FEATURE:
A Buyer’s Guide
IN THIS PHOTO: Elton John in 1973/PHOTO CREDIT: Michael Putland
Part Eighteen: Elton John
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THERE are some artists…
who burn brightly for a little while, but then they seem to fade away. There are others who continue to record material for decades, and there seems to be no signs of their career ending. Elton John’s debut album, Empty Sky, arrived in 1969 and his most current album, Wonderful Crazy Night, was released in 2016. He is in the middle of his final tour – which will be delayed until next year -, and the influence of Elton John cannot be underestimated. Together with songwriting partner Bernie Taupin, there is nobody quite like him! John feels that the modern Pop charts do not contain real songs so, for that reason, I wanted to highlight his work and show what a master he is. If you need a guide regarding the best work of Elton John, then I think I have…
PHOTO CREDIT: Rex Features
GOT it covered.
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The Four Essential Albums
Elton John
Release Date: 10th April, 1970
Label: DJM
Producer: Gus Dudgeon
Standout Tracks: Take Me to the Pilot/Border Song/The Greatest Discovery
Buy: https://www.discogs.com/Elton-John-Elton-John/master/84203
Stream: https://open.spotify.com/album/0C2grVR8DnJnL8rg7OP6Zm?si=Z0SvhmepT6mkIwCx6CJ6iA
Review:
“Empty Sky was followed by Elton John, a more focused and realized record that deservedly became his first hit. John and Bernie Taupin's songwriting had become more immediate and successful; in particular, John's music had become sharper and more diverse, rescuing Taupin's frequently nebulous lyrics. "Take Me to the Pilot" might not make much sense lyrically, but John had the good sense to ground its willfully cryptic words with a catchy blues-based melody. Next to the increased sense of songcraft, the most noticeable change on Elton John is the addition of Paul Buckmaster's grandiose string arrangements. Buckmaster's orchestrations are never subtle, but they never overwhelm the vocalist, nor do they make the songs schmaltzy. Instead, they fit the ambitions of John and Taupin, as the instant standard "Your Song" illustrates. Even with the strings and choirs that dominate the sound of the album, John manages to rock out on a fair share of the record. Though there are a couple of underdeveloped songs, Elton John remains one of his best records” – AllMusic
Choice Cut: Your Song
Honky Château
Release Date: 19th May, 1972
Labels: Uni (U.S.)/DJM (U.K.)
Producer: Gus Dudgeon
Standout Tracks: Honky Cat/I Think I’m Going to Kill Myself/Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters
Buy: https://www.discogs.com/Elton-John-Honky-Ch%C3%A2teau/master/85555
Stream: https://open.spotify.com/album/2ei2X6ghPnw7YRwQtAH075?si=1ouhB6PqTYmkolHhbgkXxQ
Review:
“On the other hand, no Elton John album has ever sounded looser; the bogus over-production that marred both of the earlier releases at crucial moments is never in evidence, and the album sounds more intimate and personal than either of its predecessors. John and associates are obvious creatures of the studio and so shy away from nothing in terms of technique — there is plenty of vocal double tracking, but their use of it is more natural than ever before.
“Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters” shows how much John can really do in the space of a single cut. Using minimal instrumentation and singing one of Taupin’s most direct lyrics, John effortlessly reveals the myth beneath the myth of “… a rose in Spanish Harlem.” He expresses his involvement with the city, his need for its people, and his final desire to be alone through one of his best tunes, simplest arrangements, and most natural vocal performances.
Honky Château is ultimately a solid work with enough happening to keep someone listening for weeks trying to absorb everything on it. And, as each additional layer is revealed to the listener, he is constantly reminded that this is one of the rare albums released this year worth pursuing at length, for it rewards each additional playing with increased enlightenment and enjoyment” – Rolling Stone
Choice Cut: Rocket Man
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Release Date: 5th October, 1973
Labels: Uni (U.S.)/DJM (U.K.)
