Last week's Saturday Night Live was a bit off. The sketches were not great overall, and worse, the musical guest, Morgan Wallen, turned in a boring couple of songs. Then, at the end, when the cast, guest host, and musical artist normally joined together on stage to say their goodbyes, Wallen simply walked off the front of the stage and through the audience.
He later posted a photo of an airplane on social media with the caption, "Get me back to God's country." He must mean the part of the nation where he can throw chairs off rooftop bars, but not face much punishment. He was lucky no one was injured in that situation.
SNL needed a course correction, and thanks to truly great musical artists Elton John and Brandi Carlile, they got it. John and Carlile are long-time friends who have a new album out. The work is called Who Believes in Angels, and it is what you would expect: brilliantly played music that is quite reflective.
Elton John and Brandi Carlile bring greatness to Saturday Night Live
The two played a couple of songs from the record on Saturday Night Live. The first was "Little Richard's Bible." Based on the title, the song sounds like what you would expect, almost as if taken from an imaginary stage show about Little Richard's life. John takes the lead while playing piano, while Carlile sings backup and does her work on the guitar.
In another twist, Red Hot Chili Peppers' Chad Smith performs on the drums as part of the backing band.
The tune is fun and has a definite 1950s rock and roll feel, with a tinge of New Orleans jazz thrown in as well. If anyone doubted whether John could still play the piano extraordinarily well, he put that to rest during the performance.
The next tune is the title track from the new record. Carlile has lead vocals on the track, which is far more melancholy than the previous song. Close to two minutes into the track, though, a change gives it a far more uplifting feel.
The harmonies are slightly off at the beginning of the SNL performance, but the rest is music magic. It helps us forget about the Morgan Wallen trash from the previous week.