Randy Newman was featured in the Observer last weekend, in which his song "Losing You" was described as "a reminder of what a poignant musician Newman can be." Now, as part of the Guardian and Observer's How I Wrote video series, he performs the song at the piano and shares the beautiful and touching true-life story behind the song. Watch the video here. The A.V. Club offers the uninitiated an introduction to Newman's work, calling him "one of the finest songwriters of his time."

Randy Newman was the musical guest on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon last night. He performed "Losing You," off his latest Nonesuch release, Songbook Vol. 2, which Fallon calls "a beautiful record." Prefix says the new album's "reinterpretations of his classic works offer a chance to hear his material with fresh ears," and the Late Night "performance demonstrates Newman’s famous way with words, but it also shows what an affecting singer he can be." Watch it here, along with a web-exclusive performance of "Short People."

The Low Anthem performs Phosphorescent's "The Mermaid Parade" in the latest episode of The Voice Project, a non-profit organization that supports women of war-torn Northern Uganda. Watch it here. The band was recorded moments before they played a concert at Boston's Old South Church at which they hit "a high note," said the Boston Globe, with "a galvanizing 90-minute performance that was masterful and even magical at times."

Carolina Chocolate Drops play WMNF’s Tropical Heatwave and choose new logo ... James Farm launches tour in Tel Aviv ... Ben Folds plays two nights in Sydney ... Emmylou Harris celebrates Kate McGarrigle in NYC and baseball in Nashville ... Wanda Jackson opens Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum's Women Who Rock exhibit ... Kronos Quartet holds Kronos in Glasgow festival ... The Low Anthem plays Pacific Northwest ... Jessica Lea Mayfield closes out tour in Chicago ... Chris Thile, Michael Daves head South ... Dawn Upshaw joins Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra at Carnegie Hall ... and more ...

Earlier this month, The Kitchen, the NYC non-profit performance and visual arts space, celebrated its 40th anniversary by honoring Philip Glass in a gala benefit. The gala also included the premiere of a short film that looks back on the organization's history of supporting innovative artists and includes interviews with Glass, Laurie Anderson, Rhys Chatham, and others, along with photos, and audio and video footage of performances from throughout the Kitchen's 40 years, including early sets from Alarm Will Sound, Bill T. Jones, Beastie Boys, and Talking Heads. Watch it here.

Ben Folds launches a month-long tour of Australia, Indonesia, Japan, and South Korea this week in Canberra. He returns to the US to tour this summer. Folds recently recorded Ke$ha's "Sleazy," a tour favorite, to support the Japan tsunami relief efforts. He has now released a video for the song. MTV describes Folds as "a musician's musician: someone who knows everything one needs to know about the craft of songwriting" and calls the cover "a welcome experiment." Perez Hilton says: "This is just flat-out EPIC." Watch it here.

Chris Thile and Michael Daves, whose debut duo album, Sleep with One Eye Open, is due out on Tuesday, have premiered the fourth and final video in a series of performance videos captured live at New York's Rockwood Music Hall: the traditional tune "Rabbit in the Log." Watch it here. "This ain’t your grandparents’ bluegrass hootenanny," says Time Out New York in a preview of the duo's tour kick-off at Rockwood next week.

k.d. lang and the Siss Boom Bang performed two songs from their new album, Sing it Loud, on Jimmy Kimmel Live! earlier this week: "I Confess" and "Sugar Buzz." Watch them here. Also this week, lang appeared on The Monocle Weekly. The BBC says the album is "instantly striking," with songs that are "rich, masterful and seductive." The LA Times, reviewing last weekend's Stagecoach festival, describes lang as "wondrous," and her "performance provided an eminently satisfying conclusion."

Emmylou Harris performed two shows in Norway over the weekend, at which she proved why she is the "Queen of Country Rock," says the Bergens Tidende. Harris appeared on Steve Earle's Hardcore Troubadour Radio show; you can watch their very special duet on rollingstone.com. Watch a web-exclusive performance of John Lennon's "Imagine" from the Late Show with David Letterman here.

The Low Anthem performs live on KUT in Austin, Texas, today at 2 PM CT, prior to tonight's concert in Austin. The band "frequently dazzles on both recordings and in live performance," says KUT. Their recent performances at Philadelphia's Kimmel Center for WXPN and on Mountain Stage are both available at npr.org. The Low Anthem's Hear Ya Live Session is also up now and includes the song "Boeing 737," which Hear Ya calls "triumphant, almost prophetic." Watch it here.

Chris Thile and Michael Daves, whose debut duo album, Sleep with One Eye Open, is due out on Nonesuch on May 10, have premiered the third in a series of performance videos captured live at New York's Rockwood Music Hall: "You're Running Wild," made famous by the Louvin Brothers. Watch it here. The duo will be releasing a 7" single through Third Man Records on May 24. A limited-edition tri-color version will be available at Newbury Comics at Faneuil Hall in Boston that day; Thile and Daves will give a free in-store performance.

Emmylou Harris performed "Six White Cadillacs," off her new album, Hard Bargain, on the Late Show with David Letterman last night. Letterman called her "an icon, one of the greats, if not the best in country music and, just generally, popular music as far as a composer and a singer and an artist." She performed the album's title track on the Today show this morning. Yahoo! Music's Ram Country series features a video interview with Harris and performances of three songs off the album: "Six White Cadillacs," "Home Sweet Home," and "Darlin' Kate." Watch all of these videos here.