Review

In what is purportedly his final studio album, Sir Elton John has delivered something quite remarkable. "Who Believes In Angels" arrives as a sumptuous coda to a career spanning six decades, offering both a nostalgic glance backwards and a surprisingly adventurous step forward. Recorded after his farewell tour and recent health challenges, there's a palpable sense of an artist taking stock. The title track opens proceedings with piano work that immediately transports listeners back to his 70s heyday, yet the production—courtesy of Andrew Watt—feels thoroughly contemporary. John's voice, weathered by time but losing none of its emotional resonance, poses the titular question with the gravitas of someone who's seen enough of life to warrant asking. Long-time lyricist Bernie Taupin returns for what might be the duo's final collaboration, and his words carry additional weight throughout. On "Last Call for Dreamers," he provides John with some of his most poignant reflections on mortality and legacy, while "Harlow Gardens" revisits the narrative storytelling that defined their early classics. What's particularly striking about this collection is its refusal to merely rehash past glories. "Electric Avenue" sees John embracing electronic elements with surprising enthusiasm, while the Brandi Carlile duet "Weathered Hands" demonstrates his continued ability to find perfect vocal foils for his distinctive timbre. The production strikes an impeccable balance between honouring John's classic sound and avoiding museum-piece reverence. "Carnival Man" features the kind of orchestral sweep we've come to expect, but with textural flourishes that feel genuinely fresh, while "67 Summers" strips everything back to just piano and voice with devastating effect. At 12 tracks, the album avoids the bloat that has occasionally affected John's later work. There's a discipline and focus here that speaks to an artist aware this might be his final musical statement. Nothing feels extraneous or included merely to satisfy commercial considerations. Perhaps most affecting is "Letters to Matthew," a nakedly emotional address to his son that manages to be deeply personal while avoiding sentimentality. It's the work of a man who's experienced fatherhood later in life and understands its precious nature all the more for it. For an artist whose career has been defined by flamboyance and spectacle, "Who Believes In Angels" delivers its most profound moments in its quietest passages. The closing track "Farewell to the Yellow Brick Road" serves as a gentle self-eulogy that acknowledges both the fantasy and reality of his remarkable journey. If this truly is Sir Elton's studio swansong, he leaves us with an album that stands proudly alongside his finest work—not through bombast or contrivance, but through the simple power of exceptional songcraft delivered with genuine feeling. Like all great final chapters, it provides satisfying closure while reminding us why we fell in love with the story in the first place.