Although she has been prolific and released plenty of albums, Brandi Carlile has, up until now, flown mostly below my radar so I had no idea who she was. However when it comes to Elton John he has long been part of the soundtrack of my life and was the second concert I ever went to, back in a long ago age somewhere between the end of the dinosaurs and Burma changing its name. Along with seeing him live a few times I have habitually collected the vast majority of his albums. They have ranged from soaring magnificence, which was mainly achieved in the 70’s with such classic albums as Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy and Blue Moves through to many that seem to be, at best, just treading water. Efforts such as Victim of Love or The Fox are not great. Inbetween the two extremes there have been the occasional stand out albums or tracks but, on the whole, Elton has been happy to live on his legendary status as he chugs out half hearted new albums, yet more ‘Best Of’ compilations, and collaboration albums with acts that he probably hope will once more make him trendy with a generation that is a lot younger than a unified Germany. And that, subtly, leads me on to Who Believes in Angels, his 33rd studio album and another disc to take up space in my collection.
Apparently Elton claims that it was a project that took everyone involved out of their comfort zone as they wrote and recorded it all, from scratch, in just 20 days. However that doesn’t matter and as you’d expect from the man no corners were cut and it is far from being a half-hearted effort. It might not be up there with his finest hours but it is still enjoyable and could never be called dull. In fact there are flickers of the old days. The whole albums has an energy that makes it sound like they had fun in the studio and, given time could end up be seen as one of his best albums of the 21st century.
Little Richard’s Bible and Swing for the Fences are fun and should be cranked up to 11 so that the neighbours can enjoy them too. After all it is good to share. In contrast and like many of Elton’s albums there are reflective songs and Never Too Late is a moving take on being openly gay in a modern world. Both voices in perfect harmony as they deliver poignancy.
Some songs have joint, shared vocal duties, others have Elton taking the lead and others have Brandi at the forefront but the changing styles and voices do not detract from the sound. For You Without Me it is all Brandi on lead vocals and I must admit that she does have a beautiful voice that delivers a wonderful song about Elton and his extraordinary life.
Thanks to shared lyric duties, that includes Bernie Taupin, there are many songs that paint some sweet pictures in the mind and Elton’s contributions still have the power to surprise and the song Who Believes in Angels? makes me think of some of the better songs off the Blue Moves album.
There are one or two fillers but, thankfully, even those are listenable and didn’t make me want to run across the room and turn off my stereo, and thanks to me misplacing the remote control, I’d have to have done that. Thanks to having some top class musicians on the album, including a couple of Red Hot Chili Peppers, they were safe but not too dull.
For Elton fans, like me, the album Who Believes in Angels is a must as it reminds us that, even if his voice isn’t as powerful as it used to be, he can still entertain. If you are a casual fan or just curious it is still worth a listen, even if it doesn’t end up on auto repeat as part of your play list.
TRACK LISTING
01. The Rose Of Laura Nyro (6:39)
02. Little Richard’s Bible (2:59)
03. Swing For The Fences (3:22)
04. Never Too Late (3:36)
05. You Without Me (4:35)
06. Who Believes In Angels? (5:13)
07. The River Man (4:41)
08. A Little Light (4:22)
09. Someone To Belong To (4:20)
10. When This World Is Done With Me (4:16)
Total Time – 44:08
MUSICIANS
Elton John – Vocals, Piano (tracks 1–4 & 6–10), Rhodes Piano (5)
Brandi Carlile – Vocals (1–9), Acoustic Guitar (3,8 & 9), Guitar (5), Backing Vocals (7)
Josh Klinghoffer – Synthesizer (1-10), Keyboards (1–9), Organ (1 & 4–9), Electric Guitar (1)
Andrew Watt – Electric Guitar (1–4 & 6–9), Acoustic Guitar (1,4,6 & 7), Backing Vocals (3 & 6–9), Bass (5 & 9), Drums (8), Organ (9)
Chad Smith – Drums (1–7 & 9), Percussion (2–9)
Pino Palladino – Bass (1–4 & 6–8)
James King – Saxophone (1,2 & 10), Flute (10)
Ronnie Blake – Trumpet (1,2 & 10), Flugelhorn (10)
ADDITIONAL INFO
Record Label: Interscope Records
Country of Origin: UK/USA
Date of Release: 4th April 2025
LINKS
Elton John – Website | Facebook | YouTube | X | Instagram
Brandi Carlile – Website | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram
