Elton John and Brandi Carlile have announced a new collaborative album, Who Believes In Angels?, which will be released on 4 April. This is preceded by the release of the title track, which you can listen to right now.
The single has echoes of Elton’s ‘70s pomp, with a rising chorus that calls to mind Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. The album is being billed as a stylistic melting pot: “Ballads co-exist with raw rock and roll, pop songs and country-hued Americana rub shoulders with synth-heavy psychedelia,” says the press release.
The album was created from start to finish in just 20 days in October 2023. John and Carlile headed into Los Angeles’ Sunset Sound Studios with a “a completely blank slate”, with producer/songwriter Andrew Watt (who's recently worked with the likes of the Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney, and Pearl Jam) and Elton’s longtime friend and lyricist Bernie Taupin for company.
They were joined by a high-class band that included Chad Smith and Josh Klinghoffer, the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ current drummer and former guitarist. The legendary bassist Pino Palladino completed the line-up.
Newly released studio footage suggests that, initially at least, the magic didn’t happen, with Elton frequently losing his temper. “I was a nightmare,” he admits, as he’s shown slamming down headphones, snapping at his collaborators, ripping up lyric sheets and, at one point, telling Watt that he’s going to go home.
During another tense moment, Watt is shown berating Elton for his behaviour. “Dude, I”m just trying to make the song as best as it can be! You’re so impatient!” he says.
“And then I thought, ‘well, there’s other people involved - I can’t abandon it,’” reflects Elton. “And the fog started to lift. Finally, it all started to flow.”
Ultimately, Elton describes the project as “one of the greatest musical experiences of my life. In a statement, he adds that “It has given me a place where I know I can move forward. Who Believes In Angels? feels like going into another era and I’m pushing the door open to come into the future. I have everything I’ve done behind me and it’s been brilliant, amazing. But this is the new start for me. As far as I’m concerned, this is the start of my career Mark 2.”
Elton’s touring career, of course, has come to an end, and he recently revealed that he’s been suffering from problems with his sight. He will be heading on stage at the London Palladium on 26 March, though, for a one-night-only show that’s being billed as An Evening With Elton John & Brandi Carlile. For a chance to buy tickets, you can pre-order Who Believes In Angels? now.
“U wanna hear the raw files”: Producer Mike Dean tells streamers to switch off auto levelling on every music platform, and hear the music as it was meant to be heard
"This makes no sense at all in terms of functional harmony. So why does it sound so good?: A music professor breaks down Doechii's Denial Is a River and Boiled Peanuts
