Elton Gems (Greatest Hits 1970-2002 - Elton John)

Member Name: fooyoo

Product:	Greatest Hits 1970-2002 - Elton John
Date:	19/02/04 (349 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Classic collection

Disadvantages: Couple of weaker tracks

Once in a while, I come across a CD which through choice would not be one I would listen to, but once I do in fact listen to it, it becomes a firm favourite. My wife is a big Elton John fan, and whilst I have never disliked his music as such, he has just never had the same kind of appeal. At the moment, this CD seems to have been firmly wedged in the CD player of my wife's car for what seems like months, and I have to say it has really started to grow on me. Greatest Hits collections are generally not my thing, as sometimes I feel that a lot of the songs have been played to death and are starting to sound really tired. I am also a bit of a cynic, and see it as a quick and easy way for the record companies to take more money (and urine for that matter!) from music fans, so I was pleasantly suprised that even though some of these songs are older than me, they still sounded refreshing.

This is the second 'Greatest Hits' collection that Elton has released, with the other being released in the early 90's. He has been around for over 30 years, and his longevity must be respected even if you are not a fan. The tracks on here are in (from what I can gather) chronological order, so the evolution in the sound and standard of the lyrics is really interesting to witness, although I am not going to be predictable and bore you with a track listing.

The ballads include album opener 'Your Song', which is a song which has passed me by, as the lyrics just did not connect with me, although I can see the attraction as the melody is absolutely beautiful. My wife's favourite track in the whole collection is 'Tiny Dancer', which was featured in 'Almost Famous', which starred Kate Hudson. It is a nice song which tells a interesting story. I had never heard this
track until I saw the film, and when researching this opinion, I discovered that it only had limited success here, but was well received in America. Midway through the first CD is the song which I can say is probably one of the only tracks I have always loved, and that is 'Rocket Man'. There is such an underlying passion in every word and every note that this song never fails to grab me and force me to listen to it, as does 'Daniel', which is very much in the same vein. Although 'Goodbye Yellow Brick Road' was hugely successful when it was released, I think it is a song which is not appreciated by my generation, as unless you listen closely it is a song which could easily pass you by, as it is all about the words and the melodies take a back seat.

If you ask people to name a song by Elton John, I am pretty sure that 'Candle In The Wind' would be in the Top 3. Now, I am torn with this track, as I think the original version which is on this album is a work of genius, but it has been tainted by the reworking of the lyrics and the re release in the weeks after Diana's death. Please don't get me wrong, I think it was the song that symbolised so much that went on in 1997, but for me personally, it has cheapened the original. It is really a similar story with the reworking of 'Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me'. I was not a fan of the duet he did with George Michael, as it just did not have the spark that the original had, so it is nice to hear it how it was originally intended in this collection.

On most albums I enjoy, there is always one track that gets me right in the gut. On this album it is the magnificent 'Someone Saved My Life Tonight'. Believe it or not, I had not even he
ard this track until the year my daughter was born (2000). I was going through so much at the time, and I heard this song on the radio one night when I was up late with her, and it has affected me ever since! Overly dramatic to some, but when a song really gets you there is nothing you can do I assure you. Keeping up to date with trends is one of the main reasons that Elton has been around for so long, and the late 90's and early 00's saw him performing more with artists who were the flavour of the moment, and in 2003, he reworked 'Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word' with boyband Blue. This is probably one of the only tracks he has reworked which has managed to stay true to the original. A lot of new fans liked the soul influenced upbeat version, but they are missing out if they have never heard the original, as it is a masterpiece without a doubt. 'What do I do to make you love me?' How many of us have asked that question at one time or another. Now, I am not sure where 'Benny and The Jets' fits, as it is not a ballad, but not really upbeat, although it is a superb track.

The early 80's saw a different Elton John, and his music seemed to have less of an edge for quite a while, especially tracks such as 'Blue Eyes', which has all of the right sentiments, but the execution is lacking, although he restored a lot of faith when he really got his act together over the next few years and released the country influenced track 'I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues'. Hugely underestimated, this is one of the standout tracks in the whole collection for me, and it never fails to have my wife welling up when she listens to it. A great love song is a hard thing to come by, but Elton found the winning formula with the heart wrenching 'Sa
crifice', and 'The One'. The latter being a real winner for me, especially lyrically.

The 90's saw Elton become more involved with movie soundtracks, and more work with Tim Rice. A lot of fans are very vocal that they see this part of his career as a sellout, and that the music is not up to scratch. I believe differently, as I think 'Can You Feel The Love Tonight?' and 'Circle Of Life' are completely enjoyable if you take them at face value, and that is that it is that they are ballads which was written to have mass appeal. 'Believe' is a track which did not really grab the fans attention in the way that so many other ballads have. It is a pretty powerful song, but it is a style that he has done, and done much better. The song has a very dark feel to it, and it was written at a dark time in his life when he had suffered a lot of personal loss and tragedy.

