The years following Elton John’s debut album Empty Sky (1969) saw a flurry of releases and escalating popularity for the soon-to-be superstar. By mid-1973, five more albums had followed, including concept album Tumbleweed Connection and the chart-topping double whammy of Honky Château and Don't Shoot Me, I'm Only the Piano Player.
These early albums, co-written with Bernie Taupin (the pair have continued to collaborate ever since, with John writing the music and Taupin the lyrics), spawned many hit singles, several of which - including Tiny Dancer and Rocket Man - are still as popular as ever today.
While Elton John’s extended period of productivity would continue well until the 1980s, the double-album Goodbye Yellow Brick Road was in many years the inevitable creative and musical culmination of those early years. Running at almost 75 minutes, it’s a lively combination of ballads, prog rock and straight up pop-rock, featuring some of the most memorable songs of John’s career - and arguably an era.
The big hits are there, including Saturday Night’s Alright For Fighting, Bennie and the Jets, the title track (“To me that’s his best song”, John Fardy says) and the original version of Candle in the Wind. But on this week’s Cultural Toolbox, John and Shane discussed some of the lesser known tracks too, and evaluated whether it’s a great album beyond some outstanding singles.
“This album is the pinnacle of Elton-mania,” John Fardy said. “People forget nowadays, but around this time he was massive… This was the height of his success. He could do nothing wrong”.
He recounted the unusual story of the recording of the album, including a failed recording attempt in Jamaica that led to Goodbye... being recorded in only two weeks back at Château d'Hérouville. He also went into the sound of the album itself, arguing it’s a great ‘band’ album.
Elton John posing with his lyric writer Berni Taupin. Image: John Glanvill / AP/Press Association Images
“There’s a great album here, but is there a great double album here?” Shane wondered, calling Jamaica Jerk-Off ‘muck’. However he admitted there were some exceptional non-singles on the album as well as the hits. The pair acknowledged John’s music hasn’t always been as memorable since then (even if he has had a fascinating life), but John argued passionately and convincingly that Goodbye Yellow Brick Road remains a high watermark for John.
What are your thoughts on the album? Let us know, and make sure to tune in to The Sunday Show next week for the next candidate for The Cultural Toolbox.
