Graded on a Curve:
Elton John,
Elton John’s Greatest Hits Volume II

Fanatical Elton John fans—and I’m one of them—frequently get into knife fights over which is the better album, 1974’s Elton John’s Greatest Hits or 1977’s Elton John’s Greatest Hits Volume II. I prefer the former—and have the scars to prove it—for three reasons: 1) It was the album that began my love affair with the guy; 2) it more clearly delineates the metamorphosis of Elton from singer-songwriter nebbish to Glitter extrovert Captain Fantastic; and 3) it has “Rocket Man,” Glam’s Jester King’s signature song on it.

But you would have to be some kind of hideous deep sea creature to deny the brilliance of the majority of the songs on Elton John’s Greatest Hits Volume II. The trouble—for me anyway—is that it includes three songs I don’t much care for as well as the straggler “Levon” from 1971’s Madman Across the Water, which rightfully should have been included along with the earlier material on Elton John’s Greatest Hits Volume 1.

But it’s an essential compilation nonetheless, because it includes three singles you won’t find on any of Elton’s studio LPs and one (a cover of The Who’s “Pinball Wizard”) you’ll find only on the 1975 soundtrack of Tommy. I don’t much care for the Bicentennial Year keepsake “Philadelphia Freedom” (those sweeping disco strings irk me) or the perky Motown-inspired duet with Kiki Dee “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart,” not so much because they’re bad songs (they’re not) but because say what you will about lyricist Bernie Taupin he’s always been an oddball (give a listen to “Solar Prestige a Gammon”) with an eye for detail (check out “Bennie and the Jets”).

Neither are on display on the pedestrian “Philadelphia Freedom” or “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart.” But if you want them and don’t own the singles this is where you’ll find them. I’m not much of a fan of the lugubrious “Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word” from his 1976 depression opus Blue Moves either, because it lacks the soaring majesty of heartbreak songs like “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me,” which you’ll find on Elton John’s Greatest Hits Volume 1.

But those songs aside, the album is a stone cold winner. John’s cover of The Who’s “Pinball Wizard” easily wins out over the original; Elton’s piano has never sounded so frenetic, and his tough guy vocals perfectly capture the Local Lad’s wonderment and ire. An argument can also be made that his version of “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” is a super-sized improvement on The Beatles’ original. Diamonds glitter and so does Elton’s cover—the chorus in particular (love the way he echoes himself on vocals) takes the song into psychedelic glam territory, Ray Cooper’s percussion adds color, and the instrumental interlude is killer.

And things just get better. Elton has never sounded so savage (or funny) as he does on the hard rocker “The Bitch Is Back” from 1974’s Caribou. “It was kind of my theme song,” John once said, which makes you wonder if the gridlock on his regular commute to Mars on “Rocket Man” didn’t induce a terminal case of road rage (to say nothing of glue abuse). The tenor saxophone solo of Lenny Pickell (musical director of the Saturday Night Live band!) is pure show biz entertainment, and Davey Johnstone’s slashing guitar proves he was one of the seventies’ most underrated axe players.

The Caribbean-influenced “Island Girl” from 1975’s Rock of the Westies (clever title, that) would have been right at home on Elton’s 1973 Glam coming-out party Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, where he delves into every genre (check out “Jamaica Jerk Off”) under yon fiery orb, while the bottom heavy rhythm section and fuzz guitar of the marimba-flavored and driving hard rock of “Grow Some Funk of Your Own” brims with funny asides. “Oh, he was so macho” camps John after being threatened by a jealous boyfriend with a set of brass knuckles, and that “I mean, the situation was ridiculous” is priceless.

The album’s centerpiece is the ambitious marriage-intervention number “Someone Saved My Life Tonight” from 1975’s Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy. It’s John’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” and ranks amongst the very best (and ambitious) of his songs, from the portentous piano intro to the heavenly vocal harmonies and the immortal lines “Someone saved my life tonight, Sugar Bear,” (who is this Sugar Bear character, anyway?). And then there’s that voice in his ear that whispers “You’re a butterfly/And butterflies are free to fly/Fly away/High away/Bye bye,” which translates into a bride left at the altar. And that euphoric ending! It’s even better than the close of “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me,” a song I love so much it worries my friends.

Elton John had a limited number of songs to choose from when he put together Elton John’s Greatest Hits Volume II, and that was an ominous sign in and of itself. Its predecessor might have included many more great songs (including “Levon,” “Mona Lisa and Mad Hatters,” and the much neglected “Friends”). The same can’t be said for its sequel, and that didn’t bode well for Elton, perhaps the foremost singles artist of his era.

I wouldn’t say Elton John saved my life, but he sure helped make it more bearable—between Elton John’s Greatest Hits and Rod Stewart’s Every Picture Tells a Story I had just enough ammunition to shoot my way out of the prison of my lousy adolescence. This follow-up didn’t play as large a role—the songs on it I needed I already owned—but it no doubt helped save the lives of others like me. You hear what I’m saying, Sugar Bear?

GRADED ON A CURVE:
B+

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