Happy 50th Anniversary to Elton John’s seventh studio album Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, originally released October 5, 1973.
Stevie Wonder’s musical output between 1972 and 1976 is often referred to as his “classic period.” It was an unparalleled stretch of creativity that gave us Music of My Mind (1972), Talking Book (1972), Innervisions (1973), Fulfillingness’ First Finale (1974), and Songs in the Key of Life (1976).
Around this same period, Elton John was on an incredible streak of brilliance himself. His self-titled second album Elton John (1970), Tumbleweed Connection (1970), Madman Across the Water (1971), Honky Chateau (1972), and Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only the Piano Player (1973) were released between 1970 and 1973. The exclamation point on this period was the brilliant double LP Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, his second album release of 1973 (Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only the Piano Player dropped at the beginning of that year).
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road is one of the most iconic albums of its era and cemented John’s status as one of the most influential and talented artists of his generation. By the time the LP was released, the songwriting team of Elton John and Bernie Taupin had firmly established themselves as elite songwriters. I’ve always admired how they blended rock, pop, country and blues to give us fresh and engaging stories. John even dabbles in reggae on the track “Jamaica Jerk-Off.”
It took Taupin two-and-a-half weeks to write the lyrics, while John composed the melodies during their stay in Kingston, Jamaica. John wanted to record the album in Kingston because The Rolling Stones had recently recorded Goats Head Soup (1973) there. Unfortunately, the sessions were cut short due to a perfect storm of circumstances, one of which was the Joe Frazier-George Foreman boxing match, making their stay in Kingston a logistical nightmare.
In an interview with Mix magazine, producer Gus Dudgeon talked about the other factors that led to the band relocating to the Studio d’enregistrement Michel Magne, at the Château d’Hérouville near Pontoise, in France, where John’s previous two LPs were recorded. “Well, I must admit, the only reason that it became a double album was because we’d been to Dynamic Sounds in Jamaica anticipating to possibly record there, and I just couldn’t get a sound together at all. It was weird. The Stones had just recorded there and they were checking out as we checked in. They told us a few slightly scary stories like don’t open the piano lid too fast or you’ll upset the cockroaches that live in there—things like that. It took me three days to get a decent drum sound, and eventually we said, “This isn’t going to work.” So we said, “Let’s go back to the Chateau. We know we can work there and it will be fine.”
Listen to the Album:
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road was not planned as a double album, but Taupin and John wrote 22 songs including “Funeral for a Friend” and “Love Lies Bleeding.” Those two songs were originally intended to be separate tracks, but they do work well together as one song and it’s also a great way to start off an album. “Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding” is followed by the beautiful Marilyn Monroe tribute, “Candle In the Wind,” “Bennie and the Jets,” and the album’s title track. By the time you get to “This Song Has No Title,” you’re smack dab in the middle of listening to something special.
More often than not, double albums can be the kiss of death for some musical acts, but Goodbye Yellow Brick Road is an exception. The unsung hero is Dudgeon, an experienced producer with many credits, including David Bowie’s “Space Oddity.” His production on Goodbye Yellow Brick Road gives the album a rich and full sound, with exquisite arrangements that complement each of the songs perfectly.
The album still resonates many years after its original release. In 2004, Slant Magazine writer Gavin Pirnia put it best. "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road is such an epic, varied display of emotional depth and soul that it should be classified as some sort of operetta." After giving it another spin, I agree. It’s one of those albums you must have in your collection.
Listen: