Post by Phil Seaman on Jul 29, 2005 17:02:20 GMT
5 / Honky Chateau / 1972
After little commercial success, Elton decided to change his style to a more commercial sound. However he was still yet to sell out, as the moving Mellow, lively I Think I'm Going To Kill Myself and touching Salvation showed. The ballads on the album are far superior to the often dated uptempo songs, Honky Cat being atrocious despite a good horn part, and Suzie and Amy both failing to impress. However Rocket Man is an all time classic, and Mona Lisas & Mad Hatters was featured on the film Almost Famous, and is a touching ballad. Not Elton's strongest, but certainly better than some of what followed.
Best Songs: Rocket Man, Mellow, Salvation, I Think I'm Going To Kill Myself, Mona Lisas & Mad Hatters.
Avoid: Honky Cat, Suzie, Amy, Slave (although the alternate, faster version is good).
6/10
6 / Don`t Shoot Me I`m Only The Piano Player / 1973
Elton continued to create more commercial songs here, but to greater success than on the previous album. Teacher, I Need You is a superb pop-rocker that should be a classic, Midnight Creeper is a brass-laden rocker which is stylish, as is I'm Gonna Be A Teenage Idol. The ballads are not as strong as on 'Honky Chateau', with only the moody Have Mercy On The Criminal, which recalls the 'Elton John' album and features a brilliant guitar solo, and Texas Love Song, a folky ballad being any good. The album brought the dull hit Daniel and Crocodile Rock, which is just cheesy and awful. A real mix of an album, but the bonus tracks on the CD version, including Skyline Pigeon (Piano Version) improve it immensely.
Best Songs: Teacher, I Need You, Midnight Creeper, Have Mercy On The Criminal, I'm Gonna Be A Teenage Idol, Texas Love Song, all the bonus songs.
Avoid: Daniel, Elderberry Wine, Crocodile Rock
7.5/10
7 / Goodbye Yellow Brick Road / 1973
Elton's best known album, and his first double vinal release. Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding is a 10 minute long part instrumental part rocker that is a classic that dispells one or two myths about Elton being a pop twat. The beautiful ballad Goodbye Yellow Brick Road is possibly his finest ballad. Grey Seal is great pop-rock, and most of the tracks here are worthwhile, even the original Candle In The Wind, which is a pretty good song, unlike the dire Diana version. Also hitting the charts were Bennie And The Jets, which is ok, nothing special, and the classy rocker Saturday Nights All Right For Fighting. A superb album, which has too many class songs to list here, ranging from rock, pop, country, jazz, weirdness, songs about lesbians and even a god-awful reggae song, Jamaica Jerk Off.
Best Songs: Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, Saurday Nights All Right For Fighting, Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding, Grey Seal.
Avoid: Jamaica Jerk Off
10/10
8 / Caribou / 1974
After the brilliant album before, this was bound to be a let down. Elton doesn't disappoint with his first bad album. First the positives, The Bitch Is Back is a good pop-rocker with great brass and a catchy chorus, Pinky has a great riff and is a nice summery tune, Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me is a decent ballad, and Ticking is a brilliant lyrical ballad, best lyrics of Bernie Taupins. The bonus tracks 'Cold Highway', a slowish rock number, and the bluesy 'Sick City', and a classy cover of the who's Pinball Wizard are all good. The rest is just crap, mostly all midtempo unmemorable crap, and one song, 'Solar Prestige A Gammon' even uses made-up language to embarassing consequences. In fact, most of the songs from 3-8 on the track listing are crap, barring the average ballad 'I've Seen The Saucers'. The bonus songs can not save this trollop.
Best Songs: Bitch Is Back, Pinky, Ticking, Cold Highway, Pinball Wizard
Avoid: Grimsby, Dixie Lily, You're So Static, Stinker, Solar Prestige A Gammon, Step Into Christmas
5/10
9 / Captain Fantastic And The Brown Dirt Cowboy / 1975
This is Elton's most commercial album yet, with a pop melody riding throughout most of the album, although lyrically this effort is much stronger than any other album from Bernie Taupin. The title track is an acoustic guitar based track that is catchy, Tower Of Babel is stylish and a bit darker than most of the album, Someone Saved My Life Tonight is one of the best ballads Elton's written about attempted suicide, and (Gotta Have A) Meal Ticket, the only rocker on this album, is good. The acoustic pop of Writing is also ok. The songs on this album are all mostly good, and it is hard to fault them. However appart from the title track, and Someone Saved My Life Tonight, they fail to really stand out as brilliant songs, and whilst catchy they don't really have the edge to make them super. And the production of We All Fall In Love Sometimes is atrocious and dated horribly with awful synth effects, and Curtains is repetitive dross. An ok album.
Best Songs: Someone Saved My Life Tonight, Captain Fantastic And The Brown Dirt Cowboy
Avoid: We All Fall In Love Sometimes, Curtains
6.5/10
Thus concludes the reign of Elton as undesputed rock god of the 70s.
