Elton John

It is interesting to watch how everything goes in circles. Be it fashion, music or just plainly good taste and doing what you do best. I am not the only one to have noticed that the big (old) boys who got their break in the 60’s or 70’s slowly went downhill as their careers continued for years and decades. However, the important word here is “downhill” and not “over the hill”. In the mid-90’s, the people who believed that rock music was reserved for the young, certainly seemed to have a point. The Rolling Stones had become a joke (“2010 - The Wheel Chair Tour”, as The Simpson’s put it), Paul McCartney was lucky to ever even have met John Lennon and Bob Dylan couldn’t come up with a decent line if his life depended on it.
Around this time something started to change. Pretty much every artist that was huge way back when music still mattered kicked the crap out the window and got their act together. Since then, most of them has had a second coming and actually are improving, hungry for success yet again (even Cat Stevens made a comeback, which says a lot).

While most of them restored some of their former glory by actually working and releasing good material again, one artist seemed to get his respect, maybe for the first time, when critics looked back. Suddenly people sat down and listened to Elton John again. Having been ridiculed for decades for his stage clothes (rightly so), his poor releases (maybe not so rightly) and being gay (are you really surprised?), somewhere down the line people had forgotten what was so great about the madman. If I was to put my finger on one thing that turned everything around, I would say that it was when movie director and music fan Cameron Crowe decided to use “Tiny Dancer” in the excellent “Almost Famous”. People got a chance to hear the music in a positive context and of course it was a song that revealed all Elton’s strengths; the nice melody, the neat arrangement, the big chorus and that marvellous falsetto vocal that people apparently had forgotten all about while watching “The Lion King” for the 156^th time.

So while people started looking back again and listening to the old recordings with an open mind and a positive attitude, they realised that Sir Elton actually was good once upon a time. Naturally, this new perspective made critics approach his new material in a more exciting and refreshing way than before. As a result Elton John’s last couple of albums has been far better received than anything he’s released since the late 70’s.
Obviously those albums also were his best work since those days as well, but the combination of well crafted albums along with the newly found respect from the critics laid the road open for some glowing reviews.

Personally, I don’t think these later albums quite hold up against his earlier work. Even if the songwriting probably is close to the same quality as the 70’s material, Elton John has lost his most appealing feature; his voice. These days it’s lower and darker, still powerful, but the falsetto is gone; a result from throat surgery. This obviously affects the arrangements of the songs and something is lost.
Elton John’s music has always been dramatic. The lyrics as well. Sometimes perhaps a bit too dramatic for its own good. Even if the songs are about the little man or the little society, they always end up being big statements. A bit too serious (of course there are moments when he can be as whimsy as Rowan Atkinson as well, but the trick is to find balance!). However, this could easily be forgiven when having that marvellous voice and the nice music. If you take away that voice, the actual story of the songs becomes more apparent and that is not always a good thing. Elton’s friend and lyricist Bernie Taupin may have written some of the best songs in popular music, but still he has several missteps. And these missteps becomes far more clearer when the music and vocal delivery is more down to earth.
This criticism should not imply that Elton John hasn’t gotten back on track lately. He has taken the same route as others of his generation. Huge success, desperate to keep up with the industry, disillusioned and drug abuse. Then finally managing to kick the habit, ignore the pressure of being cool and writing music for kids, but returning to doing what he does best. So while his back catalogue is sometimes jaw dropping, his later work is highly respectable. You just have to approach it with an open mind.

IF YOU THOUGHT ELTON JOHN IS ALL HAKUNA MATATA, YOU HAVEN’T HEARD THESE SONGS:

Madman Across The Water

Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding

Saturday Night’s Alright For Fighting

I Think I’m Going To Kill Myself

Bennie And The Jets

Philadelphia Freedom

Amy

My Father’s Gun

Also, the entire 11-17-70 live album rocks with great readings of Honky Tonk Women and Get Back.

DIVERSITY

Having a very wide taste in music, Elton John can change music style just as often as he changes stage clothes. Chopin, The Beach Boys, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, classic soul and newer dance music is all part of his arsenal. So you can never be quite sure of what you’ll get when it comes to Elton. He can deliver controversial glam rock at one moment, just to sit down and be a nice singer/songwriter the next. Which means the listener is constantly tossed between Bowie and Tom Waits. But he can also shift shape and go all pop, making smooth Beach Boys-like ballads sung in the style of Paul McCartney in top form. And sometimes all these styles are put together. It is impressive, and being able to actually pull it off convincingly is even more impressive. Large part of being able to do this (apart from him being a serious music fan) is thanks to his voice. Gentle falsettos are mixed with screaming rock and it very, very rarely sounds fake. One can argue that his interest in several genres might be distracting and of course there are some misfires (Jamica Jerk Off, for instance). Still, I think these explorations are mostly good. Piano ballads with strings are nice and all, but a bit of diversity is most welcome.

HOW TO BUY:

Tumbleweed Connection
The British singer finds himself telling stories of the American civil war. It holds some stunning moments and Elton always is on top of things.
High points: Burn Down The Mission, My Father’s Gun, Come Down In Time, Madman Across The Water (original version)

Madman Across The Water
Lots of strong melodies and great arrangements (as always). The title track sounds like acoustic Zeppelin produced by George Martin.
High points: Tiny Dancer, Levon, Madman Across The Water

Honky Chateau
Some say this is his finest hour. I’m not so sure, but it holds some of the classic classics.
High points: Honky Cat, Mellow, Rocket Man, Amy

Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
A double album containing ballads, soul, glam, prog and even reggae.
High points: Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding, Candle In The Wind, Bennie And The Jets, Saturday Night’s Alright For Fighting, Harmony

Captain Fantastic And The Brown Dirt Cowboy
Well crafted pop and beautiful ballads. Even if the two Lennon-covers could have been left off (well, they are bonus tracks, but still…)
High points: Someone Saved My Life Tonight, Tower of Babel, Philadelphia Freedom

Even if his albums started to stink pretty good later on, there are still some songs you wouldn’t want to miss out on. Make sure to get a decent compilation as well, or else learn how to live without:

Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me
I’m Still Standing
Tinderbox
Your Song
Daniel
I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues