“Blue Bucket of Gold,” the album closer off Sufjan Stevens’ excellent Carrie & Lowell, was already a dramatic affair—as with much of the 2015 album, it found Stevens grappling with the death of his mother. Quite appropriately, the original was the kind of plaintive, atmospheric meditation at which Stevens excels.
But this take, with touring mate Gallant seizing the vocals, is simply on another level. Gallant belts it to the rafters, while Sufjan’s piano provides some power ballad heft. Glory be.