I can't even imagine listening to this for the first time. I've heard it hundreds of times and still love it. This early part of Elton's career was his best and most creative from 1969 to say, 1975 and like the Beatles' short window of time, Elton also was incredibly prolific. (The Beatles only recorded from 1963 till 1970,seven short years and yet released an astonishing 18 records and of course changed the world of popular music in the process). Bernie Taupin (lyrics) and Elton (songcraft) almost never even wrote together with Bernie simply sending his poetry/lyrics to Elton to make a song. I am enjoying your musical journey.
Have to completely agree. I really like his music before Rock of the Westies, though I like a couple songs from that album. But nothing really struck me after that like everything before it. He'll always be one of my all-time faves.
Yes, and Bernie Taupin made part of that best part with great lyrics. In the very beginning of the career Elton John also had Paul Buckmaster's orchestra arrangements, he was very important. ua-cam.com/video/QEw9SB8NMfs/v-deo.html ua-cam.com/video/aTuKDK9U0qg/v-deo.html
Back in my L.A. studio days (mid 80's) I had the pleasure of meeting the guitarist, Davey Johnstone. I asked him about this song (amongst other things) and he said this was basically one take with only a couple of guitar overdubs. He said recording this album was the most fun he's ever had in a studio.
It's tough to decipher they lyrics knowing Elton didn't write them, they're all from his writing partner Bernie Taupin (who never gets enough credit). Bernie is a romantic and likes stories about the American west. He would later write an autobiographical album about him and Elton called "Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy" which is excellent, my favorite.
I seem to remember Elton taking credit for the lyrics to Funeral for a Friend, in a magazine article several years ago. But otherwise Bernie was lyricist on pretty much everything else.
I think Bernie actually gets a lot of credit…I knew he co-wrote with Elton as a kid in the 70s. Elton is very good about talking about Bernie at every opportunity.
"Love Lies Bleeding" is a plant, believe it or don't! Popular in the Victorian era (when plant names reflected meanings), hopelessness or hopeless love were the meanings imbued by the LLB plant, way back yonder! Elton wrote the intro/instrumental opening after thinking about the kind of music he'd want played at his funeral. According to the magical mystery of Wiki, "In the Eagle Vision documentary, Classic Albums: Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, John said the two songs were not written as one piece, but fit together since 'Funeral for a Friend' ends in the key of A, and 'Love Lies Bleeding' opens in A, and the two were played as one elongated piece when recorded. With lyrics like 'And love lies bleeding in my hand/Oh, it kills me to think of you with another man,' lyricist Bernie Taupin uses death symbolism as an angry take on a breakup song." Two years ago, Weird Al Yankovic played the song during his concert tour, playing the piano parts on his accordion! Gotcha covered, Daniel! Nice job!
"You call someone, and they see your name pop up, and they don't answer..." Ah, but..no caller ID back then, dude! You picked up the phone and you took your chances. Love all those pics of Elton when he was still young and flamboyant, with the wild costumes and the outsized glasses.
They know nothing about a rotary phone...no less a world without caller id. A day and age where we look at who is calling a dread answering....back in those days we ran to pick up the phone never knowing who was on the other end of the line.
@@navinspurpose7609 I love it! Even though I was born in 1980, I had rotary at my grandparents, push button/corded at my parents and later cordless at both. Then we got cell phones & moved away from land lines altogether.
Great review. Is your name Daniel? That should be your next Elton review. Daniel is one of his biggest hits! lol Also, when it comes to Elton, there is no "quintessential". His whole catalog is quintessential. ha!
@@sonyavincent7450 Absolutely! I had gotten home from a business trip and heard there were seats left, so me and my wife went to the civic center in OKC and had gotten to the ticket booth with a person in front of us paying for his ticket, when some guy came to us and said he had two extra tickets on the 5th row and would sell them for $12 each (face value - can you believe that? Nosebleed sections were $8). The guy in the ticket booth verified the validity of the tickets, so we bought them and the usher took us straight down to the 5th row in front of his piano! There had to be some kind of intervention, we thought!
Not many channels do lyric analysis, and I would love if you could check out Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters by Elton John, it's unknown, underrated, but it's beautiful and it's lyrics are some of the best ever. One of Eltons best songs!
You ask, "Is he killing himself?" He once tried and the song that resulted is one of the darkest, most dramatic Progressive power ballads of the decade of the 1970s: "Someone Saved my Life Tonight". He won the Grammy for best male vocals for the album it is on. Please make it your next Elton tasting.
I’m not a huge Elton fan. But, goodbye yellow brick road was an exemplary effort. Huge depth in that album. Recommend Bennie and the Jets as another good Elton song.
I first heard this song live in concert.It is now in my top 10 of his songs.Back then,you either had to stand in line physically at the arena or call on the phone.Tickets went on sale at 9am.A worker at the arena told me to start calling at around 8:50am. I got through and when the operator answered, I said I wanted 2 tickets-best they had available.She said “is row 2 on the floor ok?” I almost fainted(ok,maybe not).My cousin and I got to the arena and to our seats.We were right near his piano.He was within a couple arms length.Awesome night-and by the way,he drinks Diet Coke 😂
Elton ruled the charts from like ‘70 to ‘75. A gay man, he was not able to express his individuality as he’d have liked, due to the times, but that aside, he was at the top of his game for Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. Anyone who thinks Elton couldn’t rock never heard Love Lies Bleeding, and you’re correct, the bass in this tune is freaking awesome! Gets me on my feet every time, almost 50 years later.
