In 1973 Elton John released his first double album,
"Goodbye Yellow Brick Road", which to many, fans and critics alike
(including me), is considered to be his masterpiece. It is also his most
popular studio album, selling more than 30m copies worldwide.
There are 2 songs in the album that can be viewed as
gay themed. One is obvious, the other not quite. We start with the one that is
ambiguous. The title track, one of the best songs of the album and a big hit
single, is a story about a young man who left his farm to go to the big city
(for those who've been reading all my entries, there appears to be a pattern
here) who ended up staying in this person's penthouse. He's unhappy with the
situation and he stages his rebellion: "I'm going back to my plough"
because: "I'm not a present for
your friends to open". In the last verse he's downright contemptuous:
"Maybe you'll get a
replacement
There's plenty like me to be
found
Mongrels who ain't got a
penny
Sniffing for tidbits like you
on the ground"
My read on this is of a sugar
daddy situation that has gone sour. Other readings are possible, but I think
mine is as good as any.
The other song, All The Girls
Love Alice is exactly what the title says: Alice, who "couldn't get it on
with the boys on the scene" was "Getting her kicks in another girl's
bed" until she was found "in the subway dead" (Why?)
The chorus paints us the
picture of a girl who wanted to please every single one of her female admirers:
"All the young girls
love Alice
Tender young Alice they say
Come over and see me
Come over and please me
Alice it's my turn today
All the young girls love
Alice
Tender young Alice they say
If I give you my number
Will you promise to call me
Wait till my husband's
away"
The flaw of the song is that
her death is not explained away in the lyrics, possibly only existing for
dramatic effect. Unfortuntely we were still living in the times where the gay
person was supposed to die in the end. Otherwise, it's a good song. Judge for
yourselves:
His next album,
"Caribou" contained the classic Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me and
the fun rocker The Bitch Is Back. The latter is Elton's Killer Queen with a bit
of Jumping Jack Flash. He's talking about himself, camping it up and thoroughly
enjoying it. It's no wonder that he usually opens his shows with this song.
"I'm a bitch, I'm a bitch, Oh the bitch is back" goes the chorus,
while the last verse starts with: "I entertain by picking brains, Sell my soul by dropping names". The
song was banned on several radio stations, in the United States and elsewhere.
Which makes me like it even more.
Philadelphia Freedom was a non-album single (1975), written
as a way to honour Billie Jean King, lesbian legend of tennis and Elton's
friend. Lyricist Bernie Taupin said, "I can't write a song about
tennis," and indeed the lyrics have nothing to do with tennis and little
to do with BJK, the only connection being the title, referencing the tennis
team BJK was a part of. US people perceived the song as patriotic and uplifting
and in the spirit of the soon to come bicentennial celebration, they made it a
huge #1 hit.
Someone Saved My Life Tonight was his follow-up single,
taken from the mostly autobiographical album "Captain Fantastic and the
Brown Dirt Cowboy". It was about an event that took place in 1969, a few
months before fame and fortune would come knocking. It concerns his engagement
at the time to Linda Woodrow. Elton was unhappy with the idea of marriage and
he contemplated suicide. It was his friend and bandmate, also a gay musician,
Long John Baldry (he's the "Sugar Bear" in the song), who talked him
out of it, telling him that his music was what mattered and that he was
destined for bigger things. It was a rather common occurrence for a gay person
to be driven into marriage with a willing girl, as a "social
convenience" for one or both parties. I guess it still happens, only not as
often.
For Elton, it seems that the thought was excruciating,
as the lyrics testify: "A slip noose hanging in my darkest dreams, I'm
strangled by your haunted social scene, Just a pawn out-played by a dominating
queen." But, thankfully, "Sweet freedom whispered in my ear: you're a
butterfly and butterflies are free to fly. Fly away, high away bye bye."
The years 1973 - 1976 were Elton's crowning achievement, the pinnacle of a career that was already on an upward trajectory. GYBR is indeed Elton shooting his wad over 4 sides (ah, vinyl)of pop rock perfection. Though it produced 3 chart smashes, there could easily have been another 5 or 6 singles. Love lies Bleeding could have been edited to a more radio friendly 4 minutes of rock blast. Grey Seal, I've Seen That Movie Too, Sweet Painted Ladies, All The Girls Love Alice and the gorgeous Harmony could all have been top ten hits. What a great achievement. He could have retired right there and lived on that legacy alone but no, the man had more to say.
