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Live in Australia

Elton John - Live in Australia Audio CD

A fair review of the Elton John "Live in Australia" 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.

Band: Elton John
Title: Live in Australia
Rating:

Release Date: 2001-03-20
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Sixty Years On 2: I Need You to Turn To 3: Greatest Discovery 4: Tonight 5: Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word 6: King Must Die 7: Take Me to the Pilot 8: Tiny Dancer 9: Have Mercy on the Criminal 10: Madman Across the Water 11: Candle in the Wind 12: Burn Down the Mission 13: Your Song 14: Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me

Broken CD box
Music from EJ is always a joy, but beware of transit damage to fragile CD boxes!!!!!!!!!!!.

Passionate or Overblown?
I've titled this review to compare two major thoughts I always have while listening to this cd. Being a die hard Elton fan is sometimes not easy. I can never quite make up my mind where this is a truly passionate delivery from Elton or just completely overblown effort. Let me explain. There's no doubt that Elton pours his heart out on this release. He was in the midst of a tabloid scandal in Britain, his latest studio album didn't do so well(Leather Jackets) and was also at the height of his drug abuse. Not to mention a voice problem that led to surgery. On this release, his voice has no enjoyable quality: it's ragged, strained and monotone. It's a shame because staging a show this large just can't be canceled. So on with the show despite the singer's troubled vocal chords.

But the orchestrations of these songs are simply superb. James Newton-Howard embellishes the most appealing moments from these early tracks (Paul Buckmaster did the original arrangements on the early '70 tracks). There are some standout performances here to: I Need You To Turn To and The Greatest Discovery, in particular due to their delicate lyrics which benefit from the understated arrangements here. On the other hand, Take Me To The Pilot, in which Elton appears to struggle through, is so overdone, it's no wonder his vocals were showing signs of problems. He can barely get through it without sounding out of breath.

Many of these songs are taken from the classic years ('70-'76). Some real notable songs from Elton's Geffen years ('81-'86) were omitted due to record label contract issues (Elton returned to MCA for this 1987 release after 6 years with Geffen). But the listener missed out on some key tracks such as the brillant Cold As Christmas from '83's Too Low For Zero and Slow Rivers, one of the few highlights from '86's Leather Jackets.

All in all, if you can get past his voice here, you will enjoy the cd overall. It's such a shame that his voice wasn't better for such a high profile ocassion.

Best Tracks: 60 Years On, I Need You To Turn To, Madman Across The Water.

Symphonic Rocket Man
This 2001 re-release of his live concert with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, is a dedicated and deeply driven concert, which mainly highlights his classics from the 70's like Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word, Candle In The Wind and his signature hit Your Song, and lesser-known tracks like Sixty Years On and Tonight from Blue Moves define this dedicated and mellow record that shines brilliantly. Although Elton John hasn't really made many live albums within the past several years, whenever he does a live record, you absolutely know it is magic. I absolutely love this record, and it is still his best live record to date.

Songs: A-

Overall: A- .

Elton Classics Revisited
MCA also wanted to bring Elton back into prominence, to regain the respect and sales he'd accumulated in the 70's. Elton's Geffen Records contract had run its course and his old home, MCA, made him an offer he couldn't refuse. How better to do that, then, than to revisit those early songs in a live context? Better yet, Elton enlisted the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and James Newton Howard to create a televised extravaganza with eyes towards a live album. The set list leaned heavily towards the early years (nearly half the "Elton John" album is here) and tapping some underrated songs like "Tonight" from "Blue Moves" and "Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player's" "Have Mercy On The Criminal. "

The orchestration is magnificent, utilizing the original Paul Buckmaster and James Newton Howard arrangements, and on CD they are absolutely majestic. Elton made one of his last forays into costume drama, showing up in full Mozart gear and powdered wig. "Live In Australia" even paved the way for "Candle In The Wind" to finally become an American hit, hitting number 6 in 1987. It is a gorgeous album, lush in sound and giving justification to all claims of the brilliance of Elton and Bernie's songwriting.

Only one problem: Elton's voice was almost shot. He was mere weeks away from major, voice threatening throat surgery and the roughness on his vocal chords shows. He can't sustain the highs and his falsetto is gone. On some of the songs, he makes up for it admirably. In fact, he sounds really good on the songs where range isn't a major requirement (like the dramatic "The King Must Die" or "Take Me To The Pilot"), but the ballads occasionally show the frayed spots (like "Tonight," where the orchestration is very Gershwinesque, or "Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word"). Had it not been for those moments where Elton's voice betrays him, this could have been a five-star definitive work, on a par with "Procol Harum Live: In Concert with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra. " While "Live In Australia" is still pretty darn good, the definitive live Elton remains the remastered "Here and There. ".

Definitive Elton John/Taupin Live Album
The choice of songs has some of the best loved as well as some of the most underrated songs of the John/Taupin classic years. The music of Elton John and the lyrics of Taupin are showcased in this album of lush orchestral rock.
All the songs are powerful, evoking emotions that are encouraged by the full rich sound of the orchestration. The resulting album starts off with less well known songs such as 'The Greatest Discovery' and builds to the signature tunes of 'Candle in the Wind' and 'Your Song'.
For younger fans, this is a definitive look at Elton at the peak of his career. For the older fans this is a wonderful look back at the classic years, using pivotal songs, not necessarily the most popular.
For those lucky enough to see Elton John live, this album is a treasured memory. Great live sound, combined with technically superb stagecraft.
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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.