One reason for Goodbye Yellow Brick Road’s popularity is that it contains many of Elton John’s best-loved songs. It opens with the powerful instrumental “Funeral for a Friend”, which segues directly into the passionate “Loves Lies Bleeding”, with the two generally treated as a single eleven-minute progressive rock song (the combined “Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding” has been covered by progressive metal band Dream Theater). This is followed by what has since become John’s biggest selling song of all, “Candle in the Wind”. This original version, which Taupin wrote about Marilyn Monroe, was a UK hit in early 1974, and a live version was an international top 10 hit in 1987. In 1997, Taupin rewrote the lyrics in memory of the recently deceased Princess Diana, and the new version became the second biggest selling single of all time. On the album, “Candle in the Wind” is followed by “Bennie and the Jets”, a tongue-in-cheek look at music fandom which became an unexpected No.1 hit in the US, and then by the excellent title track, another big hit and still one of John’s most popular songs. Towards the end of the album is another of John’s classic songs, the rocking “Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting”, which was a UK top 10 hit. But while these songs are the best known ones, many of the other tracks on the album are equally strong. Songs like the evocative “This Song Has No Title”, the 1950s-style rocker “Your Sister Can't Twist (But She Can Rock 'n Roll)” (which contains harks back to artists like Chuck Berry and the early Beach Boys), and the lovely album closer “Harmony” are as just as good as the hits. Taupin’s lyrics explore a wide range of topics, from the title track’s expression of disillusionment with the urban high life to British pub brawling (“Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting”), prostitution (“Sweet Painted Lady”), lesbianism (“All the Girls Love Alice”) and Randy Newman-like character sketches (“Social Disease”). Then there are songs that make no clear lyrical sense at all, like the surreal “Grey Seal”, a re-recording of an early John/Taupin song which John admits to not understanding at all, though he considers it one of his favorites. Considering the length of the album, it’s no surprise that not every song is a complete success, but the majority of them are excellent, and the lyrical and musical variety keeps things interesting.
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road – Elton John’s Classic Double Album
One reason for Goodbye Yellow Brick Road’s popularity is that it contains many of Elton John’s best-loved songs. It opens with the powerful instrumental “Funeral for a Friend”, which segues directly into the passionate “Loves Lies Bleeding”, with the two generally treated as a single eleven-minute progressive rock song (the combined “Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding” has been covered by progressive metal band Dream Theater). This is followed by what has since become John’s biggest selling song of all, “Candle in the Wind”. This original version, which Taupin wrote about Marilyn Monroe, was a UK hit in early 1974, and a live version was an international top 10 hit in 1987. In 1997, Taupin rewrote the lyrics in memory of the recently deceased Princess Diana, and the new version became the second biggest selling single of all time. On the album, “Candle in the Wind” is followed by “Bennie and the Jets”, a tongue-in-cheek look at music fandom which became an unexpected No.1 hit in the US, and then by the excellent title track, another big hit and still one of John’s most popular songs. Towards the end of the album is another of John’s classic songs, the rocking “Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting”, which was a UK top 10 hit. But while these songs are the best known ones, many of the other tracks on the album are equally strong. Songs like the evocative “This Song Has No Title”, the 1950s-style rocker “Your Sister Can't Twist (But She Can Rock 'n Roll)” (which contains harks back to artists like Chuck Berry and the early Beach Boys), and the lovely album closer “Harmony” are as just as good as the hits. Taupin’s lyrics explore a wide range of topics, from the title track’s expression of disillusionment with the urban high life to British pub brawling (“Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting”), prostitution (“Sweet Painted Lady”), lesbianism (“All the Girls Love Alice”) and Randy Newman-like character sketches (“Social Disease”). Then there are songs that make no clear lyrical sense at all, like the surreal “Grey Seal”, a re-recording of an early John/Taupin song which John admits to not understanding at all, though he considers it one of his favorites. Considering the length of the album, it’s no surprise that not every song is a complete success, but the majority of them are excellent, and the lyrical and musical variety keeps things interesting.