Customer Reviews

His Song: The Musical Journey of Elton John

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Seeing as Elton John's career in popular music has been going strong for well over thirty years, it is easy to see why there are so many biographies about him. And why not? After all, John has always been an artist of unusual candor, not to mention unusual stage uniforms running from the trashy to the just-plain garish. But the music has always been the main thing, the reason his fans throughout the years still pay good money to see him, even at the ripe old age of 54.
Elizabeth Rosenthal's take on Elton revolves predominantly on the music in this lastest John biography. Those looking for fresh perspectives behind the man, rather than the performer, will be disappointed; certainly those more interested in the recording and performing parts of Elton's life will be most thrilled.
In fact, some of the more interesting items about E.J.'s off-stage life are given short shrift, indeed. Rosenthal hardly mentions the musician's public and private tiffs with his father, his early struggle with his dubious sexuality, or even his renowned drinking/drugging binges...and subsequent recovery in the early 1990's. Only scant mention is made of these life stories, which for better or worse have molded the man into what he is today. Many of the quotes you see (and they are few and far between) are ones given many years ago to other publications. Apparently, Rosenthal had the pleasure of meeting the singer in Atlanta, GA, where he makes his American home, but was apparently not able to interview him. Perhaps it's because John was still managed by the imposing John Reid, who has since been canned by Elton after some financial treachery done by the one person the megastar trusted for almost twenty-five years; Reid had been known to stand in the way of independent biographers who wanted fresher quotes from the star.
It's obvious to anyone who reads the book that Rosenthal is a big fan; she even runs a website devoted to her subject. She does an admirable job, however, of noting many of Elton's career missteps, if not all of them. She is less critical, however, of some of his missteps in his personal life, choosing instead to merely recount these unfortunate events.
Where Rosenthal eventually fails is in neglecting certain events in John's career that proved noteworthy. For instance, she doesn't elucidate in even one sentence why Elton split with lyricist Bernie Taupin after the recording of 1976's "Blue Moves." The motives behind the separation of the two in work collaboration is explained only briefly later on in the book. Other biographies had done a better job with this issue. After all, Taupin was as instrumental to the Elton John hits machine of the early-mid 1970's as the pianist himself. Without Taupin's entrancing lyrics, Elton's music had little outreach beyond some nice melodies constructed here and there.
Still, I enjoyed the copious background on the music. Rosenthal examines each album track, one by one, dissecting them and explaining why each one succeeded or failed. Her prose is definitely unique, and it provides an upbeat style that makes it an absolute joy to read. Those looking for more personal stories about the singer's extremely interesting life will only thirst for more, and are urged to seek out the various other E.J. biographies available.

I just finished reading this book today & all I can say is "WOW"-Elizabeth Rosenthal did an enormous amount of research & it shows-Rosenthal is undoubtedly a major fan who fortunately paints a rather convincing portrait of Elton John-Here you read about his various triumphs (gold & platinum records,a sell-out cross country tour with Billy Joel in 1994)& tragedies (the deaths of fashion designer Gianni Versace & Princess Diana,which both occurred in 1997)-The appendix lists a complete discography of every single & album that Elton has released during his monumental career-This is a great Christmas present to give someone who likes Elton John just as much as I do.

This book was a Christmas gift for me, and when I started it I figured I would read bits and pieces here and there. Instead I started on page one and just couldn't put the book down! The information was interesting and the notes on all the music from all the albums was very interesting! The one thing I liked about this book was that it stuck to discussing the music, and did not dwell into Elton's personal life too much. I'm not a fan of Elton for what he does and does not do off the stage, to me it's the music that matters. I highly recommend this book, especially if you want to know about all of Elton's albums and the songs that went into the making of a classic musicial and singer. Thanks, Liz, for the great read!!!! :)

There have only been a few books that have really looked into the Man, the Artist and the Legend that Elton John is. The earlier book by Philip Norman on Elton John was a fairly good book, but what he did in his updated version, which came out in 2000,was updated but in such a distasteful way with only 15 pages to cover to what was a very fruitful period for Elton from 1991-1999. But this new book by Elizabeth Rosenthal has over 100 pages on the same timeframe. The book is so current that she even has a complete track listing for Elton's most recent Album Songs From The West Coast released this month. But Rosenthal unlike Norman is a true Elton Fan who has seen him numerous times and has a huge collection of Elton stuff. The book is informative yet easy to read even to non die hard fans. She talks about practically every song from every album. The many tours that Elton has done over the years are mentioned with a lot of information like what songs were in that tours set list. And if the tour featured some bad moments she isn?t afraid to divulge what happened no matter how negative. Elton has had an incredible amount of success on the billboard charts and HIS SONG does an incredible job of recording that with every single and album has its full charting info. It evens mentions how a few songs should have been hits. Elton has been in numerous television programs, done countless interviews, and has had many reviews of his recorded work and live appearances. Liz has gone through that vast body of stuff and that what makes that book so informative because due to that work it makes that part of Elton come out clear to the reader. Elton's lyrics have been very interesting over the years so Rosenthal points out excerpts to many songs to give a feel of the song. I also like how she uses a fitting song lyric of that part of the book to break up sections. But what makes the book so great is that even though I know a lot about Elton John she has done so much research that the book has some details that I just did not know or that the book gives me a new perspective on something that I thought. And to top it all it has a very detailed Discography US and UK with some releases that I wasn?t familiar with before. So if you are looking for a book about Elton John the best choice without a doubt in my opinion is His Song- The Musical Journey of Elton John by Elizabeth J. Rosenthal

