Elton John - Still Play Him?

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robertff
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Elton John - Still Play Him?

Postby robertff » 21 Dec 2021, 11:27

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Currently playing this at the moment and it occurred to me does anyone still play Elton John records? Huge in the '70s and '80s + but has his kudos been lost and his credibility rating dropped over the years?

I guess this Yellow Brick would probably be my go to album of his although I do like Blue Moves and Don't Shoot ..... quite a lot.

So Elton John, what do you think now and what would be your go to album if anything?


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The Fish
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Re: Elton John - Still Play Him?

Postby The Fish » 21 Dec 2021, 11:45

One of the very few artists I cherry pick. Don't like GBYBR all that much, and certainly never want to hear Candle In The Wind ever again.

Top 3 for me...

Captain Fantastic
Tumbleweed Connection
Madman Across The Water
We're way past rhubarb

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C
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Re: Elton John - Still Play Him?

Postby C » 21 Dec 2021, 12:37

Sorry Rob - I've never played the lad

Bopped to Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting at the local rugby club disco and that's about it.

I have zero Elton John records in my collection

Incidentally, I assume you know where he got the 'Elton' bit from in his name....?

Now they I still play!




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robertff
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Re: Elton John - Still Play Him?

Postby robertff » 21 Dec 2021, 13:57

C wrote:Sorry Rob - I've never played the lad

Bopped to Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting at the local rugby club disco and that's about it.

I have zero Elton John records in my collection

Incidentally, I assume you know where he got the 'Elton' bit from in his name....?

Now they I still play!


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Of course I know, Ben Elton wasn't it? :D


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Re: Elton John - Still Play Him?

Postby ChrisB » 21 Dec 2021, 15:00

Only ever owned GYBR, and can't remember the last time I played it. Like "Your Song", "Don't let the sun" and "I'm still standing" and that's about it. Never liked his voice, so mannered

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Re: Elton John - Still Play Him?

Postby Matt Wilson » 21 Dec 2021, 16:33

Geez, tough crowd!

Don't really play him anymore, but I can say that about a lot of artists. His '70 - '75 run of LPs was far more hit than miss though.

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Re: Elton John - Still Play Him?

Postby Six String » 21 Dec 2021, 17:18

I own Tumble Weeds and Madman and I very rarely play either. Back when it was released I liked about 1/3 of GYBR so I never bought it.
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Re: Elton John - Still Play Him?

Postby Mike Boom » 21 Dec 2021, 17:22

There are lots of hidden gems and deep cuts on those first albums up till around Blue Moves, so mostly play stuff other than the hits tho the albums themselves like GYBR, Captain Fantastic, Honky Chateau, Madman etc still easily hold up as whole pieces.

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Re: Elton John - Still Play Him?

Postby Samoan » 21 Dec 2021, 19:03

" Rock Stars have kidnapped my son."

Nonsense to the aggressiveness, I've seen more aggression on the my little pony message board......I mean I was told.

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Re: Elton John - Still Play Him?

Postby Brickyard Jack » 22 Dec 2021, 01:56

Yes I play some records sometimes, and Alexa plays Tiny Dancer ten times a day. I own about five albums, but everyone should have an Elton comp.

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Re: Elton John - Still Play Him?

Postby Hightea » 22 Dec 2021, 04:02

I’ve got a hand picked Elton playlist - all 70’s songs.
Rarely play it

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Re: Elton John - Still Play Him?

Postby fange » 22 Dec 2021, 05:14

C wrote:I have zero Elton John records in my collection
.


And yet you have SO much more Zappa than any person really needs, C. ;)



Elton, at least in the 70s, was a true musical star. I still play most of the albums from S/T up to Capt. Fantastic semi-regularly, and i think several of them including GYBR are pretty close to brilliant.
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Re: Elton John - Still Play Him?

Postby fange » 22 Dec 2021, 05:21

Mike Boom wrote:There are lots of hidden gems and deep cuts on those first albums up till around Blue Moves, so mostly play stuff other than the hits tho the albums themselves like GYBR, Captain Fantastic, Honky Chateau, Madman etc still easily hold up as whole pieces.

Yes, listen to Mike on this.

A personal fave deeper cut, one of my favourite tunes by anyone at any time...



And while i love the original LP version as well, this early version of 'Madman' is just magnificent...



