Personally I found this album with the exception of run like horses was so over produced all the life was totally sucked out of it - being too perfect made it clinical and I thought it was a massive comedown from MIE which to me was a very strong album with depth
I haven't reviewed Made in England yet, though I know it well and I know many fans regard it highly. I enjoy a lot of The Big Picture but it is not as strong a set of songs. They certainly went for some big production numbers, backing choirs and so on.
Your show-and-tell demonstration, where you are singing and playing the piano for "Live Like Horses" really stood out. It signals your deeper understanding of the music. Hope you do more of that! I also don't quite get the meaning of "January is the month that cares", but it might look good on a t-shirt 😁 I must say that your grading system is kinda rough on EJ, but your review was enjoyable overall. -- Iota
Glad you enjoy the analysis of the song. Sorry about my singing. We can pretend we are good singers! I'm starting an Elton's Greatest Songs series at the piano.
I have 'Live Like Horses' ranked as one of the 30 greatest songs of all time, by Any artist ... and yes, I do rank such things ... it's an Ocd thing ... lol 8-D
@@eltonmusicfan Decades ago, I used to keep lists of songs and albums on my archaic Apple IIe .... lol but now I just have them handwritten in huge notebooks :)
It seems to me that you can't deal with more complicated songs. This is brilliant album that works on many levels. The songs are ambiental, complex and great. 'The End Will Come' is unique and brilliant song - chorus is unlike anything Elton has done before and it sounds great. 'Love's Got a Lot to Answer For' simply sounds cohesive and chorus really fits. I understand that chorus in the title track may seem out of the place, but it's still pretty much bold approach to composing and that's why this album is brilliant and underrated. 'January' is simply brilliant and bold on all levels. You simply like more predictable and more generic songs. If I want such music I would listen to some boring folk songs and not Elton John. This album is exactly what Elton should be striving for - bold, unpredictable, complex and yet still catchy and cohesive pop-rock music. The transition from verse to refrain in 'I Can't Steer' is simply brilliant... you simply must make something like that when you compose music... those changes in keys are actually what makes great pop music. If you think that transition is weird, but in a bad way, then we are probably not listening the same song. It's not weird - it's different, yet it fits musically perfect. 'Wicked Dreams' is really the most boring song on the album. Even if it's uptempo it sounds banal and flat. I only agree with you about 'If the River Can Bend' and 'Live Like Horses' - brilliant songs! Everything you hate about this album is probably the main reason why I love it. This album was described by critics and some fans as bland pop, while in reality it is really great, unpredictable, bold and complex. You only want to hear some predictable chords probably without any change in chorus. On the other hand you say that in 'Long Way From Happiness' nothing happens (there are 'no surprises'?) while it's pretty obvious even to deaf people that song has really special, catchy and beautiful melody in chorus. So, do you want surprises in his songs or not?
Thanks for taking the time to send in such detailed comments. I'm glad we agree on Live Like Horses and If the River Can Bend - both fantastic songs and production. We may have to agree to differ on some of the others, but we all have different tastes. The world would be very boring if we all agreed on everything! All the best.
