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Alice in Chains has called in a real ringer for their first album in 10 years, Black Gives Way to Blue, now set for a Sept. 29 release. The title track of the LP is a tribute to AIC's late lead singer Layne Staley, and the band wanted to add a piano line to the song. But not just any piano line, mind you; nothing less than a master of balladry would suit this track. And just such a master they got in the form of the Rocket Man himself, Elton John. "We sent him the track and got a call shortly after saying he thought it was beautiful and that he wanted to play on it," guitarist/vocalist Jerry Cantrell explained. "We were blown away." As are we.
A collaboration this unlikely opens the door for all sorts of other partnerships. In fact, there are plenty of opportunities for stranger bedfellows than these to combine their creative talents. Below, then, we've envisioned some "what-if" scenarios; all that's left is to see if those involved can actually make it happen:
Marilyn Manson/Regina Spektor - "I Love You, But I Hate Myself More"
After the Charles Manson/Phil Spector collaboration failed to materialize, this non-incarcerated duo stepped up to the plate. Regina starts the song off with a tender ballad about true love before Manson launches into an atonal screed about alienation, the evils of organized religion, the pharmaceutical-industrial complex, and his creepy love of burlesque shows. Manson is rumored to appear in the music video as a pale, eight-foot-tall demon-Pope with skeletal wings and a crucifix in place of genitals.
Sandra Day O'Connor/MSTRKRFT - "Street Justice (Reagan SCOTUS Mixx)"
After meeting backstage during the June 23 episode of Late Show with David Letterman, MSTRKRFT sent some of their demos to former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor's studio, and this little number was born. With Republicans facing an uphill battle after their electoral rout in 2008, O'Connor hopes to deliver her message in a way that'll reach a young, hip demographic: faux-populist spoken word welded to MSTRKRFT's blistering dance tracks! "Gotta dance / pull myself up by my bootstraps / gotta dance / to make this ownership society last."
James Taylor/Eminem - "How Sweet It Is (To Smoke Blunts With You)"
The two met during the filming of Funny People, and after a couple reefer-fueled jam sessions, the greatest acoustic hip-hop song since Jonathan Coulton covered Sir Mix-A-Lot was born. At long last, disaffected suburbanites and aging Baby Boomers can bridge the generation gap over, ahem, snacks.
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What about Pope Benedict? http://thebrowntweedsociety.com/2009/08/01/pope-benedict-new-album/
This article rubs me the wrong way. No offense Michael, but you sound a bit uninformed. To consider this collaboration unexpected because of the inclusion of piano is disrespectful in the sense that it fails to acknowledge the diversity AIC has flexed in their music over the years. It's this diversity that places them above and beyond all of the wannabes that try their best to emulate their sound (and fail considerably).
To begin with, this won't even be the first time that either AIC or Cantrell as a solo artist have included piano in a song. Reach for your SAP EP and listen to the finale, fittingly titled 'Love Song', or Boggy Depot for 'Settling Down' if you don't believe me.
You might wonder, 'but why Elton John, of all people?' Elton John has always been one of Cantrell's favorite musicians, if not perhaps his absolute favorite. If I recall correctly, Captain Fantastic was Jerry's first album he loved growing up, and one of his major influences. Heck, AIC even covered Elton's song 'Curtains' in acoustic before starting on their new album. You can find quite the performance fairly easily on Youtube.
With these things considered, this collaboration is not all that surprising to fans of Jerry's and AIC's music. AIC has always had a delicate side to their sound as has Jerry Cantrell's solo material. The pairing actually makes quite a lot of sense. To be honest it's nothing short of a mockery to compare this collaboration to the ones you proposed, Michael. Surely if you had Elton playing piano over We Die Young, it would be a bit awkward. But their catalog is quite diverse, and there are numerous songs where Elton would sound quite at home with Alice in Chains.