Elles Bailey Releases New Single ‘Take A Step Back’ from Forthcoming Album Can’t Take My Story Away

Following the announcement of her forthcoming album Can’t Take My Story Away, Elles Bailey has released new single ‘Take A Step Back’. 

The track is the second to be taken from Can’t Take My Story Away, which comes January 16th on Cooking Vinyl and Outlaw Music. 

“Sometimes relationships can be all fire, all pleasure and all pain simultaneously and you either have to embrace it – or take a step back,” Elles says of the single. “This truly is one of my favourite moments on the album. I love the sound we captured in the room. It’s so live, so full of swagger, so soulful and yet equally just as playful. It’s definitely the kind of song that puts a strut in your stride.” 

Produced by Luke Potashnick and recorded with a stellar lineup of musicians separate from her live band, the eleven tracks of Can’t Take My Story Away tie together to form the album Elles has been destined to make. An honest and vulnerable glimpse into Elles’ story, the record was created over a three year period, using songs whose origins can be traced back almost 10 years, Can’t Take My Story Away is Elles’ life placed carefully together to form a dazzling, kaleidoscopic story. 

“There’s definitely an empowerment to this record,” Elles says. “I feel like that has actually evolved since I first started making it – as though I was a different person.” She continues, “there is a quiet strength running through this album and a deep-rooted honesty and whilst there are some moments that reflect on some of the hardest chapters of my story, there’s a feeling of joy threaded through every note. It’s like a kind of light has found its way in, even in some of the darkest moments.”

While this album marks a departure from Elles’ previous work and was recorded with new musicians, her long-standing touring band will return for all the live performances. They will head out on a run of UK and EU dates through February and March 2026 to support the record. 

Elles will also celebrate the release of the album with a run of stripped back, acoustic instores through January, as well as a very special evening, ‘The Story By Candlelight,’ diving deep into the record at Rough Trade in Bristol on November 24th. More info HERE.

Elles Bailey plays the following UK & EU dates:
Instore Shows:
January
Fri 16th                              London, Rough Trade West
Sat 17th                             Oxford, Truck
Sat 17th                             Leamington Spa, Temperance
Sun 18th                           Leeds, Vinyl Whistle
Sun 18th                           Liverpool, Jacaranda
Mon 19th                           Bury, Wax & Beans
Tue 20th                            Nottingham, Rough Trade
Wed 21st                          Southampton, Vinilo
Wed 21st                          Brighton, Resident
Thu 22nd                           Marlborough, St Peters Church

Headline Tour:
February
Fri 20th               Stuttgart, Im Wizemann
Sat 21st                             Munich, Ampere
Sun 22nd                          Nuremberg, Hirsch
Mon 23rd                           Aschaffenburg, Colas-Saal

March
Thu 19th                            London, Islington Assembly Hall
Fri 20th               Warwick, Arts Centre 
Sat 21st                             Bristol, Electric
Tue 24th                            Manchester, Band on the Wall
Wed 25th                          Glasgow, St Luke’s 
Thu 26th                            Gateshead, Glasshouse 2
Fri 27th               Holmfirth, Picturedrome 

With Can’t Take My Story Away Elles cements herself as one of the most exciting talents in the UK. Picking up acclaim and accolades along the way, she was crowned Live Act of the Year at the UK Americana Awards 2024, as well as Album of the Year, Vocalist of the Year and Broadcaster Of The Year at the 2025 UK Blues Awards. With an already prolific career under her belt the story is far from over and we have many chapters to come.

Feature Image Photo Credit: Rob Blackham/Blackham Images

Elles Bailey’s new album ‘Can’t Take My Story Away’, comes pot on 16th January 2026 on Cooking Vinyl and Outlaw Music. 

Pre-order album https://ellesb.lnk.to/CTMSAPR

Take A Step Back Is OUT NOW on all digital platforms http://ellesb.lnk.to/TASB

Official Website: https://www.ellesbailey.com/