Posted On: Friday - October 2nd 2020 8:02PM MST
In Topics: Music
It's been a month since Peak Stupidity's review of the movie about Elton John called Rocketman. The movie could have been done differently and better, as I discussed, but I also called Elton John "one of the best pop artists of all time." Since that review, I've been wanting to list off many of his great songs.
I could come up with 50. However, today I'll just list out 10 non-hit songs that I think should rate just as high up as his real hit songs, such as Rocketman, the title of the movie. These are in chronological order, earliest to latest. Look, this guy may have written a few good ones in the 1980s, but sorry, that wasn't THE Elton John, IMO.These are from the 1970s, every single one of them, and every single one of them was written by Elton John and Bernie Taupin (Bernie with the lyrics, first, then Elton with the music).
Links go to the appropriate youtube video, but I will probably feature a few of these later, that haven't been already.
Levon from Madman Across the Water, 1971
Mona Lisa and Mad Hatters from Honky Chateau, 1972
Elderberry Wine from Don't Shoot Me. I'm Only the Piano Player, 1972
Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding* from Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, 1973
Roy Rogers from Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, 1973
Social Disease** from Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, 1973
Step into Christmas***, a single only, 1973
Dixie Lily**** from Caribou, 1974
Bitter Fingers from Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy, 1975
Grow Some Funk of Your Own***** from Rock of the Westies, 1975
Holy Moley, what a great 5 years - 1971 through 1975!
Top 10 lists of all kinds of things - sounds like either Dave Letterman or John Cusack in High Fidelity (Cool movie!)
I just found this one that I'd never heard before. It took pretty well with me upon first listen. From before all these others, from the Tumbleweed Connection album of 1970, here's Where to now, St. Peter?:
* The 2nd song of these 2 that MUST BE PLAYED TOGETHER, Love Lies Bleeding is the hardest rocking song of the 10.
** Social Disease was featured in our post called Beaches.
*** That's Bernie Taupin, for split seconds, by some percussion instruments at 02:19 in.
**** Peak Stupidity featured this favorite (#2 of the 10, I'd say after Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding) early in the life of this blog.
***** Also featured. This was a number 14 so, sort of a hit, but not one anyone but Elton John fans would know. I don't think you'll hear it played anywhere but here on Peak Stupidity!
Comments:
MBlanc46
Saturday - October 3rd 2020 11:07AM MST
PS It’s a generational thing, I guess. I never could see anything in Elton John. Except the bizarre costumes and accoutrements, to which I respond negatively. De gustibus non disputandum est.
I mean, there are songs that not 1 in a couple of hundred people FROM THAT ERA couldn't remember that just beat the hell out of the lot of what's been written/performed since.
Thanks for reading. I got one more post in mind for later today.