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Elton John - Caribou Audio CD

A fair review of the Elton John "Caribou" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Elton John reviews here, or go back to the Elton John tabs.

Elton John Band: Elton John
Title: Caribou
Rating:
Release Date: 1996-02-20
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Bitch Is Back 2: Pinky 3: Grimsby 4: Dixie Lily 5: Solar Prestige a Gammon 6: You're So Static 7: I've Seen the Saucers 8: Stinker 9: Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me 10: Ticking 11: Pinball Wizard [*] 12: Sick City [*] 13: Cold Highway [*] 14: Step into Christmas [*]

Elton John's album "Caribou" on CD
"Caribou" includes two major hits by Elton from the 70's: "The Bitch is Back" and "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me. Classic Elton John compilation at its best. " The other selections are great as well, which makes listening to the entire album a very pleasant experience indeed. I recommend this product highly for all Elton John and 70's music fans. .


A must-have for any Elton fan!
The whole album is listenable with three standouts, "The Bitch is Back," with its killer hook and sax solo, made after the big sax solos in Brown Sugar and Same old Song and Dance made it fashionable around that time; "Pinky," one of the smoothest ballads he ever sang; "I've seen the saucers," which tears a little whole in your ceiling and transports you to another world of mood, sound, and adventure. Don't let the scuttlebutt about this album being a "rush job" deter you from buying it! We are talking Elton John, musical prodigy, in his vocal and melody-writing prime, people! He can write a decent song to an instruction manual to an oven, and did so on YouTube to prove it. Everyone else mentions "Don't let the sun go down on me," but that has been overplayed and does not hold up as well as the above three, for me anyway. No true Elton fan can ignore this gem and still have his music collection sparkle.


That's just Elton, for you ...
One: Elton and Bernie weren't burned out when they set out to put together what would become "Caribou" (its working title was "Old Pink Eyes Is Back," a nod to Sinatra). Okay, first off, have to dispel a few myths. And "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road," by the way, wasn't written in a weekend . . . it was done largely either before, during and after the ill-fated attempt to record in Jamaica. Much of the records was done in the studio in France during the week or two he and the band were there. Back to "Caribou," though, which wasn't done in a MONTH - God, don't we wish! Elton would only dedicate that much time to "Captain Fantastic. "
"Caribou" was written during a nine-day break between legs of his world tour. Elton and Bernie were still on fire at this point, and if anything the only thing this record doesn't have is a sort of through-line to tie it all together. Then again, how do you follow "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road?" If you're Elton, Bernie and the band, you don't.
The album's a bit of a hodgepodge, but Gus kept it all together and even if it didn't come out quite as intended, many of the tracks hold up well, even today. Oh, sure there are a couple of clinkers ("Stinker") and a few head scratching moments ("Solar Prestige A Gammon"), but overall you have to love how unassuming and playful it is. Some of it's even downright movingly beautiful ("Ticking," "Pinky"). Even "Dixie Lily" has made a bit of comeback in concert in recent years, one of those great Elton album gems that's never been far from the fans' memories.
"The Bitch Is Back," "You're So Static" and "I've Seen The Saucers" are all good fun in their own way, and the big single, "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me" has joined "Bitch" as a beloved concert staple.
Gus' remastering and the bonus tracks included make it a great listen all around. Grab one and just take it for what it is . . . just Elton being Elton.


Little known classic from the golden age
There are a some all-time classic Elton tracks in the "The Bitch is Back" and "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" as well as "Pinball Wizard", which is a extra track on this CD. This is a flawed classic from Eltons golden period when he was selling more records than anybody else on the planet.

The main difference with this album over say his other classic albums of the 70's is the addition of the Tower of Power horn section. This adds some umph to the whole proceedings. So very average Elton songs like "Your so Static" and "Stinker" (both of which I love) become much funkier affairs.

Overall then this is an underrated album, that whilst not quite as good as GYBR or Tumbleweed Connection, is far better than its given credit for. .


Elton John - Ticking........
"Caribou" would be his next effort and although not as consistently good as "Yellow Brick Road" it is another fine disc. After the resounding artistic success of "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" it was going to be nearly impossible for Elton to come up with something it's equal. The album featured two huge hits, the rocking "Bitch Is Back", a concert staple which has become one of Elton's theme songs and the gorgeous "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me" which remains an all time classic. My favorite song on the album is the closing track "Ticking", a 7 minute plus mini opus that tells the story of a gunman who takes hostages ending up killing some of them. The song also weaves in the back-story of his life. "Ticking" covers a lot of ground in short period of time and to me is one of Elton and Bernie's greatest achievements of their career. The rest of the album features some standout tracks like the underrated love song "Pinky", the rockers "Grimsby" and "Stinker", and the sci fi tale "I've Seen The Saucers". There are a few clunkers on this one too that keep it from being a 5 star album, but even these songs are at least listenable. "Caribou" was a bit of a rush job as the whole thing was recorded in about a weeks time. It is quite amazing that Elton and Bernie were able to put out this album and the previous one in less than a year's, and that it came out as good as it did. .


You can see a complete list of all Elton John discography, or go back to the Elton John tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.

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