Great reaction Daniel (hope I got your name right)! You are truly an 'old soul', it seems, reacting strongly and with conviction to these classic, timeless epic pieces. This is one of the very few songs that often bring me to tears, despite hearing it a million times since the early 70's (i'm 59). It's considered by many to be one of the best rock songs ever recorded, given it's strong melody and swirling changes. And yes the piano part is just gorgeous! Elton John was a mega star back then, and this 70's era was the pinnacle of rock music, in general. Rock was super huge back then, with mega bands that stood the test of time, and that era probably lasted a decade or two, before the post grunge era set in. I've heard many now say that "rock is dead", but I will refrain from making such a judgement...
The lyrics for Elton John’s songs almost all come from his writing partner, Bernie Taupin. A movie about Elton’s life called Rocketman is available on various platforms right now, I believe. It’s a bit over-the-top, but so is his life. In the final analysis, if you strip away all of the bombast and flamboyance, the guy is a great musician. I think that’s most obvious when you listen to his earliest live recordings with just a bassist and drummer supporting him on piano. Somehow, the music that those three guys performed could fill a room like an orchestra. Enjoy.
This song relates to death, he's talking about all the pets, people, etc. that we lose in life. The words convey a lot. It's not all negative it's about the erosion of life experiences.
I haven't heard this song for a long time. I forgot how beautiful it is. I'm so glad I grew up in a time with such great, creative music that had so much life to it. Of course, we had to go out and buy the record, go over to a friend's house who had it, or wait for the radio cut to play. No Spotify. No UA-cam. No Daniel 😏
By this point in my 14th year on the planet, I literally made my mom drive me to a record store to spend some of the money I had from a part time job (worked at a kennel) to buy this album the day it came out. We actually had "record stores" in 1973! I still have the album, and it is one I pull out and put on the turntable every once in a while. It has hicks and pops, because I played the heck out of it back in the day.
Elton John is a solo artist, with band behind (Alice Cooper was the name of the band, for example, but Vincent Furnier also has spent decades answering to that, as well). Elton's real name is Reginald Dwight, and changed his name to honor British jazz/blues sax artist, Elton Dean and singer, Long John Baldry, who, with Reg, were in Baldry's Bluesology from 1966-67.
Glad that you reacted to this! Great performance! I remember when this album came out. I wasn't too much a fan of Elton's later work past the Caribou album, but I think this is one of the top ten greatest albums of all time.
What we have with today’s music are tracks played by talented musicians and technology. What we had back then was pure, boundless, free form art created by ever evolving musical artists
Anything from this album is worth a reaction. I saw Elton in concert the week before this album was released. He played all of this brand new music along with the big hits and the audience went wild. Other concerts when this piece was played, the piano was draped like a coffin, lit in a pink spotlight with smoke effects. The rest of the stage was dark. As the tempo sped up, white spots hit each of the band members on each drum smash. By the time Love Lies started the entire stage was lit up fully, the entire audience was on its feet stomping and clapping. Thanks for stirring an old guy's memories.
Who didn't have this album? And most the others. Elton was a big deal throughout the 70's and into the 80's. He composed the music and Bernie Taupin wrote the lyrics. But Bernie lived elsewhere...and was not a member of Elton's band....but together wrote hit after hit after hit. Nothing was bad on his album. Just great compositions and outstanding piano work that defined his sound. He gave 4 hour concerts. He was like the Liberace of the rock world. Flamboyant and entertaining and amazing.
"Funeral For A Friend" actually starts off with the playing of a synthesizer that fades at the 1:40 mark, which is when Elton's piano kicks in. I dig that you appreciate keyboard instruments. I have no doubt that you will absolutely enjoy "School" by Supertramp. Thanks so much for that phenomenal reaction. Btw, as I was scrolling down in search of this video, I noticed that you reacted to "Kid Charlemagne" by Steely Dan. I'm heading over to it right now.👍
I can still remember when I first put this album on the turntable oh so many years ago (I think I was 9 or 10 - my dad and I had just got back from a garage sale, and I found this album for like $2!) Only songs I knew were Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (a MUST listen), Candle In The Wind (beautiful tribute to Marylin Monroe) & Bennie and the Jets (great rocking piece). But this opening number just absolutely FLOORED me! The composition, the build up with the instrumental 'Funeral For A Friend' (I've always been a sucker for synth/keyboards!), and the incredible Love Lies Bleeding! I knew I was in for a real epic album!! Other notables on this masterpiece: I've Seen That Movie Too (must listen), All The Girls Love Alice, Saturday Night's Alright (for Fighting), Harmony, Dirty Little Girl, Jamaica Jerk Off, Sweet Painted Lady....let's just say the whole album!! This was Elton at his finest!
Saw Elton do this in concert at Madison Square Garden BEFORE the Yellow Brick Road album was released. No one had heard it before. When you’re at a concert you want the hits not new stuff. The reaction to this and Candle In The Wind was mind blowing. Never went to a concert, before or since, where new material was received like it already was a hit. Bought the album as soon as it was released. React to Candle In The Wind, he had the lyrics rewritten and played it at Princess Diana’s funeral....pretty remarkable.
Yes, this is one of his best and most famous songs on one of his best albums. Hey, if you like dramatic piano playing, try Elton's song 'Ticking'. Also, for the first decade or so of his career all the lyrics were written by his collaborator Bernie Taupin.
HE PLAYED IT IN EVERYYYYYYYY CONCERT EITHER OPENING UP THE SHOW OR USUALLY OPENING SONG FOR THE 2ND HALF OF THE SHOW :) , HE'D COME OUT IN BLACK AND BLUE OR YELLOW OR RED BUT ALWAYS IN BLACK!
Like with Queen, Rolling Stones, Beatles, or even someone like Bob Seger, you have probably heard an Elton John song or two, just don't realize it. Elton does the music, usually someone else does lyrics. "Circle of Life" from Lion King with Tim Rice is the one you likely have heard. Tiny Dancer, Candle in the Wind, Bennie and the Jets, Philadelphia Freedom, Don't Let the Sun, Rocket Man, and I'm Still Standing maybe next most recognizable Elton John recordings. To analyze lyrics, "Someone Saved my Life Tonight" or "Daniel" would be good. Lyrics for both were by Elton's long time colaborater Bernie Taupin.