When I got married abroad, my wife and I decided to have a Paul Weller track as the song she walked to the altar to, and it was our first dance when we had our reception at home, but on our wedding night, we stood alone in the hotel gardens and danced to 'Something About The Way You Look Tonight'. That moment is one I will always treasure, and for me lyrically this just hit home, and it has become a song I always associate with the overwhelming feelings I had that day. The line which stands out for me is 'I'm speechless and I don't know where to start'. It just sums up so much.

Leeann Rimes is a vocalist that has never really been to my liking, as I just can't get past the country whine, and for that reason, the duet 'It's Written In The Stars' was never going to be a winner for me, and when he released this tr
ack from the album 'Aria' I thought he was on his way down, but as he has done so many other times, he rose like a phoenix from the flames, and delivered an absolute classic with 'I Want Love', which had a captivating video starring Robert Downey Jr. This was a theme he carried on with the magnificent 'This Train Don't Stop' which saw Justin Timberlake playing a young Elton, and looking frighteningly similar. The second CD ends with a track from the late 70's (so shoots the chronological order out of the water), and the track in question 'Song For Guy'. It is mostly instrumental, and I hold my hands up and say it is generally skipped past.

The more upbeat tracks range in style. There is the quirky with 'Honkey Cat', which is probably my only low point on the album as I just don't get it! 70's classic 'Crocodile Rock' really gets the blood flowing through the veins, but if it doesn't then the harder edge track 'Saturday Night's (All Right For Fighting)' is sure to! This is a track which should not be listened to whilst driving, as it always gets the adrenaline flowing when I listen to it, and my foot always presses slightly harder on the pedal! I am sure Elton would say that 'The Bitch Is Back' is more of the same, but whilst it is a listenable song, it is certainly not one of his best, whilst 'Philadelphia Freedom' is an anthem of a song, and my wife assures me that when this song is played live it is outstanding. It has a touch of soul in it, which is not common in Elton's music, but it is a welcome inclusion here. He shows us he can do soul, and so for his next trick, Elton adds a touch of funk with 'Island Girl'. It is not an instantly
likeable track, but it is a growers, and much of it sounds like the music Matt Bianco (remember them!) released in the 1980's. I wonder if this was one of their influences? Karaoke favourite 'Don't Go Breaking My Heart' with Kiki Dee is a classic track which has really stood the test of time. It always sounds better when you have not heard it for a while. At the time it was released, it was up against a lot of Motown duets, but it held it's own no problem at all.

Whilst I mentioned earlier that the early 80's seemed to be lacking in terms of quality, Elton came back with a bang in the mid 80's with the feelgood 'I'm Still Standing'. 'Sad Songs (Say So Much)' is a track that I love or hate dependent on my mood, as it is a track which can sound overly simple, and sometimes that irritates me. It did well when it was released but for me it is not one of his better songs, but I think this period of time showed a more sombre (and sober) Elton, which was reflected in the amount of ballads he released, and he could easily have slipped into becoming a bland has been, however with tracks the quality of 'Nikita' it was never a realistic. Elton has quite a mischevious side to him which has become more apparent over the last few years, but his fun side started to show with the catchy pop rock tune 'I Wanna Kiss The Bride', and he continued this with the foot stomping anthem 'Made In England'.

The first CD covers the first 5 years of his career whilst the second CD of the three takes us from the mid 1970's right up to the early 2000's. He seemed to deal with a lot of personal demons in the late 80's and early 90's and as a result he did not release as much material as he had in the 70's. T
;he third CD has a mixture of styles and also standard. It is not one we listen to very often as the only track which we really like is 'Pinball Wizard', which is and always will be a classic song. There is a cover version of The Beatles track 'Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds', but it is not up to the standard of the original, and I was amazed to discover it was a top seller in America. Kiki Dee makes her second appearance with the disappointing 'True Love'. It also includes the dreaded George Michael duet which I mentioned earlier, and then the horrendous duet of 'Your Song' with opera star Alessandro Safina, but for good measure the Blue track is on there too! The whole collection is ended with the 'Are You Ready For Love?' which was given a new lease of life when it was used on the advertising campaign for SKY Sports.

This is the ideal CD for people who have enjoyed some of Elton's music, but did not want to have to wade through album tracks to get to the gems. His collaboration with Bernie Taupin over the years has produced so much magic that it is a shame people overlook the fact that all of these songs are really the result of a partnership. I really like it, and it is perfect for me as I no diehard fan, but the songs always envoke a reaction from me, and it is generally a good

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