@@eltonmusicfan Fair enough. I get quite emotional considering this album since it's for some reason one of my most favorite albums ever, especially by Elton. It's almost an ambiental album. These would be my ratings: 1. Long Way From Happiness - I really like the whole atmosphere here. Interesting lyrics, melody is simply brilliant in my opinion and it goes up and down all the time and I really love that. 10/10 2. Live Like Horses - one of my most favorite Elton songs ever. I also love the version with Pavarotti, but the solo version is my favorite. Some people don't like it because it's too dramatic and almost like a song from some musical, but I think it's quite a dark and beautiful song with great lyrics that can be interpreted in many different ways. That 2nd chorus with 'that' climax is out of this world. 10/10. 3. The End Will Come - I think that Elton tried something new here and I love the result. It's unlike anything he has done before. That dark verse and apocalyptic chorus that seems like it will go forever is really something I didn't hear ever before or after from anyone else. I love the song! 10/10 4. If the River Can Bend - Great gospel-ish song - very good verse, powerful chorus, powerful and energetic after-chorus, great production! Great song! 10/10 5. Love's Got a Lot to Answer for - Very nice and melodically pretty ballad. To me it sounds perfect from the start to the finish, yet it's probably somehow too polished and too pretty if there exists something like 'too pretty'. I like it very much, but don't listen to it often. 9/10 6. Something About the Way You Look Tonight - I can't believe that people find this song to be superior to the rest of the album. It's such a straightforward love ballad from Elton that screams 'classic', but I still think that the rest of the songs are more interesting than this love jingle. I still think it's a great track, the orchestral arrangement is beautiful and the chorus is musically quite impressive. The ending of the song is cool too. On some other album it would be probably the best track. Here it's one of the least interesting to me, yet I still love it. 9/10 7. The Big Picture - yes, very beautiful and dreamy beginning and then the chorus tries to say something else. I really don't have a problem with this one. It's one of my least favorites from the album, but I still like that Elton is musically 'trying' things. Very good! 7.5/10 8. Recover Your Soul - I agree that this is a great song, yet still musically somehow static and predictable from beginning to the end. I still always loved it. It has a good message. The musical pattern of melody in the chorus reminds me somehow of the chorus of 'The Last Song', yet, it's still different. Quite a great and beautiful ballad. 9.5/10 9. January - Musically, I find this song to be really exciting, almost out of this world. Elton really tried something new here and succeeded in my opinion. I also know one fan who thinks this is one of Elton's greatest songs. I wouldn't go that far, but it certainly is quite brilliant, unique and interesting on it's own! 9.5/10 10. I Can't Steer My Heart Cleaf of You - I can understand that some people don't like this overly dramatic and over the top ballad, but I still think it's musically pretty unique and magical and like I said, that transition to chorus is really brilliant. I love it! 9.5/10 11. Wicked Dreams - Uptempo song in which there is not much going on. It fools you at first like something great might come, but then the whole melody is pretty much straightforward and boring, especially the chorus. Still, it's quite a decent song, but the weakest on the album. 6/10
You nailed it. I really liked this entire album. Amazing how opinions can vary. January IMO was brilliant. To me you could say something that is great of every song. The Big Picture. I can't even rank them best to least, they're all good IMO.
This was a frustrating album for me. It did not help that it came out the same time my grandmother died, who I'd lived next door to for my whole life to that point. I was hoping the album would pick me up, but it was just a frustrating experience. I really enjoyed Made In England, particularly the production by Greg Penny with contributions by Paul Buckmeister and George Martin. Now he goes back to Chris Thomas and it all sounds synthetic. The vocals aren't great either, whether the use of echo, or odd pauses or inflections by Elton (have you seen the big... picTURE). Of course Thomas also produced two of my favorite albums - Sleeping with the Past and The One - but the material for those was much stronger. There are only a few tracks I really like, and some I've grown to appreciate from repeated exposure. It is perhaps telling that your favorite track, Live Like Horses, was originally intended for Made in England but couldn't be finished in time. I am not good at rating songs, finding it too subjective based on my mood, but most of your scores seem fair. It says something that my favorite tune here - If the River Can Bend - can only muster an 8. Recover Your Soul and Something About the Way are fine, but far from his top shelf and immediately recall better songs by him (a problem with any artist with a career as long and productive as Elton and Bernie's). About my only disagreement with you would be on The End Will Come which I enjoy (maybe my #2 or 3 on a weak album) and Live Like Horses which is very good but I can't put in that upper echelon of Elton's tunes (though I can see how it can get there for others). In the end the album is just boring. Say what you will about Solar Prestige a Gammon or Passengers, at least they're different. According to Wikipedia, Bernie considers this their worst album "because of the overall quality of his lyrical contribution and because 'the production is abysmally cold and technical'." I can't disagree.