Funeral for a Friend = This beautiful Funeral Music. I've told my sister since 1974, that THIS is what I wanted played at my 'goodbye party'. We found out when our youngest sister died in a tragic accident at 21, that this was what SHE wanted as well. We took a boombox to the burial site, and turnrd it all the way up. ~ Mrs H.
Elton wrote the music and bernie taupin wrote the lyrics,he had many many hits and was one of the biggest stars of the 70's. trivia-- he was one of the very first to come out of the closest back in the 70's, back when that could ruin you career and was one of the very few that played in the soviet union. which banned rock music.
Eltons early music is very different than his catchy pop type tunes he was known for later. Check out some of his others, " Burn down the Mission " or " Amoreena " he really did some exploring back then, but it worked. He, I think kinda flew under the radar since you had the likes of Zepplin, the Who, the Rolling Stones. Think he got overshadowed a bit.
His original name was Reginald Dwight. For a while he was a keyboard player with Simon Dupree & The Big Sound ("Kites", "For Whom the Bell Tolls"). He changed it when later, he went solo, though soon he had a backing group.
I've heard a lot of albums over the years and these two songs together form one of the best beginnings to any album ever. Elton was born Reginald Dwight and changed his name to Elton Hercules John and he is a brilliant piano player. I saw him live at the NEC in Birmingham in the mid 90s, great show.
He has a song "Daniel" very good song and the very first hit by him and his writing partner Bernie Taupen was called "your song" big hit and always played in concert!
Daniel, I’ve been watching a lot of your reaction videos for the past few weeks and I keep forgetting to subscribe. Well, I remembered today! I’m 61 years old and I love watching you discover music that some of us older people have grown up with. When I was in middle school I requested the Yellow Brick Road album for Christmas. I was thrilled when I got it. Love Lies Bleeding/Funeral For a Friend was a song I sang out loud to myself all the time back then. I grew up in New Hampshire, and we had radiators in our house for heat. One day, my older sister put my yellow brick road album on top of one of our radiators when it was hot. It melted and I was really mad at her for that! I was never able to replace it. Luckily for me, the local college radio station used to play Elton John music one night a week for hours straight. I tuned into that and discovered all kinds of Elton John songs. I can’t recall everything that was on the Elton John album I had that melted, but if you haven’t already done a reaction analysis to the song “Levon,” I highly recommend it. I highly recommend all kinds of Elton John songs, but please check out “Levon.”
Whenever I'm scanning radio channels and come across this song I have to listen to the rest of it where ever it is in it. Usually pissed because I missed the start of it...Great reaction and song!
First concert I went to - was 16, stoned and overwhelmed when he emerged thru dry ice and flashing lights on crazy suit to huge white grand piano emerging from the ground and the entire stage riding - all 70000 of us went nuts. The ultimate gay icon - incredible showman ever
HE WAS ON TOPPPP OF THE ROCK MUSIC WORLD BETWEEN ( 71-75 ) DANIEL, COULD DO NOTHINGGGG WRONG, 7 MULTI PLATINUM ALBUMS IN A ROWWW DANIEL! LMAO THAT'S INSANE STUFF. PARTYING HEAVY, DRUGGED UP, MOSTLY COCAINE AND LOTSAAAAA MARTINIS . HIM AND BOWIE DID THE COSTUME THING IN THAT DECADE MAINLY BECAUSE OF THE SHYNESS ON STAGE SO THEY'D BECOME DIFFERENT CHARACTERS. IT WAS JUST SO AWESOME TO GO ANS TAKE IT IN. :)
Classically trained pianist in London. He has almost 50 years of top hits! Actually it freaks me out a little that you've never heard him (which you have but don't know it i.e; the lion king.) For lyric analysis you have to do "your song" and "tiny dancer" almost all of his lyrics were written by Bernie Taupin then Elton would put music to them. They've had this symbiotic relationship since the very beginning. If you want to be emotionally broken watch his performance of "candle in the wind" at Lady Diana's funeral. He re-wrote the song just for her. Anyway, loving your vids!
Can I just add, that instrumental guitar hook that turns the chorus back around to the verse is huge, awesome and wields the thunder of an F5 tornado. I simply cannot get enough of it every time it comes around. Great catch on the possible suicide theme. I had never thought of that. Maybe it's his funeral in the beginning and this is the backstory?
I see you've reacted to the band Yes, but you have to listen to some Moody Blues. Try the song "The Story in Your Eyes" or "Nights in White Satin" . Sometimes people freak when they hear "Nights in White Satin" (the entire version) just because they aren't used to hearing such content.
Moody Blues, Moody Blues, Moody Blues - The Voice LIVE posted by Axey Destroyer, I'm Just a Singer (in a rock and roll band), Ride My See Saw (LIVE -1968), Question (LIVE - 1970), Tuesday Afternoon. Daniel, you will not be disappointed, promise. Love your reactions! ☮🖤🤘
It was my first major rock concert...the promo tour for Goodbye Yellow brick road. And they opened with this. A light show. Lots of dry ice smoke. Magic stuff.
Elton is one of my heroes. Bernie most often wrote third-person stories. But he was great at making them sound like they were about Elton. Great, great artist. Try "Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters," "Hercules," "Ticking." He's got a million of 'em!
Quintessential, yes. If you get a chance and want to take a TRIP down memory lane with this song, try doing this song Live in Central Park. Blew the roof off, no lie.
