A Last-Minute Invitation Brings Céline Dion and Joe Walsh Together on ‘Something’
Céline Dion paused with the microphone to tell the audience how the next song had come together. What followed began with news she had received only hours earlier.
She had learned that Olivia Harrison and Joe Walsh of the Eagles would be there that evening. Their presence gave her a reason to bring out a song she had wanted to perform for some time.
The audience applauded when Dion mentioned the two guests. Her introduction turned the song into a small story about what could happen when the right people were in the room.
The song she had in mind was by George Harrison. Dion explained that she had wanted to sing it for a long time and that the occasion had come together quickly.
She had asked Walsh if he would join her. He said yes, giving Dion a guitarist with a strong sense of how to work around the familiar melody.
Watch the performance
Walsh came out with his guitar and took a place beside her. The introduction made his arrival part of the performance instead of a surprise left unexplained.
‘Something’ occupies a familiar place in the Beatles’ catalog. Harrison’s melody gives singers room to build a long line while keeping the lyric direct.
Dion follows that line with a full vocal sound. Walsh’s guitar sits around the edges, filling the places where she leaves a little space between phrases.
The movement from spoken introduction to song changes the energy in the room. After the applause for the guests, the audience has a single melody to follow.
Walsh chooses lines that support the rise and release of Dion’s voice. The quieter passages carry as much of their interplay as the parts that build in volume.
Knowing how quickly the performance was put together makes the balance more apparent. Both musicians find a shared approach within a song already familiar to the audience.
Dion brings her own color to the melody by changing the pressure on individual phrases. Her voice stays clear as the arrangement opens around her.
The audience’s response closes the story that began with the introduction. A decision made that afternoon had become a performance everyone in the room could share.
Listen to the last lines for the way the guitar lets the vocal come to rest. The scale of the song narrows again as the performance reaches its end.
That brief introduction is a useful part of the recording. It explains why this particular song and these two performers arrived on the same stage.
The videos below put the same song in another tribute setting and give a second example of Dion working with a musical partner.
Two more performances to explore
Jeff Lynne, Dhani Harrison and Joe Walsh — Something
Walsh joins Jeff Lynne and Dhani Harrison on ‘Something’ in the first companion clip. The different voices change the balance around his guitar.
Céline Dion and Josh Groban — The Prayer
Dion shares ‘The Prayer’ with Josh Groban in the second video. Its sweeping lines give the two singers a different way to move between individual parts and a shared sound.