I love your reviews, they're so much fun to listen to. I love this album, it's great - of course I approach it differently from you, I wouldn't know a chord change from a hole in the wall. Overall it's a great album.
I did too. I remember buying this album not really knowing what was on it other than the way you look tonight. I was blown away how good the entire album was. Really liked "January". January is the month that cares.
I find Elton to be a hit or miss composer. Some songs are great, some are not, but mostly his songs sound similar. It’s understandable after over 300 songs.
Any composer can be hit or miss. Elton has a 50+ year catalog that’s filled with true gems and underrated songs, and that’s not even counting the hits. Sure, there are some flops. I enjoy going back to his 80s and 90s stuff and discovering or rediscovering great tracks.
I disagree about January. I think it's one of Elton's best songs. It's about new beginnings. The refrain is genius in terms of composition; Elton at his best. Regarding the entire album, it's another you can play from start to finish without skipping; there isn't a bad track.
Been enjoying this one. There's nothing on it I feel the urge to skip through but in general my highlights match your impressions and the ones that are not so great also do... that refrain on The Big Picture is indeed jarring. The exception is Love's Got a Lot to Answer For, which is one of my favourites of the album.
I dunno - I wouldn't say 1 for The Big Picture title track, though I've always hated the chorus. Must admit I wouldn't rate it much higher either, but it's not the pits! I also remember the first time I heard it because of how jarring the chorus was!
I remember being dissapointed after loving the Made in England album. Too many of these songs sound alike and they are all buried in a ton of production. I love wicked dreams though. I wish the rest of the album had similiar energy. I really like the fact that you are reviewing some of Eltons lesser known albums.
@@eltonmusicfan I agree with you that his voice sounds really good on this album. A few years after this his voice would start to be a little rough sounding at times.
I have to mention that it was during Elton's promotional tour of this album that the giant "rip-off" in Austin, TX occurred in August, 1999. The A & C sections, at the Frank Erwin Center, were switched from the seating chart without notice. Anyone who complained was thrown from the venue before the concert started (in the days before social media & instant video evidence). I have not been to one of his concerts, or purchased any of his music or merchandise since. The story I was told is that seats contracted to John were inadvertently sold, so people like my husband and I were punished. I saw virtually the same show a month or so before in San Antonio, but have to say he sounded bored and flat; just going through the motions. This collection grew on me, but certainly doesn't measure up to his earlier works.
I agree that this album is over-produced, but it does have some strong tracks (Something About the Way You Look Tonight, Live Like Horses, If the River Can Bend). I also think it’s around this time (and during Made in England) that Elton’s voice is at its best. 7/10 overall for me.
strange bernie doesnt like this cd compared to LJ. i just dont know why everything after THE ONE just kind of went down hill 01-16 just not as good anymore. i dont care for really anything after peach tree road and union in my opinion is terrible, if was someone like billy joel fine. But i DONT want hear some guy duetting
I agree about the whole album!! I only think that " If the river can bend" is for me the best of the album . I m waitin for Tumleweed...which I adore"!! Thank's! You ' re great!!
Thanks. I'm always spoilt for choice on which to do next. I seem to be avoiding the eighties a bit. River can bend is such a great track. Four classics on here for me.
Personally I found this album with the exception of run like horses was so over produced all the life was totally sucked out of it - being too perfect made it clinical and I thought it was a massive comedown from MIE which to me was a very strong album with depth
I haven't reviewed Made in England yet, though I know it well and I know many fans regard it highly. I enjoy a lot of The Big Picture but it is not as strong a set of songs. They certainly went for some big production numbers, backing choirs and so on.
@@eltonmusicfan Thanks John. I thought MIE was amazing except the title track! Isn’t that weird.