This an amazing piece of music. The 1st part seems like a funeral march. Then it slowly transitions into the 2nd part. As it concludes it is all brought together. There is a recent live version, which is phenomenal. Keep up the good work.
Elton began playing piano at the age of three. A bit of a shy child without much self confidence, but man, things turned around when he met Bernie Taupin!
There will never be another one like Elton. This track got me into him back in the 70s.his melodies with Bernies lyrics just worked. The whole lp is superb. You need to listen to Captain Fantastic coz that's Elton at his peak. You youngsters are lucky coz all this music is there for free. We had to hear ot on the radio and wait till the lp come out.
This IS his BEST. Philadelphia Freedom, The One, Your Song, and That's Why They Call It the Blues...are right up there too. Also The Last Song (about an alienated father and son after he got AIDS.)
I always thought this song was fairly obvious. We start off with a funeral march (signifying some sort of death), and then move into a story of a love affair between a musician and a fan (groupie). The kicker is that after a while when the sheen of his fame wears off, she realizes she loved "the star", but not "the man" - so she leaves. The irony is that he has fallen in love with her.
I'm going to go ahead and lay claim to having listened to this song more times than any other human on the planet. I won't give the number away, but it's in the thousands.
The first time I saw Elton John was two weeks before this albums release. The tour started in Dallas, and he played the entire album. Intermission then his earlier stuff. I will never forget it. I was 15. We ate dinner afterwards and Bernie Taupin was at the next table! Made the night even better.
This whole album is amazing, and there are tons of other Elton songs that were hits. You'd probably enjoy Madmen Across the Water and Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me. Elton is my absolute favorite, so i'm glad he's getting some love.
The freedom and strength in his voice was an inspiration to a generation. I still sing this at the top of my voice whenever I hear it, whether I sound good or not 😆
The Goodbye Yellow Brick Road double album has so many great songs that it's hard to single out one or two, but I'll suggest "Jamaica Jerk-Off" and "The Ballad of Danny Bailey". I actually saw him at the Sydney Entertainment Centre way back in the 1980s and he was fantastic live.
If you were a kid in the 70's this song changed your life. My father got this great job and moved us into a middle class predominately white suburb. The neighbors were cool, I assume they were mostly progressive. No racial stuff at all given we were the only black family in that neighborhood in late 60's early 70s in eastern PA. Anyway I met little white kids for the first time and quickly made friends. I never listened to "rock" music before, only mostly Motown. This white kid my age around 13 invited me to his home and his house had this extension where music stereos and speakers and blacklight posters, and he turned off the light turned on the black lights and told me to just listen and played the song Roundabout by Yes. I was like OMG what is this music. I was hooked on rock. Another friend asked if I had ever heard Funeral for a Friend by Elton John. I said no and I went to his house and he played this song. The first part was so beautiful but felt sad and is brought both tears and later a smile. He asked if I were ok and then the last part love lies bleeding. Oh my, I could have been a cave girl who just found electricity. This song opened my mind to all kids of possibilities. Even today so may decades later the beauty of this song still moves me 😎
To me, this is Elton’s “Bohemian Rhapsody”
YES !!!
But better
Daniel, now you've seen the first tiny glimpse why this man has sold over 300 MILLION albums worldwide...
Great opening track to one of the greatest rock albums of all time.
I can't even imagine listening to this for the first time. I've heard it hundreds of times and still love it. This early part of Elton's career was his best and most creative from 1969 to say, 1975 and like the Beatles' short window of time, Elton also was incredibly prolific. (The Beatles only recorded from 1963 till 1970,seven short years and yet released an astonishing 18 records and of course changed the world of popular music in the process). Bernie Taupin (lyrics) and Elton (songcraft) almost never even wrote together with Bernie simply sending his poetry/lyrics to Elton to make a song. I am enjoying your musical journey.
Have to completely agree. I really like his music before Rock of the Westies, though I like a couple songs from that album. But nothing really struck me after that like everything before it. He'll always be one of my all-time faves.
I'd extend that period through "Blue Move" which is highly underrated. After that he took a break from Bernie and his '80s albums were very spotty.
Robert Hassinger so right!👍🏻
Yes, and Bernie Taupin made part of that best part with great lyrics. In the very beginning of the career Elton John also had Paul Buckmaster's orchestra arrangements, he was very important.
ua-cam.com/video/QEw9SB8NMfs/v-deo.html
ua-cam.com/video/aTuKDK9U0qg/v-deo.html
Back in my L.A. studio days (mid 80's) I had the pleasure of meeting the guitarist, Davey Johnstone. I asked him about this song (amongst other things) and he said this was basically one take with only a couple of guitar overdubs. He said recording this album was the most fun he's ever had in a studio.
It's tough to decipher they lyrics knowing Elton didn't write them, they're all from his writing partner Bernie Taupin (who never gets enough credit). Bernie is a romantic and likes stories about the American west. He would later write an autobiographical album about him and Elton called "Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy" which is excellent, my favorite.
I seem to remember Elton taking credit for the lyrics to Funeral for a Friend, in a magazine article several years ago. But otherwise Bernie was lyricist on pretty much everything else.
@@danielmurphy4429 That would have been a joke, Daniel, because Funeral for a Friend has no lyrics!
@@user-kj3ch3ke8m I meant Love Lies Bleeding, which, apparently everyone else understood.
Captain Fantastic is an amazing album. The best one of the greats, IMO.
I think Bernie actually gets a lot of credit…I knew he co-wrote with Elton as a kid in the 70s. Elton is very good about talking about Bernie at every opportunity.
This whole album is great.
"Love Lies Bleeding" is a plant, believe it or don't! Popular in the Victorian era (when plant names reflected meanings), hopelessness or hopeless love were the meanings imbued by the LLB plant, way back yonder! Elton wrote the intro/instrumental opening after thinking about the kind of music he'd want played at his funeral.
