Elton John and Brandi Carlile announced their joint album Who Believes in Angels? this week and shared the title track along with it. Now, they’ve revealed the track’s pinball-themed music video.
Directed by David LaChapelle, the video finds John and Carlile as performers within a “Captain Fantastic”-themed pinball machine in an arcade. A young girl plays pinball as John and Carlile sing side by side, supported by backup dancers (including Tina Turner and Little Richard), neon glows, and a colorful, decked out set. While they’re never interrupted by a giant life-sized pinball flying around the room, it’s just as entertaining to watch Carlile and John swap fierce looks throughout the duet. Watch the video below.
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The video marks LaChapelle’s fifth video collaboration with John, having directed the visuals for “This Train Don’t Stop There Anymore,” “Original Sin,” “Answer in the Sky” and “Someone Saved My Life Tonight.”
Of the latest collaboration, LaChapelle said, “It’s been a wonderful continuation of this journey with Elton over the last 20+ years — projects, videos, stage productions, photo shoots… I love these creative challenges we’ve explored and working on this duet with Brandi was really good fun and hard work, but a joyful experience on set. We created a gigantic pinball machine and made a magical world that reminds us of where we’ve been as kids — that dreams do come true — and creating together with your heroes can be a sublime experience.”
Who Believes in Angels will be out on April 4th, and features contributions from John’s regular collaborator Bernie Taupin, our 2022 Producer of the Year Andrew Watt, plus Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Chad Smith, Pearl Jam’s Josh Klinghoffer, and esteemed bassist Pino Palladino.
Meanwhile, John and Carlile are also offering a special short film that peers behind the scenes into the making of Who Believes in Angels?; Check out the video below, which features an intimate look at John and Carlile’s creative process.