Your show-and-tell demonstration, where you are singing and playing the piano for "Live Like Horses" really stood out. It signals your deeper understanding of the music. Hope you do more of that!
I also don't quite get the meaning of "January is the month that cares", but it might look good on a t-shirt 😁
I must say that your grading system is kinda rough on EJ, but your review was enjoyable overall. -- Iota
Glad you enjoy the analysis of the song. Sorry about my singing. We can pretend we are good singers! I'm starting an Elton's Greatest Songs series at the piano.
I have 'Live Like Horses' ranked as one of the 30 greatest songs of all time, by Any artist ... and yes, I do rank such things ... it's an Ocd thing ... lol 8-D
Ranking tracks is fun. Do you use spreadsheets as well? It's good to find another fan of Live Like Horses. Great track.
@@eltonmusicfan Decades ago, I used to keep lists of songs and albums on my archaic Apple IIe .... lol but now I just have them handwritten in huge notebooks :)
It seems to me that you can't deal with more complicated songs. This is brilliant album that works on many levels. The songs are ambiental, complex and great. 'The End Will Come' is unique and brilliant song - chorus is unlike anything Elton has done before and it sounds great. 'Love's Got a Lot to Answer For' simply sounds cohesive and chorus really fits. I understand that chorus in the title track may seem out of the place, but it's still pretty much bold approach to composing and that's why this album is brilliant and underrated.
'January' is simply brilliant and bold on all levels.
You simply like more predictable and more generic songs. If I want such music I would listen to some boring folk songs and not Elton John.
This album is exactly what Elton should be striving for - bold, unpredictable, complex and yet still catchy and cohesive pop-rock music.
The transition from verse to refrain in 'I Can't Steer' is simply brilliant... you simply must make something like that when you compose music... those changes in keys are actually what makes great pop music. If you think that transition is weird, but in a bad way, then we are probably not listening the same song. It's not weird - it's different, yet it fits musically perfect.
'Wicked Dreams' is really the most boring song on the album. Even if it's uptempo it sounds banal and flat.
I only agree with you about 'If the River Can Bend' and 'Live Like Horses' - brilliant songs!
Everything you hate about this album is probably the main reason why I love it. This album was described by critics and some fans as bland pop, while in reality it is really great, unpredictable, bold and complex.
You only want to hear some predictable chords probably without any change in chorus.
On the other hand you say that in 'Long Way From Happiness' nothing happens (there are 'no surprises'?) while it's pretty obvious even to deaf people that song has really special, catchy and beautiful melody in chorus.
So, do you want surprises in his songs or not?
Thanks for taking the time to send in such detailed comments. I'm glad we agree on Live Like Horses and If the River Can Bend - both fantastic songs and production. We may have to agree to differ on some of the others, but we all have different tastes. The world would be very boring if we all agreed on everything! All the best.
@@eltonmusicfan Fair enough. I get quite emotional considering this album since it's for some reason one of my most favorite albums ever, especially by Elton. It's almost an ambiental album.
These would be my ratings:
1. Long Way From Happiness - I really like the whole atmosphere here. Interesting lyrics, melody is simply brilliant in my opinion and it goes up and down all the time and I really love that. 10/10
2. Live Like Horses - one of my most favorite Elton songs ever. I also love the version with Pavarotti, but the solo version is my favorite. Some people don't like it because it's too dramatic and almost like a song from some musical, but I think it's quite a dark and beautiful song with great lyrics that can be interpreted in many different ways. That 2nd chorus with 'that' climax is out of this world. 10/10.