Producer: Gus Dudgeon
Standout Tracks: Candle in the Wind/Bernie and the Jets/Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting
Buy: https://www.discogs.com/Elton-John-Goodbye-Yellow-Brick-Road/master/30577
Stream: https://open.spotify.com/album/5WupqgR68HfuHt3BMJtgun?si=j4VNGhbDS-CingcoGE37uw
Review:
“Born Reginald Kenneth Dwight, Elton John became one of the biggest stars of the glitz n’ glamour fueled ‘70s, racking up seven consecutive number one albums and scoring at least one Top 40 hit every year until 1996. Following his 1972 U.S. breakthrough Honky Chateau, which spawned the hits “Rocketman” and “Honky Cat,” John released two back-to-back albums, Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only The Piano Player and the now-classic Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, which displayed the singer’s talent for crafting infectious pop/rock ditties that evoked a diverse span of genres ranging from mellow piano music to full-out rock n’ roll. The double-album begins with the dirge-like, 11-minute “Funeral For A Friend,” which opens with a foreboding organ that later gives way to swirling prog-rock guitars, piano, and psychedelic keyboards. The complex song is instantly juxtaposed by the album’s second track, the simple “Candle In The Wind,” John and perennial songwriting partner Bernie Taupin’s famously sentimental homage to Marilyn Monroe. (The song would later become the fastest selling single in history after John revised it as an ode to the late Princess Diana in 1997.) Accentuating Goodbye’s impressive diversity is the smooth, lounge-y “Bennie And The Jets,” with John’s high reaching falsetto giving the track a cabaret feel. The album doesn’t shy away from John’s signature subversion either: “All the Girls Love Alice” is a masked sweet ballad that’s really about a teenage lesbian who does “favors” for older women, while the hit “Sweet Painted Lady” is a jaunty song about prostitution: “Getting paid for being laid/Guess that’s the name of the game.” From the catchy title track and the orchestral “I’ve Seen That Movie Too” to songs like “Grey Seal,” with its high-adrenaline rush of pounding piano keys and won’t-leave-the-head-for-days hook, it’s the balance between melancholic ballads (where John’s vocals and strong narratives take center stage) and the pure rock n’ roll tunes that makes the album work as a whole. Goodbye Yellow Brick Road is such an epic, varied display of emotional depth and soul it should be classified as some sort of operetta” – SLANT
Choice Cut: Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Songs from the West Coast
Release Date: 1st October, 2001
Labels: Rocket/Mercury
Producer: Patrick Leonard
Standout Tracks: The Emperor's New Clothes/Dark Diamond/I Want Love
Buy: https://www.discogs.com/Elton-John-Songs-From-The-West-Coast/master/126938
Stream: https://open.spotify.com/album/2TkOhyL6D0hgVsyz31vKWa?si=suV6sxC-Rc6N7fBz9wyYAg
Review:
“In the 1970s, when Elton John had six consecutive American number ones, he and lyricist Bernie Taupin were regarded as major talents. Decades seemingly dedicated to messing about have turned John into a national treasure, but along the way his music has fluttered into the background. Now comes Songs from the West Coast and, almost inconceivably, John is reborn as a serious artist. The album harkens to his golden years, but its quality renders it as timeless as Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. It's a simple but dramatic affair, performed with a sympathetic band, capable of turning Original Sin and I Want Love into grandstanding but uncluttered epics. Meanwhile, John sings his heart out, and creates soaring keyboard melodies to Taupin's ice-pick-sharp lyrics. Birds and Mansfield are the pick of a splendid bunch. Maybe the coasting days are over” – The Guardian
Choice Cut: Original Sin
The Underrated Gem
Tumbleweed Connection
Release Date: 30th October, 1970
Labels: Uni (U.S.)/DJM (U.K.)
Producer: Gus Dudgeon
Standout Tracks: Come Down in Time/My Father’s Gun/Talking Old Soldiers
Buy: https://www.discogs.com/Elton-John-Tumbleweed-Connection/master/84216
Stream: https://open.spotify.com/album/03zfU3IwWmymKoaWnwFNaY?si=NLan04icQGGlqihCGGLDrg
Review:
“It’s the sound of a songwriting team hanging on to their perceived rock credibility, not yet stumbling on the pop chops that sent the Elton brand supernova. Produced by Gus Dudgeon with orchestral arrangements by Paul Buckmaster, this is almost as laden with Americana as Bernie Taupin’s lyrics. Elton sings in a distinctly Yankee twang and the influence of The Band’s Music from Big Pink is evident throughout. Ballad of a Well-Known Gun sets out the album’s stall, a mid-tempo country-rocker gilded by period guitar fills from Caleb Quaye and a backing choir including one Dusty Springfield. Themes flicker here which reoccur between tracks: gunslingers young and ageing, a sepia sense of saloons and one-horse towns. My Father’s Gun and Talking Old Soldiers overtly try to enter the heads of ailing John Waynes.
