Too Low for Zero [Extra tracks, Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered]

Elton John | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 20, 2001)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Extra tracks, Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered
• Label: Island
• ASIN: B000009EJU
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #29,161 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Too Low For Zero-- An '80s High Point, August 8, 2006

By 

Julien Walden (Austin, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Too Low for Zero (Audio CD)

The transitional phase Elton John went through in the late '70s and early '80s was over. Too Low For Zero was not only the first record since Blue Moves that's all John/Taupin (except for one of the bonus tracks on this reissue, but I'll get to that in due time), it was also a full reunion with the original Elton John Band! This is the first record since Captain Fantastic in '75 to be recorded, from start to finish, with Davey Johnstone on guitar, Dee Murray on Bass and Nigel Olsson on the skins, and it shows. The title reflects neither the quality nor the chart positions of this fabulous record; it was Elton's best in years. The opener, 'Cold As Christmas,' may be a bit of a lyrical downer about a failing marriage, but it remains an excellent song with clever phrasing; it was quite a pleasure to hear this one again after something like fifteen years. 'I'm Still Standing' follows, an anthem of survival still without peer; the title track, a lament on boredom, misery and insomnia, comes next, with its irresistable beat and addictive chorus- lyrics notwithstanding, it's far from depressing. Next comes 'Religion,' as it so often does (ha-ha), a triple-tale of spiritual conversion in the most mundane of circumstances. While not a work of particular brilliance, it's a catchy little number that holds its own surrounded by the duo's signature hits of the decade. The album's best song comes next, 'I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues.' Featuring a harmonica bit by Stevie Wonder and a co-writer's credit for Davey Johnstone, this song, one of John/Taupin's all-time great love songs, was a hit throughout most of Western Civilisation, as it well warranted. 'Crystal' follows, another clever, catchy hook around a story of a lover lost to a friend, then comes the record's last major hit, 'Kiss The Bride,' a good rocker about falling in love with a stranger as she walks down the asile. I'll tell ya; for songs about unrequited love, no one beats these two. You might even call it their particular specialty: Elton and Bernie have managed to write uncountable songs on this topic, without excessive repetition of the same specific themes or stories (although they will write another song about falling in love with a bride at a wedding, 'I Never Knew Her Name,' on Sleeping With The Past six years hence, the details and the music are sufficiently different that you can't call it self plagarism, exactly). The next song, 'Whipping Boy,' is perhaps a bit perverse; the story of a masochistic relationship with a mean piece of jailbait, it's funny and it has the kind of chorus that can bother you for days. Now, we come to the tracks that close the original album, moving into torch-song territory: 'Saint,' a worshipful love song about an all-too good lover, and 'One More Arrow,' about a dead one. Finally, we come to the reissue extras. 'Earn While You Learn' is a jaunty instrumental that served as the b-side of 'I'm Still Standing,' 'Dreamboat,' a jazzy, countrified number in the tradition of 'Dixie Lily,' and the only non-Taupin lyric on the record- is Gary Osbourne's sole appearance on this record. Last, but far from least, is 'The Retreat,' a lovely ballad reflecting Taupin's continuing Americana fixation. It's a poetic tale of the aftermath of a Civil War battle, and one of my favourite songs in their entire catalog. I'm glad to see it finally placed on an album, no longer relegated to B-side or boxed set obscurity.
In conclusion, Too Low For Zero brought the rough patch that was the Punk/Disco/New Wave era to a satisfying conclusion for our heroes, as they survived their first set of challenges from various next big things, up-and-comers, trend-setters, various voices of the new generation and nay-sayers who said that their hit-making days were behind them. When most of these had been cast back into the obscurity from whence they came, Elton John and Bernie Taupin were indeed still standing. And twenty-three years later, they still are.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars From Zero back to the top, June 26, 2007

By 

Tim Brough "author and music buff" (Springfield, PA United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Too Low for Zero (Audio CD)

The 80's weren't always kind to Elton John. Once he jumped from MCA to Geffen, the hits slowed down. He and Bernie Taupin had gone their separate ways, and his core band had been gone since "Rock of the Westies." "Too Low For Zero" changed all that. For the first time since "Blue Moves," Elton and Bernie co-wrote the songs. Nigel Olsson and Dee Murray were back, and so was the alchemy.

That was apparent from the first single, the defiant "I'm Still Standing." From the uptempo beat to the forceful lyric, it is the best Elton song since the glory days. "Kiss The Bride" follows in the same vein, about an ex who sees his dreamgirl slipping away as she walks down the aisle. But it was the ballad "I Guess That's Why They Call it The Blues" that blasted away the logjam. "Blues," with its great Stevie Wonder harmonica solo, became Elton's first top ten single in three years and the first since "Little Jeannie" from "21 at 33."

The most important part of this comeback is the rest of the album. "Too Low For Zero" was not just the home of three top 40 singles, but the remaining cuts had depth. The disintegrating family of "Cold as Christmas" is prime Elton, and the title track could have easily been a fourth single. The falsettoed ballad that closed the original album, "One More Arrow," is exquisite and a departure for Elton. "Too Low For Zero" marked the first time since "Blue Moves" that the entire album held together as a whole, and signalled the rebound for Elton that would continue through to "The One."

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It's what got me into him, October 2, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Too Low for Zero (Audio CD)

This album, which I bought in 1983, is still one of my favorite Elton John albums. I have almost all his albums, and I love them all, but this one is and remains a classic!!