ReplyDeleteCaribou suffered from having to follow that monolith and indeed, it sounds slight when compared to GYBR. Don't Let The Sun..of course, is another Elton masterpiece and Bitch is a sly rocker that defined his public persona perfectly. A handful of the other tunes are fun but again, rather slight.
A couple of huge singles bridged the gap between this and his next lp, Captain Fantastic. Don't know if it's the single Someone Saved My Life Tonight but this album took on a darker, more serious tone than we were used to hearing from the king of pop - which he was in the 70s. Gone were the hooks and with the exception of maybe, Meal Ticket, I find the record to be a bit of a slog. Or in the words of a co-worker who was with me as I listened to the album, "What is this crap?" Strong words and maybe not totally accurate but there it is.
Blue Moves, which I consider the last good Elton John album until The One was even more dense. A sprawling two-disc set crying out for an edit, still managed a few great tunes like Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word, Chameleon and Bite Your Lip. Elton loved to include a set piece on his albums and this one's is One Horse Town. Reminiscent of previous opuses like Burn Down The Mission and Love Lies Bleeding, this smartly orchestrated epic is one of my favorite Elton latter 70s songs.
For whatever reason, be it the steamroller that was disco or gathering gay clouds, Elton's popularity suffered a downturn for the rest of the 70s but the man. like the Phoenix, would rise again.
Once again, RM, you provide excellent commentary. I agree with the tunes that you single out from GYBR. I would personally add Roy Rogers and Danny Bailey to the list. On a personal note, I was in drama class in high school and was taking a part in the production of a modern play. I suggested to my drama teacher (who was also the director), that we use Funeral For A Friend as our introduction. I got her to agree and it worked out perfectly. Also, you mention 3 chart smashes, it's really four, since Candle In The Wind/Bennie & The Jets was the last single: one side hit in the UK and the other one hit in the US. Possibly the best two sides on a single since Strawberry Fields Forever/Penny Lane.
ReplyDeleteI agree with everything that you say about Caribou and Blue Moves, but I confess that I did like Captain Fantastic. Correct, it was a rather dark affair. Also correct, the the hooks were lacking. But it was the closest that Elton came to a concept album and quite a personal one at that. It was supposed to be a loose account of his and Bernie's life. In fact, in the UK vinyl edition, a comic-book biography was included. True, not many songs stood out as much (except for SSMLT and MT I'd add the title track, Better Off Dead and Tower of Babel, but the album made more sense when played from start to finish rather than songs being played individually. I haven't listened to it for a few years now though, so I won't really persist. You skipped over Rock of the Westies. How come?
Oversight. I realized I omitted that one & the few singles he released in 75-76. I look at ROTW as an album similar in circumstances to Caribou in that it followed a record that was well regarded but with substantially less angst and seriousness. I love the Caribbean flavor of Island Girl and Grow Some Funk Of Your Own as well as the rather dark subject matter but my favorite may well be I Feel Like A Bullet In The Gun Of Robert Ford. It's an oasis in what is Elton's most rocking album.
DeleteThe three #1 singles he released in the same period should be addressed, too. Lucy worked as an Elton take on the Beatles and the fact that it was a less played song probably helped. Don't Go Breaking My Heart is simply a catchy pop tune with an effortless and playful dual vocal goosing it along. Philadelphia Freedom was my favorite Elton song for many years and could still be if not for overexposure. I love the epic production and soaring string arrangement that gives it a Philly-soul vibe.
Yes sir, those were great times for Elton and all us fans.
I Feel Like a Bullet... was my favorite too (from ROTW). As for the singles, I fully agree. LITSWD was also helped by Lennon's presence on the track, I think. (As was Bowie's Fame). DGBMH was greatly helped by it's time of release (June 1976). It was perfect for summer, light and bubbly and lighthearted fun. As for PF, I'm in agreement here as well, especially involving the epic production and inventive orchestration. May I just put a word in for Elton's voice too? It is not often mentioned, but his vocal chops were quite remarkable. Especially as far as conveying feeling was concerned.
DeleteOh...sorry. I thought in any discussion of Elton John, the fabulousness of his voice was implicit. He could growl with the best of them and soar to the stratosphere when called to do so. He could make you smile or weep and sometimes in the same song - Candle In The Wind, Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me. He was nominated for a Grammy for DLTSGDOM but lost to the entirety of Stevie Wonder's Fullfillingness' First Finale.
ReplyDeleteSo true, RM, so true...
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