With Mick Ronson.
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Re: Elton John - Still Play Him?

Postby toomanyhatz » 22 Dec 2021, 06:08

Yes, I play him often. Great from 70-75, though even his best stuff is pretty hit and miss.

The area where I think he's a bit underrated is accompaniment - almost all the 'sessions' he's ever done he's great. A couple even for Kevin Ayers.
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Re: Elton John - Still Play Him?

Postby robertff » 22 Dec 2021, 06:44

Positive Passion wrote:Yes I play some records sometimes, and Alexa plays Tiny Dancer ten times a day. I own about five albums, but everyone should have an Elton comp.





There are certainly enough of them but I completely agree.



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Re: Elton John - Still Play Him?

Postby C » 22 Dec 2021, 13:04

robertff wrote:
C wrote:Sorry Rob - I've never played the lad

Bopped to Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting at the local rugby club disco and that's about it.

I have zero Elton John records in my collection

Incidentally, I assume you know where he got the 'Elton' bit from in his name....?

Now they I still play!


.



Of course I know, Ben Elton wasn't it? :D


.


:lol:




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Lord Rother wrote:And there was me thinking you'd say "Fair enough, you have a point Bob".

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Re: Elton John - Still Play Him?

Postby C » 22 Dec 2021, 13:07

fange wrote:
C wrote:I have zero Elton John records in my collection
.


And yet you have SO much more Zappa than any person really needs, C. ;)



:lol:

My schoolmate Kieron was a bit of a fan

I recall quite liking one or two tracks on Madman and Tumbleweed when he played them - coincidentally the two albums young Les cites.

I'd have to badger Kieron to remove the offensive twaddle and put on some proper music like Zappa ;)

Sadly, Elton has never been my thing [man]. My loss, I know

Sorry





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Re: Elton John - Still Play Him?

Postby trans-chigley express » 22 Dec 2021, 13:56

The Fish wrote:Top 3 for me...

Captain Fantastic
Tumbleweed Connection
Madman Across The Water


Same for me. I like these albums a lot but rarely play them. The last album I played of his was Tumbleweed when I was trying to compile a top twenty of his tracks for another thread and needed to jog my memory. No hits on that one but it's a very consistent record, not a bad track on it.

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Re: Elton John - Still Play Him?

Postby J » 24 Dec 2021, 17:43

fange wrote:
Mike Boom wrote:There are lots of hidden gems and deep cuts on those first albums up till around Blue Moves, so mostly play stuff other than the hits tho the albums themselves like GYBR, Captain Fantastic, Honky Chateau, Madman etc still easily hold up as whole pieces.

Yes, listen to Mike on this.

Seconded (and a thumbs-up for Amoreena and particularly for the version of Madman Across The Water with Mick Ronson)

I don't play him as much as I should, and whole-heartedly agree that there are some great tracks to be found on those first albums. My interest also tails-off after Blue Moves although there are good ones on some later LPs too. Don't think I've bought anything since 83's Too Low For Zero though.

This lovely track came up on my mp3 player the otther day:
oh the sun is shining
and I'm on that road

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Re: Elton John - Still Play Him?

Postby modharper » 27 Dec 2021, 09:10

robertff wrote:Currently playing this at the moment and it occurred to me does anyone still play Elton John records? Huge in the '70s and '80s + but has his kudos been lost and his credibility rating dropped over the years?
.


I listen to a helluva lot of Elton - he was in my Spotify top 10 of the year.

I would argue that his credibility has far from waned. On the contrary, he has aligned himself with a new generation of artists who hail him as an icon and inspiration. This year’s No.1 album The Lockdown Sessions featured 6lack, Young Thug, Rina Sawayama, Lil Nas X, and Dua Lipa, who helped give him his first number one single in 16 years. It’s only due to COVID that his box-office-busting farewell tour has been paused. I was at the Lucca date of the tour and can attest that the crowd was a spectrum of ages, and all were fully engaged in the spectacle.

Granted, perhaps his solo albums of new original material may not resonate as largely as his classic 70s work, but they have in no way diminished his stature as one of the greats. He’s worked hard to stay relevant and current in his tastes - quite unlike almost all of his peers - so all power to him for continuing to ride the crest of his singularly sparkly wave.
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