According to the magical mystery of Wiki, "In the Eagle Vision documentary, Classic Albums: Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, John said the two songs were not written as one piece, but fit together since 'Funeral for a Friend' ends in the key of A, and 'Love Lies Bleeding' opens in A, and the two were played as one elongated piece when recorded. With lyrics like 'And love lies bleeding in my hand/Oh, it kills me to think of you with another man,' lyricist Bernie Taupin uses death symbolism as an angry take on a breakup song."
Two years ago, Weird Al Yankovic played the song during his concert tour, playing the piano parts on his accordion! Gotcha covered, Daniel! Nice job!
"You call someone, and they see your name pop up, and they don't answer..."
Ah, but..no caller ID back then, dude! You picked up the phone and you took your chances.
Love all those pics of Elton when he was still young and flamboyant, with the wild costumes and the outsized glasses.
They know nothing about a rotary phone...no less a world without caller id. A day and age where we look at who is calling a dread answering....back in those days we ran to pick up the phone never knowing who was on the other end of the line.
Yeah, surprises abound when you had a party line.
@@navinspurpose7609 I love it! Even though I was born in 1980, I had rotary at my grandparents, push button/corded at my parents and later cordless at both. Then we got cell phones & moved away from land lines altogether.
Great review. Is your name Daniel? That should be your next Elton review. Daniel is one of his biggest hits! lol Also, when it comes to Elton, there is no "quintessential". His whole catalog is quintessential. ha!
Lucked out in 1980, 5th row back right in front of his piano! The concert was phenomenal and this song was his opener! Great song Daniel!
Thats called lucking in, not lucking out!
@@sonyavincent7450 Absolutely! I had gotten home from a business trip and heard there were seats left, so me and my wife went to the civic center in OKC and had gotten to the ticket booth with a person in front of us paying for his ticket, when some guy came to us and said he had two extra tickets on the 5th row and would sell them for $12 each (face value - can you believe that? Nosebleed sections were $8). The guy in the ticket booth verified the validity of the tickets, so we bought them and the usher took us straight down to the 5th row in front of his piano! There had to be some kind of intervention, we thought!
@@lantosesounds like act of God to me, my dear!
Not many channels do lyric analysis, and I would love if you could check out Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters by Elton John, it's unknown, underrated, but it's beautiful and it's lyrics are some of the best ever. One of Eltons best songs!
Yes, you are correct. A beautiful song.
Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters has always been one of my favorite songs. And yes, underrated and amazing.
Reaction channels have completely dropped the ball on "Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters". I find it mind boggling.
You ask,
"Is he killing himself?"
He once tried and the song that resulted is one of the darkest, most dramatic Progressive power ballads of the decade of the 1970s:
"Someone Saved my Life Tonight". He won the Grammy for best male vocals for the album it is on. Please make it your next Elton tasting.
I’m not a huge Elton fan. But, goodbye yellow brick road was an exemplary effort. Huge depth in that album. Recommend Bennie and the Jets as another good Elton song.
I first heard this song live in concert.It is now in my top 10 of his songs.Back then,you either had to stand in line physically at the arena or call on the phone.Tickets went on sale at 9am.A worker at the arena told me to start calling at around 8:50am. I got through and when the operator answered, I said I wanted 2 tickets-best they had available.She said “is row 2 on the floor ok?” I almost fainted(ok,maybe not).My cousin and I got to the arena and to our seats.We were right near his piano.He was within a couple arms length.Awesome night-and by the way,he drinks Diet Coke 😂
He said he gets addicted to everything.
Elton ruled the charts from like ‘70 to ‘75. A gay man, he was not able to express his individuality as he’d have liked, due to the times, but that aside, he was at the top of his game for Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. Anyone who thinks Elton couldn’t rock never heard Love Lies Bleeding, and you’re correct, the bass in this tune is freaking awesome! Gets me on my feet every time, almost 50 years later.
It does my soul good to see young people discover great "old" music!
Same here! I love their reactions. ☺️
It would be interesting to hear your thoughts on "Grey Seal"
Great song
Great reaction Daniel (hope I got your name right)! You are truly an 'old soul', it seems, reacting strongly and with conviction to these classic, timeless epic pieces. This is one of the very few songs that often bring me to tears, despite hearing it a million times since the early 70's (i'm 59). It's considered by many to be one of the best rock songs ever recorded, given it's strong melody and swirling changes. And yes the piano part is just gorgeous! Elton John was a mega star back then, and this 70's era was the pinnacle of rock music, in general. Rock was super huge back then, with mega bands that stood the test of time, and that era probably lasted a decade or two, before the post grunge era set in. I've heard many now say that "rock is dead", but I will refrain from making such a judgement...
Your name is Daniel and you’ve never heard Elton John? Irony! 😆 Anyway, great reaction.
The lyrics for Elton John’s songs almost all come from his writing partner, Bernie Taupin. A movie about Elton’s life called Rocketman is available on various platforms right now, I believe. It’s a bit over-the-top, but so is his life. In the final analysis, if you strip away all of the bombast and flamboyance, the guy is a great musician. I think that’s most obvious when you listen to his earliest live recordings with just a bassist and drummer supporting him on piano. Somehow, the music that those three guys performed could fill a room like an orchestra. Enjoy.
That '71 Live album is such a rocker... Hungry Elton in the years before Diva Elton...
He musical ability on the piano is stunning. If he had devoted himself to classical music, he would be at the top of classical pianists.
This song relates to death, he's talking about all the pets, people, etc. that we lose in life. The words convey a lot. It's not all negative it's about the erosion of life experiences.
BTW if you like that style of piano/organ, you should check out Emerson Lake and Palmer....