The best songs are those which transcend Taupin’s Western fantasies. Come Down in Time is an exquisite ballad which remains one of John’s most under-acclaimed tracks. Where to Now St. Peter? allows itself more time to float than the formulaic structures which later became his trademark, and he exhibits a keening falsetto. Amoreena (used over the opening sequences of Sidney Lumet’s Dog Day Afternoon) bristles with drama, although Lesley Duncan’s Love Song (a rare case of Elton covering a friend’s song) can’t glide past its cheesy lyrics. The climactic Burn Down the Mission – a live showstopper at the time – enjoys a grandstand finish, all bombast and infectious enthusiasm. Relatively (it’s sold a million) overlooked in the canon, Tumbleweed… is a crafted, often impassioned work” – BBC
Choice Cut: Ballad of a Well-Known Gun
The Latest/Final Album
Wonderful Crazy Night
Release Date: 5th February, 2016
Labels: Mercury/Virgin EMI/Island
Producers: T Bone Burnett/Elton John
Standout Tracks: Blue Wonderful/A Good Heart/Looking Up
Buy: https://www.discogs.com/Elton-John-Wonderful-Crazy-Night/master/953440
Stream: https://open.spotify.com/album/2n7B7svtcYIrYJFtYREauV?si=PP5_X9l-Sy6CYIgliEInpQ
Review:
“Such vivid keyboard detail is a recurring feature, as on the brooding introduction to the driving “In the Name of You” and the vaguely psychedelic “Claw Hammer”. The latter also showcases nicely textured electric and acoustic guitars before the inspired introduction of jazz horns, as Taupin’s evocative lyric describes someone “holed up in your house of wax, just waiting for the fire”.
To have such a consummate piano player showcasing the instrument, as he did on his marvellous introductory run of records, adds considerable heft to the album. At times, as on “I’ve Got 2 Wings”, the sense of Americana in sound and imagery recalls the atmosphere of, say, Madman Across the Water, whereas the bare “Blue Wonderful” evokes the Eighties era of Too Low for Zero.
By the time of “Looking Up”, which introduced the album as a pre-Christmas single, we’re back into killer piano motifs and unswerving optimism. Wonderful Crazy Night is not an album of hit singles, but John knows his game is to sit on the sub’s bench these days. But still to be delivering such carefully and enthusiastically forged handiwork says much about his respect for his legacy and his audience” – The Independent
Choice Cut: Wonderful Crazy Night
The Elton John Book
Me
Author: Elton John
Publication Date: 15th October, 2019
Publisher: Macmillan
Review:
“In his first and only official autobiography, music icon Elton John reveals the truth about his extraordinary life, which is also the subject of the upcoming film Rocketman. The result is Me - the joyously funny, honest and moving story of the most enduringly successful singer/songwriter of all time.
Christened Reginald Dwight, he was a shy boy with Buddy Holly glasses who grew up in the London suburb of Pinner and dreamed of becoming a pop star. By the age of twenty-three, he was on his first tour of America, facing an astonished audience in his tight silver hotpants, bare legs and a T-shirt with ROCK AND ROLL emblazoned across it in sequins. Elton John had arrived and the music world would never be the same again.
His life has been full of drama, from the early rejection of his work with song-writing partner Bernie Taupin to spinning out of control as a chart-topping superstar; from half-heartedly trying to drown himself in his LA swimming pool to disco-dancing with the Queen; from friendships with John Lennon, Freddie Mercury and George Michael to setting up his AIDS Foundation. All the while, Elton was hiding a drug addiction that would grip him for over a decade.
In Me, Elton also writes powerfully about getting clean and changing his life, about finding love with David Furnish and becoming a father. In a voice that is warm, humble and open, this is Elton on his music and his relationships, his passions and his mistakes. This is a story that will stay with you, by a living legend” – A BBC Radio 4 Book of the Week
Order: https://www.waterstones.com/book/me/sir-elton-john/9781509853311