Customer Reviews

Elton John

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

YOUR SONG - Elton's voice is so lovely back in his 2nd album. It receives a gorgeous focus on the center channel. The guitars and harps are so clear that you can hear that they weren't perfectly in tune with each other. :-) The strings are in the rear channels and are very clear, and sound GREAT in the last note. Bass and percussion sound very lifelike.

I NEED YOU TO TURN TO - Harpsichord is isolated in the left channel, Elton in the center. The small string orchestra in mainly from the rear channels. The winding violin figures are clearer than ever.

TAKE ME TO THE PILOT - The bassline will vibrate your living room, and show you how progressive and soulful his writing always was. The various piano riffs move around in position. The guitar solo is clearer than ever.

NO SHOE STRINGS ON LOUISE - the funny background vocals are very clear, and you can finally hear that they are trying to "ham it up". Acoustic guitars are really clear, and come from the rear channels. The enhanced sound really captures the mood of the song much better than before.

FIRST EPISODE AT HIENTON - This song receives a great emotional boost from the clarity of the harp and guitar and the synthesizer being separated in the soundstage.

SIXTY YEARS ON - The harp solo is so clear! The string orchestra is very, very well isolated. The subtley of the instruments around the solo voice is the perfect balance.

BORDER SONG - HOLY MOSES, this sounds great. :-)

THE GREATEST DISCOVERY - The strings sound so gorgeous here, and it's recorded very close to the instruments. Elton's voice here highlights his great storytelling vocals. The bass drum is more prominent than before and changes the mood of the song a little. I wish the final calls from the brass were more prominent as they were in RBCD.

THE CAGE - Guitar solos and brass?? I didn't even notice them before! The synthesizer solo with rock your house.

THE KING MUST DIE - The percussion entrance is amazingly lifelike! The song builds to an exciting climax with layer upon layer of instrumentation adding up to make a stunning ending to the original content of this album.

The bonus tracks are great, and they have never ever sounded better. The original version of Grey Seal is SO different, and I have always liked this version better.

Like the others in this set of six Elton John SACDs that were released 11/9/04, the standard is very high. If you love the songs on this album, you must have this SACD.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

As I began the task of reviewing the Elton albums that matter most to me, I had to ask myself, "What is it you want most from an Elton album?" The answer will likely be different for everyone, but my list reveals why I like this album so much, and consider it the second-best Elton album, behind Tumbelweed Connection.

#1. Piano--lots and lots o' piano.
#2. The serious, romantic, vulnerable Elton; leave the goofy side for someone else.
#3. A real band sound, or arrangements that sound like real instruments are being played (more acoustic ones than electronic). Sgt. Pepper doesn't have a mellotron, afterall!
#4. An album that features ballads, Elton's supreme contribution to music.

O.K.. If you agree with most of this list, my reviews of Elton are for you. This is Elton's second-best album because it satifies most of the above points on my list. The standouts (ballads, of course) are the great quartet of songs, "The Greatest Discovery", "Your Song", "First Episode at Hienton" and "I Need You To Turn To" in that order. I wonder if Paul McCartney has ever commented on "Greatest Discovery", as it evokes his song, "She's Leaving Home", and, I humbly submit, is just as lovely and masterful a song. I can only imagine that Paul wished he had written this song. Stylistically, Elton is not his own person yet, this being only his second album. It's a hodgepodge, but, interestingly, his ballads here will never sound the same on later albums, because he wrote them in an English folk manner, not in the later, Gospel-inflected tone of nearly all his future ballads. Likewise, his singing is also borrowed, if you will, from English folk--I hear the sound of Sandy Denny's voice being imitated here. Nevertheless, "Discovery" and "Hienton" are uncommonly beautiful fruits of innocence, uncommon even for Elton, the greatest balladeer after (or since) Sir Paul.

But, make no mistake, there's plenty of the gospel-tinged Elton here. "Border Song" is better than nearly any gospel-tinged song he wrote. Taupin pulled off a simple yet direct message this time. Musically, the detail of the piano part is astonishing, not a note was left to chance--this is the musicians' musician; all over this album fine touches abound.

