Today we’re going to discuss Elton John. You know who he is. Born Reginald Dwight in Pinner, Middlesex, England in 1947, his childhood was stressful and conflict-ridden. He began playing piano as a child, pursuing it at the Royal Academy of Music in London in adolescence. John has said that he did not practice or exert much effort in improving his craft; he was naturally gifted enough to pass his tests without studying. He ultimately left the academy without taking his final exams, having already started playing professionally in a local pub.
His career furthered when he joined a band called Bluesology, featuring a rotating cast of musicians. The lineup settled when Long John Baldry hired the band to be his regular backing musicians. Around this time, he decided to change his image and his name, combining saxophonist Elton Dean’s first name with Baldry’s first name to create “Elton John”. Bluesology ran its course, veering into softer and less commercial under Baldry’s influence. John left the band, having begun working with a new lyricist to co-write material to both sell for Liberty Records and to record himself.
Bernie Taupin was born in Sleaford, Lincolnshire in 1950, the son of a farmer. Taupin had a talent for writing, initially working as a trainee at a newspaper before switching to poetry and song lyrics. Both Taupin and John answered an ad in the NME looking for songwriters; Liberty Records simply took Taupin’s words and handed them to John, asking him to compose something using the lyrics as a base. The partnership has endured since 1967.
Elton recorded Empty Sky in 1969 as his solo debut; it is a much different sound than he would become known for, veering into art pop or psychedelia rather than pop rock. 1970 saw a self-titled album, marking the first of may Gus Dudgeon productions. The album was a substantial hit on the strength of “Your Song”, “Take Me to the Pilot”, and “Border Song”. The label saw the album as a way to sell songs to other, more commercial, artists to record, so the success was a happy accident.
That same year, John made a detour into country-rock with Tumbleweed Connection, which was not as resonant with mainstream listeners but earned critical acclaim. The next year saw Madman Across the Water slightly flounder in the UK, but did very well in America. “Levon” and especially “Tiny Dancer” were radio hits. The album is also notable for including all three members of what would become the Elton John Band: guitarist and musical director Davey Johnstone, bassist Dee Murray, and drummer Nigel Olsson.
The band fully coalesced and the Taupin/John collaboration strengthened on 1972’s Honky Château. “Rocket Man” and “Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters” were the two standouts, with “Rocket Man” showcasing the backing vocals of the band together for the first time. The album went to #1 in the US and began a remarkable streak of releases. 1973 featured two albums: Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player and Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, which was a double LP.
Three albums worth of material in one calendar year is a lot for any major artist, but to have such output be so successful is unheard of. There were cracks beginning to show, though. Songs and their renditions could be rather lightweight in comparison to earlier works; “Crocodile Rock” in particular is regrettable. The drive to produce songs for sale perhaps overrode quality control. Of the two albums, GYBR is the clear superior.
1974 saw another slide in quality but continued the streak of chart dominance; Caribou is poorly recorded, poorly played, and poorly sung when held up to earlier releases. The team behind Elton John’s recordings were aware that they had to step up for the follow-up, lest they put a stop to their continuing sales.
They did so with aplomb. Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy is their commercial and artistic peak. Each song is fully realized. The band never played tighter or more competently. Elton’s vocals are crystal clear. Bernie’s lyrics are deep and meaningful. The production is technically perfect. This is a true piece of art, made because the songs needed to be made, not in an attempt to sell records.
For whatever reason, Elton fired Murray and Olsson after CFatBDC, and the follow-up Rock of the Westies was the last in the streak of #1 albums. The jig was up, and the machine had broken. Later releases were unable to capture the magic, and the artistry suffered immensely. In many ways, it’s the end of Elton John the musician and the beginning of his career as a cultural icon. I try to focus on the music in these posts, so this is where my selections end. There are occasional flashes of brilliance, but they do not last for any duration.
Let’s get to the list, speaking of. I’m focusing on the songs themselves rather than Elton’s version; that allows me to consider Bernie’s contributions in a more equitable way. Does that mean that I’m also featuring covers for songs where applicable? You bet it does. As per usual, this is only my subjective ranking for this particular moment. That it is also the best objective opinion is merely a coincidence.
10. Rocket Man
Elton John songs, as a rule, are built on memorable piano figures. However, the song “Rocket Man” is powered more by Dee Murray’s bassline and the metronome regularity of Nigel Olsson’s drumming. Although the song has been covered by many luminaries (Kate Bush and William Shatner first among them), John’s version remains the most impressive. Riding the edge between gospel and pop despite the otherworldly subject matter, the song is rightfully a staple of classic rock radio.
9. Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Elton’s prowess as a pianist garners the majority of his praise (he’s good but not great, from a technical perspective), which overshadows his vocal skill. “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” is most likely his peak as a singer, with layers of tenor leads stacked over orchestration provided by noted conductor Del Newman. For a much sparer, starker presentation, consider this live version from Sara Bareilles. It’s one of Elton’s favorite covers, and for good reason.