3. The End Will Come - I think that Elton tried something new here and I love the result. It's unlike anything he has done before. That dark verse and apocalyptic chorus that seems like it will go forever is really something I didn't hear ever before or after from anyone else. I love the song! 10/10
4. If the River Can Bend - Great gospel-ish song - very good verse, powerful chorus, powerful and energetic after-chorus, great production! Great song! 10/10
5. Love's Got a Lot to Answer for - Very nice and melodically pretty ballad. To me it sounds perfect from the start to the finish, yet it's probably somehow too polished and too pretty if there exists something like 'too pretty'. I like it very much, but don't listen to it often. 9/10
6. Something About the Way You Look Tonight - I can't believe that people find this song to be superior to the rest of the album. It's such a straightforward love ballad from Elton that screams 'classic', but I still think that the rest of the songs are more interesting than this love jingle. I still think it's a great track, the orchestral arrangement is beautiful and the chorus is musically quite impressive. The ending of the song is cool too. On some other album it would be probably the best track. Here it's one of the least interesting to me, yet I still love it. 9/10
7. The Big Picture - yes, very beautiful and dreamy beginning and then the chorus tries to say something else. I really don't have a problem with this one. It's one of my least favorites from the album, but I still like that Elton is musically 'trying' things. Very good! 7.5/10
8. Recover Your Soul - I agree that this is a great song, yet still musically somehow static and predictable from beginning to the end. I still always loved it. It has a good message. The musical pattern of melody in the chorus reminds me somehow of the chorus of 'The Last Song', yet, it's still different. Quite a great and beautiful ballad. 9.5/10
9. January - Musically, I find this song to be really exciting, almost out of this world. Elton really tried something new here and succeeded in my opinion. I also know one fan who thinks this is one of Elton's greatest songs. I wouldn't go that far, but it certainly is quite brilliant, unique and interesting on it's own! 9.5/10
10. I Can't Steer My Heart Cleaf of You - I can understand that some people don't like this overly dramatic and over the top ballad, but I still think it's musically pretty unique and magical and like I said, that transition to chorus is really brilliant. I love it! 9.5/10
11. Wicked Dreams - Uptempo song in which there is not much going on. It fools you at first like something great might come, but then the whole melody is pretty much straightforward and boring, especially the chorus. Still, it's quite a decent song, but the weakest on the album. 6/10
You nailed it. I really liked this entire album. Amazing how opinions can vary. January IMO was brilliant. To me you could say something that is great of every song. The Big Picture. I can't even rank them best to least, they're all good IMO.
This was a frustrating album for me. It did not help that it came out the same time my grandmother died, who I'd lived next door to for my whole life to that point. I was hoping the album would pick me up, but it was just a frustrating experience. I really enjoyed Made In England, particularly the production by Greg Penny with contributions by Paul Buckmeister and George Martin. Now he goes back to Chris Thomas and it all sounds synthetic. The vocals aren't great either, whether the use of echo, or odd pauses or inflections by Elton (have you seen the big... picTURE). Of course Thomas also produced two of my favorite albums - Sleeping with the Past and The One - but the material for those was much stronger. There are only a few tracks I really like, and some I've grown to appreciate from repeated exposure. It is perhaps telling that your favorite track, Live Like Horses, was originally intended for Made in England but couldn't be finished in time.
I am not good at rating songs, finding it too subjective based on my mood, but most of your scores seem fair. It says something that my favorite tune here - If the River Can Bend - can only muster an 8. Recover Your Soul and Something About the Way are fine, but far from his top shelf and immediately recall better songs by him (a problem with any artist with a career as long and productive as Elton and Bernie's). About my only disagreement with you would be on The End Will Come which I enjoy (maybe my #2 or 3 on a weak album) and Live Like Horses which is very good but I can't put in that upper echelon of Elton's tunes (though I can see how it can get there for others).
In the end the album is just boring. Say what you will about Solar Prestige a Gammon or Passengers, at least they're different. According to Wikipedia, Bernie considers this their worst album "because of the overall quality of his lyrical contribution and because 'the production is abysmally cold and technical'." I can't disagree.
I personally very much liked this album. Every song on this album.
I love your reviews, they're so much fun to listen to. I love this album, it's great - of course I approach it differently from you, I wouldn't know a chord change from a hole in the wall. Overall it's a great album.
