Customer Reviews

Madman Across the Water

5 star:		(96)
4 star:		(24)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

The magical period of 1970-1978 now known as Elton John's "Classic Years" yielded many wonderful albums in a short frame of time. Many people seem to single out "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" as his best. This may be because of the fact that Sir Elton was at his most popular by that time.

In my opinion, "Madman Across the Water" is his best. Recorded in 1971, it contains some of the most soulful songs Elton John and Bernie Taupin ever created.

Yes, it contains the commercial hits "Tiny Dancer" and "Levon" but unlike some of Elton's late 70s albums, this one goes a bit deeper than that. The title track is a haunting epic that evokes frightening images while leaving a melody in your head that urges to sing along. "All the Nasties" and "Goodbye" also stand out as favorites, but as a whole this album works better than any other EJ recording.

One major reason is the overall sound. On many of the songs, orchestration is used to intensify the emotional anthems to higher levels than a piano will allow. Also, the album gives some room to breathe between the more serious songs like "Indian Sunset" with transitions to more fun songs like "Razorface" and "Rotten Peaches", which are all great tunes in their own right.

This was the album that really got me rolling on my Elton John collection. I would also highly reccommend "Tumbleweed Connection", "Honky Chateau", and "Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy". But start here. You won't stop.

In my opinion, Madman Across the Water stands nobly as one of the greatest albums ever recorded. This album, produced at the height of the Elton John/Bernie Taupin frenzy during the early 1970's, is nothing short of a masterpiece. Although this album went platinum, it has not received the same level of historical attention as other Elton John albums. The reason for that escapes me, but suffice it to say that those who own Madman Across the Water have discovered the secret treasures of this album.

This album includes two Elton John hits that you may still hear occasionally on adult radio stations: "Tiny Dancer" and "Levon". While these songs are excellent, they are only the beginning, the first two tracks, on this incredible CD. This album contains what could be my favorite song ever: "Indian Sunset" is an epic, soaring, affective song about the Native American Indian at the time of colonization, and it's unforgettable. The title track is a mesmerizing journey led masterfully by Elton's haunting, intense vocals. (I like this version of "Madman" better than the one on the remastered Tumbleweed Connection because of the embellished instrumentation.) "All The Nasties" and "Goodbye" are equally compelling and representative of how marvelously Elton presents brooding, melancholy, thoughtful melodies. "Holiday Inn", "Razor Face", and "Rotten Peaches" are more upbeat and up tempo, but they follow the pattern of interesting lyrics from Taupin and infectious music and vocals from Elton.

At their peak, Elton John and Bernie Taupin were an unstoppable combination in writing extraordinary music. Madman Across the Water contains some of the best contemporary songwriting ever, and Elton's vocal performance on this disc is superb. For me this album has truly stood the test of time; I like it just as much now as I did when I initially heard it so many years ago. Don't overlook Madman Across the Water; it undoubtedly deserves to be a part of your CD collection.

A revelation. For newcomers and fans of Elton John's music, this album and the self-titled are MUST HAVES. The 5.1 mix is so amazing that it reveals and clears up lots of sections and instrumentations. The performances are still the great landmark performances that I've loved since 1973 when my brother came back from Korea with a cassette of this album. The only piece that has changed, for me, due to the remix, is INDIAN SUNSET (just before "I take only what is mine, Lord"), because there is a part where the celli and bass sound louder than the piano, whereas they were barely audible in older mixes. It changes the song at that moment for me.

The sound, the sound, the sound.... I never thought I would hear the strings this clearly. In some songs, I could clearly tell that it is maybe two or four violins, 2 cellos, 2 violas, and 2 bass. And the old sound, would have me believe it were an entire orchestra --- "reverb" can be a wonderfully useful effect. As you may expect, Elton and his piano are anchored in the center channel, and they are both very crisp and clear. The backing vocals are often in the rear channels, as are the orchestra. The guitars, acoustic and electric, are so clear and isolated, that I am finally getting a great appreciation of the size of his band. Percussion like bongo drums, and tambourines, and synthesizer effects are clearer than ever and very realistic. The duelling banjos in HOLIDAY INN have NEVER sounded so good. I could keep going on with superlatives, but I will simply say that the sound is better than most modern rock SACDs (the Bon Jovi ones, for instance, and also 3 Doors Down). There is NO harsh tape hiss to be heard, it's just the music. The subwoofer channel is very tastefully subtle, and you will barely notice it's supportive effects (unless you turn it up!).

I've always considered this album on of Elton's first truly great albums, and this SACD has me listening to it over and over in the past week. I must have heard it 20 times already, and still counting. Someone at UNIVERSAL loves me, because with all 6 of these Elton SACDs, I will be listening and writing reviews for a while. :-) (BTW, can you just imagine what they might be able to do with The Beatles?????)

Do I have to say it? HIGHLY RECOMMENDED -- my first desert island SACD

If you read the reviews for this and other Elton John albums you will notice a definite split in reviewer's opinions. Many people seem to consider Yellow Brick Road his finest work, while others prefer his earlier albums. I place myself firmly in the latter camp. I was a huge fan of Elton John ever since his first major single, "Your Song". I can remember seeing him performing it live on the Andy Williams Show on TV. Originally his music was entirely serious, with none of the outrageous costumes and clowning that later became a trademark of his work.

It was only after being savaged by the critics that he eventually turned into a pop-star parody. His music suffered as a result. In my opinion his early albums, Elton John, Tumbleweed Connection, Madman Across the Water and Honky Chateau were the only 'serious' albums he ever made (with a few exceptions.. sprinkled in over the past 30 years, but they don't compare in quality to those early works.)

