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POPE FRANCIS IS to release a pop-rock album entitled Wake Up!.

According to Rolling Stone, the pontiff’s album will include “sacred hymns and excerpts of his most moving speeches in multiple languages paired with uplifting musical accompaniment ranging from pop-rock to Gregorian chant”.

It will be released on 27 November.

Wake Up!’s producer and artistic director Don Giulio Neroni told Rolling Stone:

“For many years, I’ve been the producer and the artistic director of albums by the Pope. I had the honour to work with John Paul II, Benedict XVI and now Pope Francis.

“As in the past, for this album too, I tried to be strongly faithful to the pastoral and personality of Pope Francis: the Pope of dialogue, open doors, hospitality. For this reason, the voice of Pope Francis in Wake Up! dialogues music. And contemporary music (rock, pop, Latin etc.) dialogues with the Christian tradition of sacred hymns.”

You can listen to a preview here.

Pope Francis is currently touring the US (in a non-musical way).

Mother-in-law joke 

Last night the 78-year-old Argentine pontiff gave a speech at the Festival of Families, a Catholic event held once every three years.

Gospel superstar Aretha Franklin and Italian opera singer Andrea Bocelli were among those who performed.

Marie Eveleth, of Washington, NJ, wears earnings that spell out 'pope' as she sells them to pedestrians around City Hall before Pope Francis comes through the area for a parade. PA PA

AFP notes that the crowd loved his off-script speech which was laden with jokes.

“Families quarrel and sometimes plates can fly and children bring headaches, and I won’t speak about mothers-in-law,” Francis said to many laughs, before adding: ”But those difficulties are overcome with love.”

Read: Will Pope Francis try the 9.75% Belgian-style craft beer brewed in his honour?

Read: The Pope brought up some controversial topics with US politicians today