It is also his highest charting studio album on the Billboard 200 since 1976's Blue Moves, debuting at No.

[1] The album features appearances by Booker T. Jones (on Hammond B-3), Neil Young (vocals), Robert Randolph (pedal steel), and Brian Wilson (vocal harmonies).

This album was dedicated to Guy Babylon, John's keyboard player who died a year before its release.

[2] "If It Wasn't for Bad" was nominated for the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals and "Hey Ahab" became a staple in John's concert tours.

The Union received mostly positive reviews with critics praising it as some of the pair's best work to date.