Who Believes in Angels?
| Who Believes in Angels? | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 4 April 2025[1] | |||
| Studio | Sunset Sound (Los Angeles) | |||
| Label | Interscope | |||
| Producer | Andrew Watt | |||
| Elton John chronology | ||||
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| Brandi Carlile chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Who Believes in Angels? | ||||
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Who Believes in Angels? is an upcoming collaborative studio album by English musician Elton John and American musician Brandi Carlile. It is set to be released on 4 April 2025, through Interscope Records.[1][2] The album is produced by Andrew Watt, and was recorded at Sunset Sound Recorders in Los Angeles.[2] The record was announced on 5 February 2025, alongside the release of its title track.[2]
John and Carlile have previously collaborated on the song "Simple Things", which appears on John's collaborative album The Lockdown Sessions (2021), as well as "Never Too Late", the theme to John's 2024 documentary of the same name; the latter is slated to appear on Who Believes in Angels?[3] In addition to Carlile, lyrics were also contributed by John's longtime songwriting partner Bernie Taupin, while Watt also shares songwriting credits on the album.[1]
Background
[edit]Recording for the album began in October 2023, a process in which John, Carlile and Watt "pushed each other out of their comfort zones to write and record an album completely from scratch in just 20 days", according to a press release.[3] Musicians contributing to the album include Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith, former Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Josh Klinghoffer, and session bass guitarist Pino Palladino.[1]
John described the album as "one of the toughest I've made", while also being "one of the greatest musical experiences of my life."[2] Among the struggles relating to the album is John's vision loss in relation to an eye infection.[2] Carlile described the recording process as being in "an incredibly challenging and inspiring environment to work in, everybody throwing in ideas, everybody listening to everybody else's ideas."[3]
Promotion
[edit]The album's title track was released as the first single on 5 February 2025 alongside the announcement of the album. In addition to the single, a short film documenting the making of the song was released to YouTube on the same day.[4] On 7 February, a music video for the single was released. Directed by David LaChapelle, the video depicts John and Carlile performing the song in a Captain Fantastic pinball machine (the design of which references John's 1975 album Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy), supported by backup dancers impersonating Tina Turner and Little Richard.[4]
Track listing
[edit]| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The Rose of Laura Nyro" | ||
| 2. | "Little Richard's Bible" | ||
| 3. | "Swing for the Fences" | ||
| 4. | "Never Too Late" | 3:37 | |
| 5. | "You Without Me" | ||
| 6. | "Who Believes in Angels?" |
| 5:13 |
| 7. | "The River Man" | ||
| 8. | "A Little Light" | ||
| 9. | "Someone to Belong To" | ||
| 10. | "When This Old World Is Done with Me" |
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d Strauss, Matthew (5 February 2025). "Elton John and Brandi Carlile Announce Album, Shares New Song "Who Believes in Angels?": Listen". Pitchfork. Retrieved 5 February 2025.
- ^ a b c d e f Breihan, Tom (5 February 2025). "Elton John & Brandi Carlile Announce Collab Album Who Believes In Angels?". Stereogum. Retrieved 5 February 2025.
- ^ a b c d Mier, Tomás (5 February 2025). "Elton John and Brandi Carlile Preview Album 'Who Believes in Angels?' with Title Track". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 6 February 2025. Retrieved 5 February 2025.
- ^ a b Ragusa, Pablo (7 February 2025). "Elton John and Brandi Carlile Reveal Pinball-Themed Video for "Who Believes in Angels?"". Consequence. Retrieved 7 February 2025.
