Jacob Collier Reimagines James Taylor, The Beatles, Queen, And More On New Live Album
The album also features covers of songs from ABBA, The Bee Gees, and more.
At the midway point of each night of the North American and European legs of his current world tour, five-time Grammy-winning UK singer and multi-instrumentalist Jacob Collier would sit alone at his Steinway piano and reimagine a song.
Each performance would mark the first time Collier had played the song in public, was largely improvised, and would often culminate in the entire audience spontaneously being transformed into a multi-part choir. A selection of these spellbinding moments feature on a new eleven-track album Piano Ballads – Live From The Djesse World Tour 2022, which is out now via Hajanga Records/Decca/Interscope.
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Videos of all eleven performances will also be made available. Collier’s version of Queen’s “Somebody To Love,” recorded live in Lisbon, is out now.
Piano Ballads – Live From The Djesse World Tour 2022 presents Collier’s unique, visionary spin on a selection of songs including the likes of James Taylor’s “Carolina In My Mind,” The Beatles’ “Let It Be,” the Bee Gees’ “How Deep Is Your Love,” as well as two duets–Patti Page’s “Tennessee Waltz” featuring Norwegian multi-instrumentalist Stian Carstensen, and a version of the ABBA pop classic “Dancing Queen” featuring US vocalist and regular band member Alita Moses.
Jacob Collier says, “Ever since I can remember, I have derived a vast amount of comfort and joy from sitting at the piano and improvising. I have long dreamed of sharing an album that lives in that world. This year, I set myself the challenge of playing a spontaneous rendition of a different song every night on tour – with the help of my extraordinary musical audience. These 11 are amongst my favourite postcards. I’m so excited to share them with you all!”
Collier is a singular talent whose star continues its astronomical rise. In the last six months alone, he made impromptu appearances with Coldplay at three of their Wembley Stadium shows, released “Never Gonna Be Alone,” a chart-topping single with John Mayer and Lizzy McAlpine, and embarked on a mammoth 70-date world tour that included his biggest headline shows to date at the 5000-capacity Brixton Academy in London.
Buy or stream Piano Ballads – Live From The Djesse World Tour 2022.