I haven't heard this song for a long time. I forgot how beautiful it is. I'm so glad I grew up in a time with such great, creative music that had so much life to it. Of course, we had to go out and buy the record, go over to a friend's house who had it, or wait for the radio cut to play. No Spotify. No UA-cam. No Daniel 😏
By this point in my 14th year on the planet, I literally made my mom drive me to a record store to spend some of the money I had from a part time job (worked at a kennel) to buy this album the day it came out. We actually had "record stores" in 1973! I still have the album, and it is one I pull out and put on the turntable every once in a while. It has hicks and pops, because I played the heck out of it back in the day.
Elton John is a solo artist, with band behind (Alice Cooper was the name of the band, for example, but Vincent Furnier also has spent decades answering to that, as well). Elton's real name is Reginald Dwight, and changed his name to honor British jazz/blues sax artist, Elton Dean and singer, Long John Baldry, who, with Reg, were in Baldry's Bluesology from 1966-67.
And Elton's middle name is Hercules. He recorded a song with that title, one of my favorites.
Glad that you reacted to this! Great performance! I remember when this album came out. I wasn't too much a fan of Elton's later work past the Caribou album, but I think this is one of the top ten greatest albums of all time.
What we have with today’s music are tracks played by talented musicians and technology. What we had back then was pure, boundless, free form art created by ever evolving musical artists
I heard this song the first time shortly after a friend died, , thank you for playing and reviewing.
Anything from this album is worth a reaction. I saw Elton in concert the week before this album was released. He played all of this brand new music along with the big hits and the audience went wild. Other concerts when this piece was played, the piano was draped like a coffin, lit in a pink spotlight with smoke effects. The rest of the stage was dark. As the tempo sped up, white spots hit each of the band members on each drum smash. By the time Love Lies started the entire stage was lit up fully, the entire audience was on its feet stomping and clapping. Thanks for stirring an old guy's memories.
Sir Elton John is your quintessential and true artist entertainer, and performer... and yes, a pianist as well.
I meant composer instead of performer.
Everything on Goodbye Yellow Brick Road is brilliant. One of the great albums ever.
Totally agree it’s a masterpiece! Every song is great
Agree!!! Brilliant!!! Masterpiece! Epic! Not enough adjectives to describe it
I think it was one of Elton John's best songs. First time listen must have blown your socks off.
Who didn't have this album? And most the others. Elton was a big deal throughout the 70's and into the 80's. He composed the music and Bernie Taupin wrote the lyrics. But Bernie lived elsewhere...and was not a member of Elton's band....but together wrote hit after hit after hit. Nothing was bad on his album. Just great compositions and outstanding piano work that defined his sound. He gave 4 hour concerts. He was like the Liberace of the rock world. Flamboyant and entertaining and amazing.
I have to agree I've only seen him twice and both times it was at least a three-hour concert
Vivaldi - The Four Seasons. ALL OF IT!
62 now, Elton was a big part of my teens - this is Elton at his best, rocking a Russian crowd with the percussionist, Ray Cooper.
ua-cam.com/video/lUwY9VlltvQ/v-deo.html
I almost forgot how great this song was. Thanks for bringing it back to me.....wow!
"Funeral For A Friend" actually starts off with the playing of a synthesizer that fades at the 1:40 mark, which is when Elton's piano kicks in.
I dig that you appreciate keyboard instruments.
I have no doubt that you will absolutely enjoy
"School" by Supertramp.
Thanks so much for that phenomenal reaction.
Btw, as I was scrolling down in search of this video, I noticed that you reacted to
"Kid Charlemagne"
by Steely Dan. I'm heading over to it right now.👍
Absolutely fell in love with this song from the moment I heard it.
I can still remember when I first put this album on the turntable oh so many years ago (I think I was 9 or 10 - my dad and I had just got back from a garage sale, and I found this album for like $2!) Only songs I knew were Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (a MUST listen), Candle In The Wind (beautiful tribute to Marylin Monroe) & Bennie and the Jets (great rocking piece).
But this opening number just absolutely FLOORED me! The composition, the build up with the instrumental 'Funeral For A Friend' (I've always been a sucker for synth/keyboards!), and the incredible Love Lies Bleeding! I knew I was in for a real epic album!!
Other notables on this masterpiece: I've Seen That Movie Too (must listen), All The Girls Love Alice, Saturday Night's Alright (for Fighting), Harmony, Dirty Little Girl, Jamaica Jerk Off, Sweet Painted Lady....let's just say the whole album!! This was Elton at his finest!
The whole LP is phenomenal
Saw Elton do this in concert at Madison Square Garden BEFORE the Yellow Brick Road album was released. No one had heard it before. When you’re at a concert you want the hits not new stuff. The reaction to this and Candle In The Wind was mind blowing. Never went to a concert, before or since, where new material was received like it already was a hit. Bought the album as soon as it was released. React to Candle In The Wind, he had the lyrics rewritten and played it at Princess Diana’s funeral....pretty remarkable.
You would like "Honky Cat" if you like that piano style.
I've seen Elton play twice here in New Zealand. The two best concerts I have attended in my life. Second place goes to Dire Straits.
Colonel G says, "Death awaits you. Come on in! Don't live in fear! LIVE in your skin!"
Is he a good pianist? OMG yes! And singer, and composer and rock and roll legend. Welcome to the world of Elton John!
Yes, this is one of his best and most famous songs on one of his best albums. Hey, if you like dramatic piano playing, try Elton's song 'Ticking'. Also, for the first decade or so of his career all the lyrics were written by his collaborator Bernie Taupin.
HE PLAYED IT IN EVERYYYYYYYY CONCERT EITHER OPENING UP THE SHOW OR USUALLY OPENING SONG FOR THE 2ND HALF OF THE SHOW :) , HE'D COME OUT IN BLACK AND BLUE OR YELLOW OR RED BUT ALWAYS IN BLACK!