There isn't a single weak song on this album. Tiny Dancer, Levon and the Title track are classics. This album has perhaps the most beautiful string arrangements of any of his albums (something that the critics of the time took particular delight in attacking as "pretentious"). If you like beautiful melodies, haunting intelligent lyrics and superbly crafted songs, then give this one a try. His later 'pop-star' phase produced some wonderful music as well, but they lacked the artistic integrity and heartfelt passion of his early masterpieces.

Back in the early 70's there were a dozen or so LP's that were found in every serious collection, and "Madman" was one of them. The piano, the voice, the arrangements, the lyrics told us a new major talent was emerging from his chrysalis. The texture of the entire LP was serious and professional. All the FM stations were playing "Tiny Dancer" (you could find her in every town from the east coast to the west coast in the early 70's), "Levon" (one of Elton's most significant social statements), and "Madman Across The Water" (hauntingly and poignantly beautiful). I especially like "Razor Face" and "All The Nasties" (strange title for such a beautiful song). "Goodbye" is too short for such a lovely song. Like many of his early fans I too wish he had not turned into such a stageman. He had so much talent and so much to say with his music. "Bennie and the Jets" might be a fun concert song but I can't nor could I ever play this on my stereo. "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" would have been his masterpiece had he held it to one LP with just the serious songs (which were plentiful at this point). With that said, very few come close to the talent, music and humanity of his thirty years in the public arena.

Peteyspambucket has pretty well summed up what John has done with this 5.1 mix in more detail than I ever could. I can only add on songs when John uses an orchestra, the sound level of his vocals seem more realistic in relation to the size of orchestra.

John has set the blueprint for what a 5.1 SACD should be. It is simply amazing. Perfect separation and clarity without being gimmicky. While other 5.1 mixes may simply use the rear channels for echo or effect, John perfectly places instruments in each giving a true surround sound effect. John truly shows the potential for SACD 5.1 when in the right hands. Like Peteyspamucket, I too wonder what it would sound like if Greg Penny who did the 5.1 mix on this and Tumbleweed Connection would get his hands on the master tapes for other artists. Imagine a Hendrix, or period Beatles or Stones, it boggles the mind.

Elton continued his winning streak with this classic album, and this time around, the strings were put to good use. In my opinion, Tiny Dancer, Levon and Indian Sunset are pure brilliance, but it's a fairly short album, and the last three songs are below average, that's why I don't give five stars. As I said, this time, the strings almost define the songs, the powerfully dramatic Levon, the passionate Tiny Dancer, the moving Indian Sunset(the way the strings/percussion make you feel the anguish of this situation, extraordinary) and the sweet sensation of life on the road, Holiday Inn. While I think the title track is a decent song, it never has been one of my personal favorites, and I much prefer the guitar version on Rare Masters, and now Tumbleweed Connection. Another winning track is Razor Face, that is just classic, and should have received more attention. This album is a must, and probably about the third one you should get, after Don't Shoot Me, and Yellow Brick Road. I will end this with what I consider to be some of the finest Taupin lyrics to date: Jesus, he wants to go to venus, leaving Levon far behind, take a balloon, and go sailing, while Levon, Levon slowly dies...

I have been going through my 1000+ CDs for the Popular Culture class I teach and I have come to the conclusion that "Madman Across the Water" was a seminal album in my life. I seriously started listening to FM radio in the early Seventies because that was the only place to hear "Levon," which was my favorite song for about half a year (I believe it was replaced by "Knife's Edge" by Emerson, Lake & Palmer). Consequently, the shift in my musical appreciation from Top Forty to more sophisticated musical forms can be traced to this particular song and this special album.

Of course, once I had enough loose change I bought the album and promptly proceeded to play the first side about five times as often as I flipped it over and played side two; having the CD means I tend to listen to the whole thing all the way through. I would argue that "Tiny Dancer," "Levon," "Razor Face," and "Madman Across the Water" equals the best side of any Elton John record. I also used the title track as part of a poetry unit for English class (ah, those liberal days of yore). The movie "Almost Famous" has made "Tiny Dancer" popular again, but anybody who listens to this CD is going to find out there are some other great songs too.

Ironically, "Levon" made its way onto the third volume of Elton John's greatest hits collection. Just another example of the cherished memories of our youth exploited by the commercial interests of some soulless giant company.

"Madman Across The Water" is one of my favorite Elton John albums. There's definitely not one bad song here. Paul Buckmaster writes some of his finest orchestral arrangements; most notably for the ballad "Levon" - one of my top ten favorite Elton John tunes - "Tiny Dancer", another favorite, and the title track. Like his earlier albums, Elton used primarily studio musicians, though two of them, drummer Roger Pope and guitarist Caleb Quaye, would later join his band in 1975, contributing their talents to "Rock Of The Westies" and "Blue Moves". Original band mates bassist Dee Murray and drummer Nigel Olsson appear only on one song, "All The Nasties"; starting with "Honky Chateau" through "Captain Fantastic", they would remain the rhythm section for the Elton John band. Davey Johnstone appears as a guest musician, with some excellent mandolin solos for "Madman Across The Water" (Incidentally, contrary to one popular rumor, "Madman..." isn't about American president Richard M. Nixon and the Watergate affair.). Aside from "Levon", my favorite song is "Tiny Dancer"; both are early pop masterpieces from the John/Taupin team. Yet another memorable song is "Holiday Inn". The sound quality is exceptional, thanks to excellent digital image-bit remastering done by Gus Dudgeon, the original album producer, and his team. Without question, "Madman Across The Water" is an essential Elton John recording.

I don't have much to add to what's been written already, just an agreement that this album is Elton's best, and a true masterpiece. I was compelled to write this review in response to a statement in a previous review. I have to defend Indian Sunset. This has always been my absolute favorite Elton John song and is the best track on this album. This song alone is worth the price of the CD.