Hard Bargain features the trio of Emmylou Harris, producer Jay Joyce, and multi-instrumentalist Giles Reaves alone in the studio. However, this isn’t a rustic, back-to-basics album. Rather, it has a pleasantly lush sound, made with the complete understanding that people come to hear Harris sing.
Watch out, hip-hop: If you don’t stay on top of your game, you might get bumped out of the limelight by other forms of pop music. That’s the meaning behind the title of Jay-Z and Kanye West’s brash, lavishly produced collaboration, as Jay himself has acknowledged.