Goodbye Yellow Brick Road [Remaster] - John, Elton (CD 1996)

The critical and public acceptance of 1973 s Don t Shoot Me I m Only the Piano Player positioned Elton John to make a breakthrough as a pop rock artist. The question was: would his next album sustain his success, or would it be the inevitable letdown?

That question was answered in early fall, 1973, with the release of the enormous, risky, and monumental two-disc album Goodbye Yellow Brick Road . It was an immediate commercial success, although less so critically, and made Elton John the dominant pop act of the era. It presented catchy, superbly produced and performed songs across a variety of easily understood genres. The kids loved it. It was fun and hummable. Though not perfect and, indeed, a bit uneven, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road remains a milestone of pop music. Frankly, Elton John has never done better and, in listening to some of the muzak he has released since then, one can only wonder What happened?

Elton assembled his lyricist Bernie Taupin and his accomplished band of guitarist Davey Johnstone, bassist Dee Murray and drummer Nigel Ollsson, accompanied by long-time producer Gus Dudgeon, some horns, strings, and a wonderful ARP synthesizer. That synthesizer opens the album with the almost-prog rock piece Funeral for A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding , an apparent ode to Elton s music. This long song was extraordinarily appealing: the synthesizer grabbed the art rockers, the pseudo hard rocking Love Lies Bleeding pulled in the metalheads, and the whole thing was harmless enough that girls liked it. Let s be frank: Elton John is not the most intimidating musical figure out there, and no matter how threatening he tried to be, he s still . . . well, Elton John, wearing the funny glasses and hat and playing the piano with his feet. Metallica, that ain t, but you gotta admit that it s fun.

The FM classic Candle in the Wind follows, Bernie Taupin s ode to the departed Marilyn Monroe. It s a beautiful song that just barely stops short of becoming maudlin, although that line was not so much crossed as obliterated when Elton rewrote it as a paean to world-class adulteress Princess Diana. Davey Johnstone s guitar work is wonderful and Nigel s drumming pulls the tune along. It is almost perfect pop.

Next is the glam rock fake live parody Bennie and the Jets , which sounds like a gentle poke at David Bowie. (I was reading "Of Mice and Men" in high school at the time, and a buddy of mine wrote a parody of this song called "Lennie and the Mice". I guess you had to be there.)It s silly and for some reason very popular. The simple organ line in the middle is a riot.

Side two opens with the short classic Goodbye Yellow Brick Road . Its jaded pessimism puts a nail in the coffin of the country boy optimism of its predecessor Honky Cat . It showed that Elton and Taupin were at the top of their craft when they wrote three-minute Tin Pan Alley classics.

The remaining songs on the second side are largely throwaways, demonstrating how difficult it is to release a two-disc set that is solid from beginning to end. This Song Has No Title should have stayed in the can. Grey Seal , although popular with some, is a routine early Elton John tune that was spruced up for later release. It s forgettable. On the other hand, Jamaica Jerk-Off and I ve Seen That Movie Too are two more parodies, the first a faux reggae goof-off with wonderful keyboard work, the other a slam at movie melodramas translated to busted relationships. Neither song is an all-star, but they are entertaining.

Side three is interesting, flawed but interesting. Containing only four songs, Elton and the band stretched out a bit and the result was not entirely successful. Sweet Painted Lady opens the side, a gentle tribute to, well, seaside hookers, with some lilting almost Dixieland horns accenting an ocean barroom piano feel.

Next is The Ballad of Danny Bailey , a tribute to a fictitious Depression era small-time hood, the kind who were lionized by the locals shades of Pretty Boy Floyd, Bonnie and Clyde, and Ma Barker. It s fun, catchy and driving, but surprisingly doesn t have much to do with the music of the era. It s followed by the entertaining throwaway Dirty Little Girl .

The most important song of the side is the lesbian saga All the Young Girls Love Alice , about a young, well, lady, who ends up dead. Elton tries to be threatening here, but Bernie didn t deliver on the lyrics and Elton didn t deliver on the music. The synthesizer conclusion is downright silly, reminiscent of Keith Emerson at his most self-indulgent.

The fourth side is vintage Elton John. The suite Your Sister Can t Dance/Saturday Night s Alright for Fighting opens up the side. Sister is what Bernie should have delivered in Crocodile Rock . It s a handsome reminder of early white boy rock and roll, complete with the mocking circus/organ solo. That tune swings into the hit single Saturday Night , which has reached wedding band status and is a self-parody. It s another driving rocker but, in the end, demonstrates that Elton could at best summarize hard rock, but couldn t play it because he could never leave his pop roots behind.

That last three tunes are pleasant throwaways. Elton, always an admirer of American pop culture, first gives us the affectionate Roy Rogers , bringing to mind Saturday morning serials and 1950 s TV shows. The trailer-trash punster Social Disease follows, complete with banjo. The album concludes with the short, almost haunting Harmony , a throwback to Piano Player s High Flying Bird . It s another superbly crafted piece of pop music.

From beginning to end, the performances are professional and compelling. Davey Johnstone's guitar work is superb. The production here could hardly be better. Yes, there s some filler here and there and, yes, Elton s voice is occasionally not up to what the music requires. But, ultimately, despite its excesses and occasional failures, and regardless of the grousing, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road is a classic of 1970 s pop rock.