Gary Barlow enlists Michael Bublé, Barry Manilow for '‘Music Played By Humans'

Gary Barlow has shared ‘Incredible,’ the second track taken from his upcoming solo album ‘Music Played By Humans,’ out Nov. 27. Listen to ‘Incredible’ here and pre-order ‘Music Played By Humans’ here.

With an 80-piece orchestra, the song nods to the orchestral and big band music which captured Gary’s imagination and led to the album of original compositions.

Reflecting on the process of recording ‘Incredible’ and the album, Gary says, “Looking back, little did I realize how poignant this album would be in a time now that orchestras can’t sit in a room together. We finished our last session 2 weeks before lockdown and when I listen to the album now, it brings back some great memories. We have some of the best musicians in the world in London...and they’re on my recordings - I’m so lucky.”

Last month, Barlow, Michael Bublé and Sebastián Yatra unveiled a video for ‘Elita’ - a Latin-pop fusion track that sees the three collaborate for the first time.

Directed by Vaughan Arnell (Sam Smith, Paloma Faith, Pet Shop Boys, Spice Girls), the video was filmed remotely with Gary in London, Michael in Vancouver, and Sebastián in Miami.

Watch the official music video for ‘Elita’ HERE.

‘Music Played By Humans’ also features special guest collaborations from Barry Manilow, James Corden, Chilly Gonzales and others.

“My ambition when we started this album,” said Gary, “was to create something really bright, a celebration of music and the wonderful musicians we have in the UK and around the world. Some of it is recorded with an orchestra, some with quartets, a Latin band, and some of the tracks have jazz and big band sections - it really is music played by people, hence the title of the album - Music Played By Humans.”

Gary wanted to bring together a group of musicians and collaborators, some perhaps a surprise to his audience, in an album brimming with flavor, emotion and a big, beautiful sound.

“This is the first album I’ve made that’s really given me the opportunity to collaborate with this caliber of musicians on my songs, and they’re all so different in their own right. ‘Elita’ began as a duet with Michael until he suggested bringing Sebastián onto the record and that gave the song a whole new dynamic. ‘The Kind Of Friend I Need’ with Corden was just fun to record from the beginning - it's a warm, good-humored, funny song that really celebrates British humor - in a northern way!”

On ‘Eleven’, Gary teams ups with French-Lebanese Jazz Trumpeter and composer Ibrahim Maalouf; Avishai Cohen, the acclaimed jazz musician who Gary is a longtime fan of, features on ‘Before We Get Too Old’; and the GRAMMY Award-winning pianist and all-round entertainer, Chilly Gonzales appears on ‘Oh What A Day’.

British vocalist Beverley Knight guests on ‘Enough and Enough’ and on ‘What’s Leaving All About’ Alesha Dixon duets with Gary to muse the breakdown of a relationship. Long-time friend and legendary performer, Barry Manilow plays the piano on the aptly titled ‘You Make The Sun Shine’, an upbeat number.

“Looking back, little did I realize how poignant this album would be in a time now that orchestras can’t sit in a room together. We finished our last session 2 weeks before lockdown and when I listen to the album now, it brings back some great memories. We have some of the best musicians in the world in London...and they’re on my recordings - I’m so lucky.”

TRACK LIST:

1. Who’s Driving This Thing
2. Incredible
3. Elita (ft Michael Bublé & Sebastían Yatra)
4. The Big Bass Drum
5. This Is My Time
6. Enough Is Enough (ft Beverley Knight)
7. Bad Libran
8. Eleven (ft Ibrahim Maalouf)
9. Before We Get Too Old (ft Avishai Cohen)
10. Supernatural
11. Oh What A Day (ft Chilly Gonzales)
12. What Leaving’s All About (ft Alesha Dixon)
13. The Kind Of Friend I Need (ft James Corden)
14. I Didn’t See That Coming

DELUXE
15. Let’s Get Drunk
16. The Day The World Stopped Turning
17. You Make The Sun Shine (ft Barry Manilow)
18. Incredible (Live)
19. Incredible (F9 Charleston Remix)