The "band", such as it is for a pick-up group, is mostly good, just below that of Tumbelweed, which had Elton's best band. The arrangement/orchestration is mostly very tasteful--except that ridiculous intro to "Sixty Years On". Bernie Taupin's lyrics, which I've covered ad nauseum in other reviews, are, like Tumbleweed, mostly inoffensive here; he captures a mood of innocence that is almost beyond criticism. Yes, he overreaches with highfalutin poetry, but I think it's out of a real fervor for the subject matter. He would never again write so unself-consciously (rare for a green lyricist).

Footnote: Everyone knows Elton can rock; it's just that I don't see those songs as the supreme gifts Elton leaves to pop music. But Elton makes one of his best country-rock songs here with "No Shoe Strings On Louise", not just a dead-on Stones tribute, but one of his loosest, least self-conscious rockers ever!

My primary reason for this purchase was the SACD audio track, hence this reiview pertains to that alone....the music clearly stands on its own as some of the very best from a great artist. There is really no comparison in the quality of sound between this SACD and the CD version, which sounds hollow and tinny in contrast. The SACD has a much fuller, "rounder" sound that will be reminiscent of the original master recording some of us remember on vinyl. Such a shame that not all fine music is available on SACD (or DVD-Audio, which in this reviewer's opinion runs a close second). While not all recordings on SACD are necessarily created equally, this one is sure to please for the audiophiles out there!

This being Elton John's second album after "Empty Sky", it truly embarked Elton on his remarkable career. It was the first of many productions by Gus Dudgeon and contained Elton's first group of band members that would last throughout the seventies. "Your Song" was the big hit here, but songs like, "Take Me To The Pilot" and "Border Song" became FM radio station staples. Elton also recorded live with an orchestra here and it marks the first time that he really took advantage of the setup. Stand-out cuts are "Sixty Years On" and "The King Must Die"; songs he later recreated in concert. Bonus tracks, "Bad Side Of The Moon", "Rock `n Roll Madonna" and "Grey Seal" were fantastic single B-Side cuts that should have been on the original album. In fact, "Grey Seal" was later rerecorded for "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road". In SACD Surround Sound, this album is like being in the studio with Elton John the first time he had a huge success. This is a landmark album.

This is the album that really started it all for Elton John and the SACD format brings a totally new listening experience.At the hands of producer Gus Dudgeon the original was brilliant and now in surround you are immersed in the music like never before.It's a shame that the SACD format never really achieved popularity outside the audiophile community and being late to the joys of surround myself I'm finding titles either very expensive or discontinued by the manufacturer so while these Elton John discs are available at a very good price get in and buy them all now.They really are worth it.

This is Elton's first album and perhaps his best. I love his early stuff and this is about as early as it gets (1969). The album includes the standout chart toppers "Your Song" and "Take Me to the Pilot" but give a listen to the rarely heard "First Episode at Hienton" which appears to be about his (or Bernie Taupin's) first romantic relationship with a woman (Valerie - is this the woman who now lives in Fort Worth?) and how he was unable to consumate it. Also "Sixty Years On" is beautiful song recently covered by Brandi Carlile. Another rarely heard but terrific song is "The King Must Die". This SACD (also plays on CD players) is quite terrific sonically and adds 3 songs originally recorded on other albums.

Love the album. Love the mix. I just wish there were more multi-channel SACDs on the market.

This is the first album I was ever given, I received it as a christmas gift along with my first stereo. I recently added it to my CD collection and had forgotten how amazing this collection of songs is, this version is even more amazing due to the sound quality. It is for the most part dark and melancholy but has its bright spots and all of the songs are a necessary part of the whole. This is an epic album and I believe essential for any classic rock collection. I believe this is his best work to date.

Listening to this album and it's excellent remastering shows you how the man is regarded as a true geneius and in my opinion his early stuff is definatly his best work.

The vocal style arrangement and collabartive lyrics of his early work is a testament to his longevity and continued chart presence, this album is classic Elton John and a worthy addition to any collection if fine music is what you are looking for then you won't be dissappointed.

This was the album that opened up to the american listener. I acually sat down and listen to whole album for the first time. I was very surprized how good this album really was. The best was yet to come through his later album releases. I recommend this album as a good starter for the Elton John collection. Thank you Amazon.