After little commercial success, Elton decided to change his style to a more commercial sound. However he was still yet to sell out, as the moving Mellow, lively I Think I'm Going To Kill Myself and touching Salvation showed. The ballads on the album are far superior to the often dated uptempo songs, Honky Cat being atrocious despite a good horn part, and Suzie and Amy both failing to impress. However Rocket Man is an all time classic, and Mona Lisas & Mad Hatters was featured on the film Almost Famous, and is a touching ballad. Not Elton's strongest, but certainly better than some of what followed.
Best Songs: Rocket Man, Mellow, Salvation, I Think I'm Going To Kill Myself, Mona Lisas & Mad Hatters.
Avoid: Honky Cat, Suzie, Amy, Slave (although the alternate, faster version is good).
6/10
6 / Don`t Shoot Me I`m Only The Piano Player / 1973
Elton continued to create more commercial songs here, but to greater success than on the previous album. Teacher, I Need You is a superb pop-rocker that should be a classic, Midnight Creeper is a brass-laden rocker which is stylish, as is I'm Gonna Be A Teenage Idol. The ballads are not as strong as on 'Honky Chateau', with only the moody Have Mercy On The Criminal, which recalls the 'Elton John' album and features a brilliant guitar solo, and Texas Love Song, a folky ballad being any good. The album brought the dull hit Daniel and Crocodile Rock, which is just cheesy and awful. A real mix of an album, but the bonus tracks on the CD version, including Skyline Pigeon (Piano Version) improve it immensely.
Best Songs: Teacher, I Need You, Midnight Creeper, Have Mercy On The Criminal, I'm Gonna Be A Teenage Idol, Texas Love Song, all the bonus songs.
Avoid: Daniel, Elderberry Wine, Crocodile Rock
7.5/10
7 / Goodbye Yellow Brick Road / 1973
Elton's best known album, and his first double vinal release. Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding is a 10 minute long part instrumental part rocker that is a classic that dispells one or two myths about Elton being a pop twat. The beautiful ballad Goodbye Yellow Brick Road is possibly his finest ballad. Grey Seal is great pop-rock, and most of the tracks here are worthwhile, even the original Candle In The Wind, which is a pretty good song, unlike the dire Diana version. Also hitting the charts were Bennie And The Jets, which is ok, nothing special, and the classy rocker Saturday Nights All Right For Fighting. A superb album, which has too many class songs to list here, ranging from rock, pop, country, jazz, weirdness, songs about lesbians and even a god-awful reggae song, Jamaica Jerk Off.
Best Songs: Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, Saurday Nights All Right For Fighting, Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding, Grey Seal.
Avoid: Jamaica Jerk Off
10/10
8 / Caribou / 1974
After the brilliant album before, this was bound to be a let down. Elton doesn't disappoint with his first bad album. First the positives, The Bitch Is Back is a good pop-rocker with great brass and a catchy chorus, Pinky has a great riff and is a nice summery tune, Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me is a decent ballad, and Ticking is a brilliant lyrical ballad, best lyrics of Bernie Taupins. The bonus tracks 'Cold Highway', a slowish rock number, and the bluesy 'Sick City', and a classy cover of the who's Pinball Wizard are all good. The rest is just crap, mostly all midtempo unmemorable crap, and one song, 'Solar Prestige A Gammon' even uses made-up language to embarassing consequences. In fact, most of the songs from 3-8 on the track listing are crap, barring the average ballad 'I've Seen The Saucers'. The bonus songs can not save this trollop.
Best Songs: Bitch Is Back, Pinky, Ticking, Cold Highway, Pinball Wizard
Avoid: Grimsby, Dixie Lily, You're So Static, Stinker, Solar Prestige A Gammon, Step Into Christmas
5/10
9 / Captain Fantastic And The Brown Dirt Cowboy / 1975
This is Elton's most commercial album yet, with a pop melody riding throughout most of the album, although lyrically this effort is much stronger than any other album from Bernie Taupin. The title track is an acoustic guitar based track that is catchy, Tower Of Babel is stylish and a bit darker than most of the album, Someone Saved My Life Tonight is one of the best ballads Elton's written about attempted suicide, and (Gotta Have A) Meal Ticket, the only rocker on this album, is good. The acoustic pop of Writing is also ok. The songs on this album are all mostly good, and it is hard to fault them. However appart from the title track, and Someone Saved My Life Tonight, they fail to really stand out as brilliant songs, and whilst catchy they don't really have the edge to make them super. And the production of We All Fall In Love Sometimes is atrocious and dated horribly with awful synth effects, and Curtains is repetitive dross. An ok album.
Best Songs: Someone Saved My Life Tonight, Captain Fantastic And The Brown Dirt Cowboy
Avoid: We All Fall In Love Sometimes, Curtains
6.5/10
Thus concludes the reign of Elton as undesputed rock god of the 70s.