Thanks. There are some gems on here.
I did too. I remember buying this album not really knowing what was on it other than the way you look tonight. I was blown away how good the entire album was. Really liked "January". January is the month that cares.
I find Elton to be a hit or miss composer. Some songs are great, some are not, but mostly his songs sound similar. It’s understandable after over 300 songs.
Any composer can be hit or miss. Elton has a 50+ year catalog that’s filled with true gems and underrated songs, and that’s not even counting the hits. Sure, there are some flops. I enjoy going back to his 80s and 90s stuff and discovering or rediscovering great tracks.
I disagree about January. I think it's one of Elton's best songs. It's about new beginnings. The refrain is genius in terms of composition; Elton at his best. Regarding the entire album, it's another you can play from start to finish without skipping; there isn't a bad track.
👍👍👍
Such a great album.
Been enjoying this one. There's nothing on it I feel the urge to skip through but in general my highlights match your impressions and the ones that are not so great also do... that refrain on The Big Picture is indeed jarring. The exception is Love's Got a Lot to Answer For, which is one of my favourites of the album.
Yes. That one is growing on me. I can imagine Leo Sayer singing it, somehow. Strange.
You got it right. «Something about the way you look tonight» i feel it end in a tone that does not connect with the rest of the song
Yes, good point. The ending just seems out of character with the rest of what is, I think, a wonderful song.
Very good comparison between Live Like Horses and Don’t Let the Sun. Very similar structure.
Thanks. I love both of these songs.
I dunno - I wouldn't say 1 for The Big Picture title track, though I've always hated the chorus. Must admit I wouldn't rate it much higher either, but it's not the pits! I also remember the first time I heard it because of how jarring the chorus was!
Such a shame. The verse is so beautiful.
I remember being dissapointed after loving the Made in England album. Too many of these songs sound alike and they are all buried in a ton of production. I love wicked dreams though. I wish the rest of the album had similiar energy. I really like the fact that you are reviewing some of Eltons lesser known albums.
Thanks for your comments. It's very uneven, isn't it? I'm looking forward to revisiting Made in England soon.
@@eltonmusicfan I will look for it.
@@eltonmusicfan I agree with you that his voice sounds really good on this album. A few years after this his voice would start to be a little rough sounding at times.
I have to mention that it was during Elton's promotional tour of this album that the giant "rip-off" in Austin, TX occurred in August, 1999. The A & C sections, at the Frank Erwin Center, were switched from the seating chart without notice. Anyone who complained was thrown from the venue before the concert started (in the days before social media & instant video evidence). I have not been to one of his concerts, or purchased any of his music or merchandise since. The story I was told is that seats contracted to John were inadvertently sold, so people like my husband and I were punished. I saw virtually the same show a month or so before in San Antonio, but have to say he sounded bored and flat; just going through the motions. This collection grew on me, but certainly doesn't measure up to his earlier works.
I'm sorry to hear about your experience. I hope you still enjoy Elton's music.
I agree that this album is over-produced, but it does have some strong tracks (Something About the Way You Look Tonight, Live Like Horses, If the River Can Bend). I also think it’s around this time (and during Made in England) that Elton’s voice is at its best. 7/10 overall for me.
He's sounding good. Thanks for this. You have identified three great tracks-and he doesn't play them much. Shame.
strange bernie doesnt like this cd compared to LJ. i just dont know why everything after THE ONE just kind of went down hill 01-16 just not as good anymore. i dont care for really anything after peach tree road and union in my opinion is terrible, if was someone like billy joel fine. But i DONT want hear some guy duetting
I agree about the whole album!! I only think that " If the river can bend" is for me the best of the album . I m waitin for Tumleweed...which I adore"!! Thank's! You ' re great!!
Thanks. I'm always spoilt for choice on which to do next. I seem to be avoiding the eighties a bit. River can bend is such a great track. Four classics on here for me.