Published on May 10, 2004
Back when I was a wee lad, my only exposure to Elton John was
“Can You Feel the Love Tonight” Naturally, being eight, I was more
concerned with cooties than an aging piano player. My mistake.
Plant, Jagger, Scott, Townshend, they had it lucky. It’s easy to
become a rock personality when you’re out strutting around the
stage with complete freedom. So how did Elton John, a piano player
who by no means had a magnetic personality, become one of the most
revered musicians in rock? Hard work, a penchant for the
flamboyant, and oh yes, he could flat-out play.
By the time 1973 rolled along, Elton was on the verge of his
great success. His previous two albums,
Honky Chateau and
Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only The Piano Player, both reached
number one in America. In fact, Elton would go onto set the record
for most consecutive releases that reached number one, with seven.
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, the third in that set of seven,
would cement Elton’s place among rock’s elite.
I can sum up the 70’s in one word: excess. The decade was full
of it. It is what allowed for
GYBR to become the classic it is now known as. Showmanship
fueled the album, drove it. The musical landscapes were sweeping
and vast, yet somehow Elton was able to rein things in, and not let
the album run away with itself. Bernie Taupin wrote lyrics that
were personal, at times in direct contrast with the music. Yet
somehow, all these elements came together, and they worked.
Given that Elton’s voice has changed so much over the years,
some might forget what a great vocalist he once was. Back in the
70’s, Elton had much greater range than he does now. He could take
on all sorts of vocal impersonations. You could hear Elton go from
dizzying heights to tremendous lows. You could feel the anguish in
ballads like “Candle in the Wind,” or the intensity of the rave
rocker “Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting.” His voice was
second to none; there were no “Elton impersonators.” When an EJ
song came on, you knew it was him.
Stylistically, this album is all over the map. From straight-out
rock to jazzy little numbers, to honky tonk pieces, soft ballads,
and even reggae,
GYBR has it all. Many critics have criticized the album for
this wide variety of styles. That always puzzled me, as I thought
it would be impressive for a rock stars to show all the influences
that got them where they was. Generally speaking, Elton does better
on the straightforward numbers, but there are some real gems hidden
amongst the rest. “Roy Roger” has a wonderful country-style tinge
to it, and the harmonies Elton sings with himself are quite
possibly the best on the album. “The Ballad of Danny Bailey
(1909-1934),” the aforementioned honky-tonk number, is Bernie
Taupin’s tribute to the old cop thrillers he would watch. Elton
matches the tone perfectly, going so far to as to use his piano to
imitate the firing of bullets.
The hits songs off
GYBR, like “Candle in the Wind,” or “Bennie and the Jets” I
can’t add anything to, as they have been played and analyzed ad
nauseum over the years. However, there are two numbers which I
can’t help but comment on, “Funeral for a Friend” and “Goodbye
Yellow Brick Road.” These are the two best songs on the album.
“Funeral For A Friend” (FFAF) is the opener to the album, and
begins in Wagnerian majesty. Synthesizers dominate here, creating a
dark mood. From this point on, the song only gets better and
better. You think you’re at the high point, only to find another
one. Eventually the “window dressings” of the synths are phased
out, and we are just left with Elton and the band. Rarely does
Elton match his live playing with a studio recording, but in the
case of FFAF he equals his live performances. Elton attacks the
keys with a ferociousness never heard from a rock pianist before.
Bernie Taupin has always been at his best with simpler lyrics, and
FFAF works lyrically because Taupin doesn’t try anything fancy. A
broken heart is the setting for the song, no more. It is Elton who
turns this into not only the best opening number a rock star could
ever ask for, but the best rock number of his career.
“Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” is an entirely different matter than
FFAF. It is one of the most aching ballads Elton has ever sung, and
simultaneously one of his best vocal performances. Taupin’s lyrics
are about the disillusionment of fame, and the desire to return
home to “my plough.” Again, Elton weds the lyric and the
performance perfectly. There’s a sense of whimsy to the opening
verses, almost as if his desire was a slight wish. But when the
chorus hits, there is no doubt in the listener’s mind what the
speakers’ true desire is.
What more can I say?
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road is one of my favorite albums from
one of my favorite artists. It is what defined Elton John in the
70’s. The album had four top ten singles, and many speculated it
could have had more. It was glitzy, it was glamorous, it was
Elton.