It's well known that Elton and Bernie spent their formative years trying to write hits for other artists, while trying to find their own voice. This episode tells the story of Elton and Bernie's early years through the prism of those early cover versions.
Included are the 'surprise' number 3 hit in New Zealand in 1969, the song on the US Top 10 Gold album that gave them the breathing space they needed as they went about planning the second album, and the cover by a fellow songwriter, 50 years ago this week, that gave them the encouragement to carry on through a very dark period.
This episode is backed with a major bit of work - all of the early covers from English-speaking territories have been documented, with all possible internet links (e.g. to YouTube, discogs and 45cat) gathered. Additionally, for each of the 39 covers, an attempt has been made to answer the question 'how did they find out about Elton's music?'
The research has been summarised in this pdf, or alternatively here on this webpage. This document is designed as a guide to accompany this episode and future episodes on this topic.
A couple of recordings are included for the first time on the internet in this episode, namely Guy Darrell's Skyline Pigeon, and Lew Rich's Taking the Sun from My Eyes, which is included in full in the episode, courtesy of David Bodoh, of eltonography.com.
The Roger Cook interview is taken from the Strange Brew podcast.
Episode 42 - Jewel Box Companion 1: Bernie's Letter
Episode 41 - Old Friends
Episode 40 - Tumbleweed Connection at 50 (part 2) with John Higgins and Peter Thomas
Episode 39 - Tumbleweed Connection at 50 with John Higgins and Peter Thomas
Episode 38 - Tumbleweed Connection Covered
Episode 37 - 'Elton John' at 50 (Part 2) with John Higgins and Skaila Kanga
Episode 36 - Jewel Box Joy
Episode 35 - 'Elton John' at 50 with John Higgins
Episode 34 - Fantasy Residency and More Songs They Gave Away
Episode 33 - Anett Murray Interview
Episode 32 - Mysteries of Elton
Episode 31 - Empty Sky at 50
Episode 30 - Listening Session with Peter Thomas
Episode 29 - Top of the Charts with a ROCKET, ft. The Lambrettas
Episode 28 - Alternate Versions, Mixes and Edits
Episode 27 - Breaking Down 'Passengers'
Episode 26 - Rare Masters Vol. 2 (Part 2)
Episode 25 - Rare Masters Vol. 2 (Part 1)
Episode 24 - David Larkham Interview
Episode 23 - Bernie's Auction - What We've Learned
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Irish Songs with Ken Murray
Immediately Kinfolk
Turned On
Resident by Hernan Cattaneo
Markus Schulz presents Global DJ Broadcast