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Overview

On the inaugural episode of Elvis Costello's talk show Spectacle in 2008, Elton John -- who just happened to be a producer on the show -- rhapsodized at length about Leon Russell, hauling out a note-perfect impression of Russell's piano style and Oklahoma drawl. It was enough of a tease to whet the appetite for more but nothing suggested something like The Union, a full-fledged duet album with Russell designed to raise the profile of the rock & roll maverick. Like all lifers, Russell never disappeared -- he just faded, playing small clubs throughout the U.S., spitting out bewildering self-released albums of MIDI-synth boogie, never quite connecting with the spirit of his wonderful early-'70s albums for his Shelter label. The Union quite deliberately evokes the spirit of 1970, splicing Russell's terrific eponymous LP with Elton's own self-titled record and Tumbleweed Connection. In that sense, it's a kissing cousin to John's last album, 2006's The Captain and the Kid, which was designed as an explicit sequel to 1975's golden era-capping Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy, but thanks to producer T-Bone Burnett, The Union dials down Bernie Taupin's inherent pomp and ratchets up the roots. Burnett had John and Russell record live in the studio, trading verses and solos, letting the supporting band breathe and follow their loping lead. This relaxed, natural interplay cuts through the soft haze of Burnett's analog impressionism, giving the record a foundation of true grit. If there are no immediate knockouts among this collection of 14 original songs, the tunes are slow, steady growers, taking root with repeated spins, with the sound of John and Russell's piano-and-voice duets providing ample reason to return to The Union after its first play. And even once the songs take hold, what lingers with The Union is that natural interplay, how John and Russell easily connect with their past without painstakingly re-creating it. Surely, it's a revival for Leon Russell, who has spent decades in the wilderness, but it's not a stretch to say The Union revitalizes Elton John just as much as it does his idol: he hasn't sounded this soulful in years. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date: 10/19/2010
Label: Decca
UPC: 0602527504735
Rank: 96346

Tracks

  1. If It Wasn't for Bad
  2. Eight Hundred Dollar Shoes
  3. Hey Ahab
  4. Gone to Shiloh
  5. Jimmie Rodgers' Dream
  6. There's No Tomorrow
  7. Monkey Suit
  8. The Best Part of the Day
  9. A Dream Come True
  10. When Love Is Dying
  11. I Should Have Sent Roses
  12. Hearts Have Turned to Stone
  13. Never Too Old (To Hold Somebody)
  14. In the Hands of Angels

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Elton John   Primary Artist,Piano,Vocals
Leon Russell   Primary Artist,Piano,Vocals
Jason Wormer   Dulcimer,Handclapping
Tiffany Smith   Vocals (Background)
Alfie Silas-Durio   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Judith Hill   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Tanya Balam   Vocals (Background)
Thomas Peterson   Saxophone
Jim Thompson   Saxophone
Drew Lambert   Bass (Electric)
Jean Witherspoon   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Keefus Pardini   Vocals (Background)
Kellye Huff   Vocals (Background)
Joseph Sublett   Saxophone
Louis Pardini   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Tata Vega   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Bill Cantos   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Dennis Crouch   Bass (Acoustic)
Keefus Ciancia   Keyboards
Joe Sublett   Saxophone
Maurice Spears   Trombone
George Bohanon   Trombone,Horn (Baritone)
Doyle Bramhall II   Guitar
Russ Pahl   Pedal Steel
Lou Pardini   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Robert Randolph   Pedal Steel
Rose Stone   Vocals,Tambourine,Vocals (Background)
Neil Young   Vocals
Mike Piersante   Tambourine,Handclapping
Kyle Ford   Handclapping
Perry Morgan   Vocals (Background)
Brian Wilson   Vocals (Background)
Davey Faragher   Bass
Darrell Leonard   Trumpet,Conductor,Trumpet (Bass)
Marc Ribot   Guitar
T-Bone Burnett   Guitar (Electric)
Don Was   Bass
Jason Scheff   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Bill Maxwell   Conductor
Jay Bellerose   Drums,Percussion
Debra Dobkin   Gourd
Ira Nepus   Trombone
Jim Keltner   Drums,Percussion
William Roper   Tuba

Technical Credits

Jason Wormer   Editing,Engineer
Ivy Skoff   Production Coordination
Steve Todoroff   Photography
Annie Leibovitz   Photography
Adrian Collee   Production Coordination
Johnny Barbis   Executive Producer
John Eidsvoog   Transcription
Frank Ockenfels   Photography
Paul Ackling   Guitar Technician
Joseph Guay   Photography
Kory Aaron   Assistant Engineer
Jon Howard   Production Coordination
Julie Eidsvoog   Transcription
Chris Owens   Assistant Engineer
Jessica C. Mitchell   Assistant
Brett Lind   Assistant Engineer
Ben McAmis   Engineer
James Timothy Shaw   Composer
Gavin Lurssen   Mastering
Mark Lambert   Engineer
Bernie Taupin   Composer
The Mighty Hannibal   Composer
Mike Piersante   Mixing,Engineer
Kyle Ford   Engineer
Brian Wilson   Vocal Arrangement
Darrell Leonard   Horn Arrangements
T-Bone Burnett   Composer,Producer
Elton John   Executive Producer,Composer
Bill Maxwell   Vocal Arrangement
Leon Russell   Composer,Vocal Arrangement
Vanessa Parr   Assistant Engineer
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