8. Tiny Dancer
At over six minutes, “Tiny Dancer” is spectacularly unsuited for mainstream radio. The typical pop song of the time was 3:30 or less, four minutes at the outside. It’s not a country song, despite the steel guitar. It’s not a gospel song, despite the choir. It’s not a baroque song, despite the string section. Taken together, it’s an odd duck of a piece, covering many bases but not fitting neatly into any one pigeonhole. Somehow, though, it works. At once melancholy and uplifting, it’s a hodgepodge of emotional resonance. The seemingly interminable build-up resolves in a massive release of energy, a masterwork of structure. The song is incredibly hard to sing as a result. Most singers have to change the key, including Elton John in his later years. The smart ones modulate down, like Miley Cyrus in her Grammy performance in 2018.
7. Don’t Let the Sun Go Down On Me
One of two listenable songs on Caribou, and the far superior of the two. The original version is not why I’ve included “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down On Me” on this list; it’s tinny and hollow. Instead, the song is present because of the strength of the cover/redux from 1991 featuring George Michael. The duo had performed the song at Live Aid in 1985 with an assist from Andrew Ridgley and Kiki Dee, transforming it from a pedestrian ballad to a gospel-inspired tour de force of vocal pyrotechnics. George felt he could do better and wanted another crack at it, and they cooperated to not only release the song in a new version but to donate the proceeds to charity. It’s George Michael at his finest, period.
6. Your Song
Elton John’s first big hit from his self-titled album, '“Your Song” is as straightforward a piano ballad as he ever recorded. It’s a stately, sedate song that hits all of the right moments, punctuated with soft bursts of strings and percussion. The relative simplicity of the structure means that there is ample room for improvisation and affectation if one chooses; consider the version recorded by Three Dog Night that adds a swirling Leslie organ part and a guitar solo. Technically speaking, the Three Dog Night track is the original as Elton opened for them and sold them the song. The band decided not to release it as a single in the hopes that Elton could get a hit of his own out of it. Mission accomplished.
5. Someone Saved My Life Tonight
Arguably the most intensely personal song to come from the partnership of Elton John and Bernie Taupin, “Someone Saved My Life Tonight” commemorates the day in 1968 when Elton half-heartedly attempted suicide when he was despondent over a failed relationship. Bernie and Long John Baldry took care of him in the aftermath, Bernie physically removing him from his gas-filled kitchen and Baldry supporting him emotionally. The “sugar bear” referred to in the chorus is Baldry, as is the titular “someone”. Clocking in at almost seven minutes, Elton refused to allow a radio edit due to the nature of the song, but it still hit #4 on the Hot 100 chart. For a showier but stripped down version, consider Lena Hall’s theatrical take.
4. Daniel
The second single from Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player, “Daniel” tells the story of a wounded soldier trying to escape the life he once had. Bernie Taupin wrote the song after reading of contemporary reports about young soldiers being unable to adjust to civilian life, particularly if they suffered injuries (both physically traumatic and mentally traumatic). There is a mythical last verse that may or may not have added more context to the first two verses, but it is lost to time; Elton considered it extraneous and wordy. A slower, more soulful version comes from Sam Smith off of the Revamp album of covers.
3. Funeral for a Friend / Love Lies Bleeding
Elton is often seen as leading figure of glam rock and/or glam pop, but “Funeral for a Friend” off of Goodbye Yellow Brick Road is his incredible take on progressive rock. It’s as impressive as anything from King Crimson or Pink Floyd, but with a delicate lyricism enwoven in the instrumentation. The first half (“Funeral for a Friend”) builds into a powerful crescendo complete with shifting stereo panning and complex percussive elements from Nigel Olsson before bleeding (no pun intended) into the second half (“Love Lies Bleeding”). A song about a romantic relationship disintegrating, it includes one of the tastiest guitar solos Davey Johnstone ever laid down. The agile bassline of Dee Murray glues the whole composition together. Not to be missed. There’s also a cover version by prog-meisters Dream Theater that turns the prog knob to eleven.
2. Levon
“Levon” is a fantastic song, but I hate the original album version. It’s too orchestrated, too overwrought, too overdone. The simple beauty of the melody and chords gets overwhelmed by ornamentation. That’s why I prefer this version with Elton John and percussionist Ray Cooper: it strips the song to its essentials and gives it room to breathe. A hot crowd helps, certainly. The song itself is a meditation on the changing expectations from the Greatest Generation to the Baby Boomers, and how priorities shifted from financial success to self-fulfillment. (At least in theory, of course. My personal feelings on the Baby Boomers do not align with this interpretation.) As an aside, “Levon” was named after The Band’s Levon Helm, who reportedly was not a fan of the song. Go figure.
1. Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters
Fun story: I wrote this entire article to talk about the best version of this song. It’s my favorite John/Taupin composition, but I can take or leave the actual Elton John performance. Longtime readers will know that I will take any opportunity to tell people about probably my favorite artist of all time:
That’s right, I’m talking about the Indigo Girls. Amy and Emily absolutely kill this song in a live version from 2004, released on their Rarities collection the next year. Listen along with me, shall we?
It’s perfect. Harmonies tastefully accented, fingerpicking spotless, every note more special than the last. If you listen to nothing else in this post, listen to this. It’s absolutely worth your time. Any composer should consider themselves lucky to play a role in a performance like this.
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