPR's All Things Considered and on the latest videos at nonesuch.com/media. The New Statesman suggests that Randy's unique brand of storytelling has never been better realized than on Harps and Angels; Bloomberg says it "contains some of the most literate lyrics likely to be penned in 2008" and "some of Newman's most heartfelt ballads"; the San Diego Union-Tribune calls the album "a masterful collection of songs" with "exquisite lyrics set to the most sophisticated music he has yet written" outside a film score.

Tune in to the Late Show with David Letterman tonight on CBS to watch Randy Newman perform the song "Easy Street" off his latest Nonesuch release, Harps and Angels. You can also catch Randy discussing "Easy Street" on the latest video to be added to nonesuch.com/media, part of the weeklong series of interviews and performances being added to the site. On NPR's Fresh Air, reviewer Ken Tucker is driven to goosebumps by the record, The Village Voice calls the music of this "master of sardonic humor" immortal, and Paste asserts: "You don't get Newman like this very often."

All this week, to celebrate the release of Randy Newman's Harps and Angels, Nonesuch.com is presenting new videos with interviews and performances by Randy featuring songs from the new record. Today at nonesuch.com/media, Randy discusses the unforgettable, inspirational story behind "Losing You," which BBC calls "two minutes and 16 seconds of wonder: a perfect gem shining in the darkness," followed by a solo performance at the piano.

Today marks the long-awaited release of Randy Newman's Harps and Angels, and the reviews continue to come in, with the Associate Press saying that Randy "has produced a record to rival his best work, and it may be the best album of 2008." At noon ET, NPR will broadcast a recent concert Randy gave in which he and his band performed the new record in its entirety. Also from NPR, All Songs Considered host Bob Boilen invited Randy to guest DJ this week's show. "I really liked his older stuff," says Boilen of Randy. "I like him better when he's older."