BRAVO LIZ!
Some of the advance notices on it are absolutely correct... it will
rightfully take its place along side the Norman book as a definitive
biography. I daresay, even as much as I love the Norman bio, that this may
actually be more interesting to hardcore Elton fans, since "His Song"
features a good deal more intricate detail in it than its counterpart.
Exhaustive, but well composed, the arrangement of chapters and information is
chronological for the most part, but also organized by topic as needed. Yet,
even so, the flow of information and storytelling is never interrupted.
Brilliant execution. The use of lines from classic songs to title both
chapters and sub-sections is especially creative, and I can't imagine there's
a more complete discography to date anywhere.
For her first book, Liz has simply done incredible work. Her take on Elton's
life and career is honest and respectful all at once. Much love and
attention to detail went into this book and it's evident on every page.
To Liz and those considering reading "His Song" (and I hope MANY do), the
wait has been worth it. This is a first-rate biography deserving to be read
and considered with the best of the genre.
Well done, Liz. Hat's off to you! Enough writing about the book; time to go
put on "Songs From The West Coast" and start another chapter!

Elizabeth Rosenthal's His Song: The Musical Journey of Elton John is a beautiful writing, incredibly detailed account of the music of one rock & roll's biggest icons. The book is a hefty tome that examines all of Sir Elton's songs in illuminating detail as well as other aspects of his career. The book is reverently but not fanatically so and Ms. Rosenthal heaps praise and dishes criticism where necessary and in general has written the best book on Elton John's career. If you are a fan of Elton John, then this book is an absolute must read. Even if you are not a big fan, this book is well written and worth examining.

"His Song: The Musical Journey of Elton John" is well written and aptly titled. It is exactly what I had hoped it would be: a biography focusing on Elton's MUSIC. To be sure, it compellingly tells the full story of Elton's life, from his personal life to his philanthropy (or as full a story as any book can tell)-- but it focuses squarely on the music and lyrics that have made Sir Elton John so treasured and irreplaceable.

I was hoping to find this sort of treatment of Elton's career in Phil Norman's bio of Elton, but I was greatly disappointed. Norman kept the focus on everything BUT his music. It was more like a bio of Elton the celebrity persona, not Elton the musician/singer/songwriter/composer/performer.

Elizabeth Rosenthal has corrected this with her lovingly-crafted work, written clearly from the perspective of someone who appreciates Elton's talent - and wants to keep the focus where it should be, on the music and lyrics and the forces that influenced them.

This book is a must for fans. It contains detailed, song-by-song insight into all of Elton's studio albums and many highlights of his live performances -- all from the beginning of his musical career in the 1960s almost through the present day. I can't say enough good things about this book. Read, enjoy, and hope that one day it is reprinted with future updates as Elton's career continues to unfold. Bravo, Elizabeth Rosenthal!

Hats off, "standing O", and much appreciative thanks to Elizabeth J. Rosenthal for writing the best, most definitive document of Elton John to have ever been sent our way! I should know - I have them all.

This labor of love is a homage that never surrenders the truth in place of hype. Instead it explains the sometimes complicated - always joyous process by which Sir Elton John has made all of his music - warts and all.

I have had the book only two weeks, and yet I have already been compulsed to read it twice.

I thought that I knew it all, but I was wrong. After reading "His Song," I think I probably know as much as mere mortals will ever be privy to in regards to this superstar. The research that went into making this book is nothing short of astonishing! I was absolutely transfixed by the details that were revealed on every page - not only about individual albums, but for each individual song themselves. Never has more information been revealed about this ledgend's music, nor his life.

For me personally, I think the greatest thing about this book was that it beckoned me (actually forced might be a better word!) to re-examine some of Elton's older stuff, as well as some of his lesser known contributions. What I often found were things that I had missed in the earlier listenings were illuminated and "pointed out" to me by this amazing book. For that alone, I owe it's author a debt of gratitude.

In all honesty, the tapestry that plays out on these pages is almost as audible as the songs themselves - Elton will be honored by this one.

Elton is my musical idol, hero or whatever you want to call it. His music has been a lifesaver to me at various times in my life for thirty years. Strand me out on a desert island, and this is the one book that I want with me.

Jimmy Hester

While Philip Norman's semi-authorized Sir Elton remains the definitive biography of Elton John, His Song is a good look at the songs themselves. The two books complement one another, not compete.

While some biography is included in His Song, the major emphasis is on the songs. Rosenthal presents the songs in chronological order and she explains what each song means, an event in itself especially when Bernie Taupin's lyrics are concerned.

The book is excellent but there are some unfortunate downsides. In many cases we have to read about songs twice. First, when they are recorded, and again when the album was released. Sometimes it's hard to remember what year I'm reading about because I know a song was released in, say 1984, but i'm reading about when it was recorded in 1983.

While the book is complete with album songs and singles, some obscure releases and b-sides are missing. Nothing is mentioned about From Denver To LA, The Goaldigger's Song, and Sick City, to name a few. When were they recorded and what was the circumstances behind each one? I'd like to know.

One thing that bothered me throughout the book was the font. For some reason, the numeral '1' was presented as an upper-case 'I', through-out. I found this distracting.

The book did present a game though. Each chapter is named after a song and most of the sections are culled from song lyrics. The game was to figure out what song the lyrics were taken from!

All in all, His Song is a wonderful tribute to the songs of Elton John, which no Elton John fan should be without.

This book focuses on the music of Elton, unlike any other bio. It goes through an album song by song, and offers interesting interpretation and insight into each, unlike Norman's or other bio's that mention the two or three well known songs from each album. It was amazing the amount of info I learned in this book even though I've been a lifelong fan.