jakobnicholas Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 I just purchased Tumbleweed Connection and think it's quite great. It might be my pick for best Elton John album. "Come Down in Time" might might contest for the most beautiful, perfect song of all-time. John has some amazing tunes in the early 70's.....Someone Save My Life Tonight, Your Song, Sixty Years On, Daniel, Where to now St. Peter, Madman Across the Water, I Need You to Turn To, Yellow Brick Road....I could on for awhile. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Moe_Syzlak Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 Cheddar Cheese Girl Quote Link to post Share on other sites
cryptique Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 A lot of his early stuff is great. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mountain bed Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 Being a big fan of live albums, 11/17/70 is essential imo. The 20 minute "Burn Down the Mission" medley is great stuff. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mpolak21 Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 Being a big fan of live albums, 11/17/70 is essential imo. The 20 minute "Burn Down the Mission" medley is great stuff. . Great pick. I love almost all of his early run of albums. Musically after the mid seventies there's not a whole lot I'm excited about, but the first several albums are all solid. --Mike Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Mr. Heartbreak Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 I'm a singer myself, and I have to say, I truly have admired Elton ever since I first heard him, which was at the dawning of his popularity. What a voice! I would put him and Paul McCartney in my top five pop/rock singers list any time. I agree that Elton and Bernie Taupin had an incredible run from about 1970 to 1976. Not everyone would go this far, but I would actually recommend all of the following: 1969 Empty Sky1970 Elton John1970 Tumbleweed Connection1971 11-17-70 [Live]1971 Friends Soundtrack1971 Madman Across The Water1972 Honky Chateau1973 Don't Shoot Me I'm Only The Piano Player1973 Goodbye Yellow Brick Road1974 Caribou1975 Captain Fantastic And The Brown Dirt Cowboy1975 Rock Of The Westies1976 Here And There [Live]1976 Blue Moves1992 Rare Masters The "Special Editions" available on these, with bonus tracks, etc., are all well worth the money. I don't think you can even find the Friends soundtrack on CD, but you can get all the best stuff from that -- not to mention a few other early rare gems -- on Rare Masters, which I just picked up last week on Amazon for about 7 bucks. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ms. yvon Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 just last night "bennie and the jets" came up on the shuffle. terrific song. fantastic album (good bye yellow brick road). my favorite has to be "honkey chateau." the song "amy" gets in my head for days at a time. tumbleweed connection is also a big fave. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mfwahl Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 I love Rocket Man Quote Link to post Share on other sites
froggie Posted October 11, 2008 Share Posted October 11, 2008 > I love Rocket Man me too.... also philadelphia freedom Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Hollinger. Posted October 11, 2008 Share Posted October 11, 2008 Everything through Captain Fantastic is worth your time. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
austrya Posted October 11, 2008 Share Posted October 11, 2008 Bennie and the Jets holds a special place in my heart. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
CortezTheKiller Posted October 11, 2008 Share Posted October 11, 2008 Bennie and the Jets holds a special place in my heart.What about "Hold Me Closer Tony Danza"? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
froggie Posted October 11, 2008 Share Posted October 11, 2008 > What about "Hold Me Closer Tony Danza"? didnt Phoebe from Friends write that one? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jimtweedy1977 Posted October 11, 2008 Share Posted October 11, 2008 Mona Lisas & Mad Hatters Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Mr. Heartbreak Posted October 11, 2008 Share Posted October 11, 2008 Everything through Captain Fantastic is worth your time.Those are the best, but there's still much to recommend the others I mentioned.Rock Of The Westies - Has some great songs, especially hits Island Girl and I Feel Like A Bullet, but also Billie Bones & The White Bird ... that is a GREAT closing track, and rather unusual, even for an unusual guy like Elton!Here And There - The original release of this was kind of lame, but the remaster is like having a full concert. Absolutely killer, especially the tracks with John Lennon.Blue Moves - Much maligned, but still very interesting double album. Ambitious, though flawed ... kind of like Joni Mitchell's Don's Juan's Reckless Daughter in that sense.Rare Masters - Came out much later, but is a retrospective of rare/non-album tracks. Gives you all the classics that got released as B-sides (caveat emptor - many were released as bonus tracks on other Elton remasters). Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Twisted Acres Posted October 11, 2008 Share Posted October 11, 2008 my father's gun Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LouieB Posted October 11, 2008 Share Posted October 11, 2008 "Come Down in Time" might might contest for the most beautiful, perfect song of all-time.Absolutely positively correct....one of the greatest songs of all time......hands down no bullshit. It is easy to dis Elton but he had it all going on during the 70s, he owned them. LouieB Bennie and the Jets holds a special place in my heart.Right.....used to sing that to the kids... LouieB Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Calexico Posted October 11, 2008 Share Posted October 11, 2008 Elton John was so "on" in the 70's and he was totally cool and brilliant. Pity to see him turn into such an old moaning queen but no one can take away that run of albums from 70 to 75. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ms. yvon Posted October 11, 2008 Share Posted October 11, 2008 Right.....used to sing that to the kids... LouieBthe bit about "we'll fight our parents in the street to find out who's right and who's wrong?" last weekend i was in detroit. two people came up to us, they were holding armfuls of old records. couldn't tell if they were selling them, or just panhandling, but i could see "don't shoot me..." on the top of a stack. ahh. fun fact: i bought all my elton john records from a dj at a flea market when he was closing up shop. 1983?not so fun fact: i loaned all of them to a friend 9 years ago when my turntable was in storage. he has since moved to the united arab emirates. with a LOT of my old records. pfft. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Analogman Posted March 6, 2010 Share Posted March 6, 2010 It looks like T-Bone Burnett is the man for the rockers from the old days: Elton John Recording Album With Leon Russell In an unexpected pairing, Elton John and Leon Russell are recording an album together in Los Angeles with producer T-Bone Burnett. Both artists have written songs for the project, which has no title or release date as of yet. Billboard.com has learned that Neil Young, Booker T. Jones, Marc Ribot and Jim Keltner are among the guests who have contributed to the album. According to a post on the Web site of longtime Elton collaborator Bernie Taupin, 15 songs have already been put to tape, "from Stones-like rockers, country-tinged ballads, gospel and even a Sinatra-like weepy similar to something torn from the grooves of 'In the Wee Small Hours.'" "It's varied in scope and drenched in a rich tapestry of atmospherics," Taupin says. "Don't expect to hear the old EJ/BT sound; this is organic recording unlike anything you've heard from our duo before." John's last studio album was 2006's "The Captain and the Kid." He is winding down a spring tour with Billy Joel and has solo tour dates on tap all the way into September. Russell, 67, has been largely out of the spotlight in recent years, releasing albums on his own Leon Russell Records label. He underwent brain surgery in January but Taupin says "his playing is masterful as ever and his contribution to the project grows more exciting with the passing of everyday." Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Calexico Posted March 6, 2010 Share Posted March 6, 2010 Well, that sounds like it could be worth listening to. I rarely bother with anything ole Reg has done since that run of albums in the 70's but I wouldn't bet against a late career renaissance. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
hardwood floor Posted March 7, 2010 Share Posted March 7, 2010 marc ribot is an absolute beast i went to see the felice brothers a few months ago & marianne faithful was also playing a set & ribot was playing guitar with her faithful was pretty dull, but ribot was masterful all-time top-10 guitar player for me ok, carry on Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LouisvilleGreg Posted March 7, 2010 Share Posted March 7, 2010 Not to be too obvious, and I do have several of the early albums, but "Tiny Dancer" was always my favorite, and when "Almost Famous" came out with that just perfect singalong scene on the bus it took that song to a whole other level for me. I can't think of better use of a song in any movie. I almost cried watching that scene for the first time, it's just spot on. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Love Boat Captain Posted March 8, 2010 Share Posted March 8, 2010 It looks like T-Bone Burnett is the man for the rockers from the old days: Elton John Recording Album With Leon Russell Obviously, the Billboard writer did not see Elton's appearance on "Spectacle", where he highlights Leon's influence on his playing style among other things. Should be interesting to hear. Elton was my first "go to" artist as a kid, so always have a soft spot for him, but, outside of a few tracks, lost interest after "Here and There". But, the 70s were magnificent! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
cwnorman Posted March 9, 2010 Share Posted March 9, 2010 Couldn't agree more with Elton's 70's production. I came across this in Twist and Shout (Denver) 2 years ago and it quickly became one of my favorites. Every song is spectacular, and then there is added significance of this being the last time Lennon was recorded live on stage. At least, that is my understanding. Great album! Elton John Band Featuring John Lennon And The Muscle Shoals Horns Recorded live at Madison Square Garden, New York on 28th November 1974. Features John Lennon on vocals and rhythm guitar on Whatever Gets You Through The Night, Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds and I Saw Her Standing There. 1. Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding 10:532. Rocket Man 4:453. Benny And The Jets 5:504. Take Me To The Pilot 5:335. Whatever Gets You Through The Night 4:256. Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds 6:157. I Saw Her Standing There 3:37 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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