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