Unfortunately missed his early years, the concerts I attended it was how he started the second set in both shows
A great combination of your intelligence and curiosity with your unfamiliarity with material so much of us know so well, if not too well.
Like with Queen, Rolling Stones, Beatles, or even someone like Bob Seger, you have probably heard an Elton John song or two, just don't realize it.
Elton does the music, usually someone else does lyrics.
"Circle of Life" from Lion King with Tim Rice is the one you likely have heard.
Tiny Dancer, Candle in the Wind, Bennie and the Jets, Philadelphia Freedom, Don't Let the Sun, Rocket Man, and I'm Still Standing maybe next most recognizable Elton John recordings.
To analyze lyrics, "Someone Saved my Life Tonight" or "Daniel" would be good.
Lyrics for both were by Elton's long time colaborater Bernie Taupin.
Funeral for a Friend = This beautiful Funeral Music. I've told my sister since 1974, that THIS is what I wanted played at my 'goodbye party'. We found out when our youngest sister died in a tragic accident at 21, that this was what SHE wanted as well. We took a boombox to the burial site, and turnrd it all the way up. ~ Mrs H.
Elton wrote the music and bernie taupin wrote the lyrics,he had many many hits and was one of the biggest stars of the 70's. trivia-- he was one of the very first to come out of the closest back in the 70's, back when that could ruin you career and was one of the very few that played in the soviet union. which banned rock music.
Eltons early music is very different than his catchy pop type tunes he was known for later. Check out some of his others, " Burn down the Mission " or " Amoreena " he really did some exploring back then, but it worked. He, I think kinda flew under the radar since you had the likes of Zepplin, the Who, the Rolling Stones. Think he got overshadowed a bit.
It's like your holding someone's heart in your hands and it's bleeding away like you can't hold on to their love
Elton is one of the best pianists, and many of his compositions have a thread of melancholy running though them.
His original name was Reginald Dwight. For a while he was a keyboard player with Simon Dupree & The Big Sound ("Kites", "For Whom the Bell Tolls"). He changed it when later, he went solo, though soon he had a backing group.
I've heard a lot of albums over the years and these two songs together form one of the best beginnings to any album ever. Elton was born Reginald Dwight and changed his name to Elton Hercules John and he is a brilliant piano player. I saw him live at the NEC in Birmingham in the mid 90s, great show.
He has a song "Daniel" very good song and the very first hit by him and his writing partner Bernie Taupen was called "your song" big hit and always played in concert!
Daniel, I’ve been watching a lot of your reaction videos for the past few weeks and I keep forgetting to subscribe. Well, I remembered today! I’m 61 years old and I love watching you discover music that some of us older people have grown up with. When I was in middle school I requested the Yellow Brick Road album for Christmas. I was thrilled when I got it. Love Lies Bleeding/Funeral For a Friend was a song I sang out loud to myself all the time back then. I grew up in New Hampshire, and we had radiators in our house for heat. One day, my older sister put my yellow brick road album on top of one of our radiators when it was hot. It melted and I was really mad at her for that! I was never able to replace it. Luckily for me, the local college radio station used to play Elton John music one night a week for hours straight. I tuned into that and discovered all kinds of Elton John songs. I can’t recall everything that was on the Elton John album I had that melted, but if you haven’t already done a reaction analysis to the song “Levon,” I highly recommend it. I highly recommend all kinds of Elton John songs, but please check out “Levon.”
I told you so. stay safe young man
That's how you start a show and get the crowd going.love and peace.
Whenever I'm scanning radio channels and come across this song I have to listen to the rest of it where ever it is in it. Usually pissed because I missed the start of it...Great reaction and song!
No, it means that he literally had her, had love in the grasp! But in the end, it eludes him, leaving him empty handed.
Elton leaves no doubt he rocks the keys time after time after time on just this ONE song! Elton really elevates rock to new heights with this album.
Since the first part of the track is called Funeral For A Friend......you would have to expect it to sound like funeral music. :)
This band was a well oiled machine
First concert I went to - was 16, stoned and overwhelmed when he emerged thru dry ice and flashing lights on crazy suit to huge white grand piano emerging from the ground and the entire stage riding - all 70000 of us went nuts. The ultimate gay icon - incredible showman ever
One of the few songs I remember where I was hearing for the first time in ‘73. I was blown away.
I saw Elton John live in Minneapolis MN circa 1978 this song and the whole concert blew my mind
Hi Daniel, another splendid album by this incredible artist is titled ‘Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only the Piano Player’ - CHECK IT OUT!
Synth Swirling Notes are called an Arpeggio, A lot Of Elton's Song Sound Epic Because He Plays In Mostly Minor Keys, Cheers
When you said it sounds like funeral music,i nearly choked on my cup of tea!
Been tracking your reactions
Now subbed!
HE WAS ON TOPPPP OF THE ROCK MUSIC WORLD BETWEEN ( 71-75 ) DANIEL, COULD DO NOTHINGGGG WRONG, 7 MULTI PLATINUM ALBUMS IN A ROWWW DANIEL! LMAO THAT'S INSANE STUFF. PARTYING HEAVY, DRUGGED UP, MOSTLY COCAINE AND LOTSAAAAA MARTINIS . HIM AND BOWIE DID THE COSTUME THING IN THAT DECADE MAINLY BECAUSE OF THE SHYNESS ON STAGE SO THEY'D BECOME DIFFERENT CHARACTERS. IT WAS JUST SO AWESOME TO GO ANS TAKE IT IN. :)
Classically trained pianist in London. He has almost 50 years of top hits! Actually it freaks me out a little that you've never heard him (which you have but don't know it i.e; the lion king.) For lyric analysis you have to do "your song" and "tiny dancer" almost all of his lyrics were written by Bernie Taupin then Elton would put music to them. They've had this symbiotic relationship since the very beginning. If you want to be emotionally broken watch his performance of "candle in the wind" at Lady Diana's funeral. He re-wrote the song just for her. Anyway, loving your vids!
Can I just add, that instrumental guitar hook that turns the chorus back around to the verse is huge, awesome and wields the thunder of an F5 tornado. I simply cannot get enough of it every time it comes around. Great catch on the possible suicide theme. I had never thought of that. Maybe it's his funeral in the beginning and this is the backstory?
I love this Song !!! ❤️❤️❤️
I see you've reacted to the band Yes, but you have to listen to some Moody Blues. Try the song "The Story in Your Eyes" or "Nights in White Satin" . Sometimes people freak when they hear "Nights in White Satin" (the entire version) just because they aren't used to hearing such content.
I also think you'd like the Moody Blues based on your previous reactions and focus in lyrics!
Moody Blues, Moody Blues, Moody Blues - The Voice LIVE posted by Axey Destroyer, I'm Just a Singer (in a rock and roll band), Ride My See Saw (LIVE -1968), Question (LIVE - 1970), Tuesday Afternoon. Daniel, you will not be disappointed, promise. Love your reactions! ☮🖤🤘
The song Ticking...his piano is incredible...it really sets the tone of the whole song!
It was my first major rock concert...the promo tour for Goodbye Yellow brick road. And they opened with this. A light show. Lots of dry ice smoke. Magic stuff.
Elton is one of my heroes. Bernie most often wrote third-person stories. But he was great at making them sound like they were about Elton. Great, great artist. Try "Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters," "Hercules," "Ticking." He's got a million of 'em!
Quintessential, yes. If you get a chance and want to take a TRIP down memory lane with this song, try doing this song Live in Central Park. Blew the roof off, no lie.
This an amazing piece of music. The 1st part seems like a funeral march. Then it slowly transitions into the 2nd part. As it concludes it is all brought together. There is a recent live version, which is phenomenal. Keep up the good work.
Elton began playing piano at the age of three. A bit of a shy child without much self confidence, but man, things turned around when he met Bernie Taupin!
There will never be another one like Elton. This track got me into him back in the 70s.his melodies with Bernies lyrics just worked. The whole lp is superb. You need to listen to Captain Fantastic coz that's Elton at his peak. You youngsters are lucky coz all this music is there for free. We had to hear ot on the radio and wait till the lp come out.
He has been around since the 60s. He played piano in a video with T-Rex, which would be 60 years ago. He still plays and is amazing.
I have seen him play upside down under the piano and reaching up and play it perfectly.
Elton has opened every concert with this song for a long time now..not sure when it became a “thing” but it’s cool.
This IS his BEST. Philadelphia Freedom, The One, Your Song, and That's Why They Call It the Blues...are right up there too. Also The Last Song (about an alienated father and son after he got AIDS.)
I always thought this song was fairly obvious. We start off with a funeral march (signifying some sort of death), and then move into a story of a love affair between a musician and a fan (groupie). The kicker is that after a while when the sheen of his fame wears off, she realizes she loved "the star", but not "the man" - so she leaves. The irony is that he has fallen in love with her.
I'm going to go ahead and lay claim to having listened to this song more times than any other human on the planet. I won't give the number away, but it's in the thousands.
The first time I saw Elton John was two weeks before this albums release. The tour started in Dallas, and he played the entire album. Intermission then his earlier stuff. I will never forget it. I was 15. We ate dinner afterwards and Bernie Taupin was at the next table! Made the night even better.
This whole album is amazing, and there are tons of other Elton songs that were hits. You'd probably enjoy Madmen Across the Water and Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me. Elton is my absolute favorite, so i'm glad he's getting some love.
Dude, your on the right track. Check out 3 songs!!!
Make Me Smile - Chicago
Tiny Dancer - Elton John
Turn the Page - Bob Seger
You're welcome.
hopefully getting Nigel Olsson's autograph soon..
The freedom and strength in his voice was an inspiration to a generation. I still sing this at the top of my voice whenever I hear it, whether I sound good or not 😆
The Goodbye Yellow Brick Road double album has so many great songs that it's hard to single out one or two, but I'll suggest "Jamaica Jerk-Off" and "The Ballad of Danny Bailey". I actually saw him at the Sydney Entertainment Centre way back in the 1980s and he was fantastic live.
If you were a kid in the 70's this song changed your life. My father got this great job and moved us into a middle class predominately white suburb. The neighbors were cool, I assume they were mostly progressive. No racial stuff at all given we were the only black family in that neighborhood in late 60's early 70s in eastern PA. Anyway I met little white kids for the first time and quickly made friends. I never listened to "rock" music before, only mostly Motown. This white kid my age around 13 invited me to his home and his house had this extension where music stereos and speakers and blacklight posters, and he turned off the light turned on the black lights and told me to just listen and played the song Roundabout by Yes. I was like OMG what is this music. I was hooked on rock. Another friend asked if I had ever heard Funeral for a Friend by Elton John. I said no and I went to his house and he played this song. The first part was so beautiful but felt sad and is brought both tears and later a smile. He asked if I were ok and then the last part love lies bleeding. Oh my, I could have been a cave girl who just found electricity. This song opened my mind to all kids of possibilities. Even today so may decades later the beauty of this song still moves me 😎
It’s really worth it to hear this whole album.
its a very bittersweet song. I like that you analyzed the lyrics.
Elton wrote Funeral for a Friend to be played at his funeral....
Saw him perform this live in the mid 70's @ the Boston Garden. That intro is, to date, one of the greatest in rock history!