The 1973 Elton John song that was never meant to become a classic: “It was supposed to be futuristic”
Elton John is a certified hit-maker. The sunglasses-loving singer enhanced his talents behind the piano with the legendary lyricism of Bernie Taupin, creating some of the most iconic pop songs of all time in the process.
From the otherworldly ‘Rocketman (I Think It’s Going To Be A Long Long Time)’ to the endlessly covered ‘Your Song’, the duo have created classic after classic, selling well over 200million records along the way. And yet, despite his proven track record, John still can’t seem to predict when he has a hit on his hands.
John has landed ten number ones in his home country and nine in the States, a feat few artists even dream of achieving. His catalogue is filled to the brim with chart-toppers and crowd-pleasers, and he just keeps adding to the pile. The popstar’s last UK number one came in the summer of 2021 when he linked up with Dua Lipa for ‘Cold Heart’ and dominated the radio once more during the pandemic.
John may have over five decades worth of material that proves his ability to pen hits, but he has never quite perfected the art of predicting them. There is one song, in particular, that John didn’t expect to perform well in the charts: ‘Bennie and the Jets’.
The song first met the public’s ears in 1973 when it was featured on his landmark album, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. But John wasn’t confident that the song would be a success. This is perhaps evidenced by the fact that it wasn’t released as a single until February 1974, almost four months on from the LP first gracing record shops. He couldn’t have been more wrong.
‘Bennie and the Jets’ served as yet another fine example of the creative synergy between John and Taupin. Instrumentally, it paired some classic Elton John moves with new influences from realms such as glam and R&B. Opening with a captivating piano motif, the track pulled in subtle acoustic guitars, John’s powerful vocals, and sampled crowd cheers. Yet, it was perhaps the words that were most unique.
Lyrically, the song told the story of Bennie and the Jets, an otherworldly rock band donning electric boots and mohair suits. It was the pop incarnation of Ziggy Stardust, bringing conceptual elements of David Bowie and prog to a more classical sound. “‘Bennie and the Jets’ was almost Orwellian,” Taupin explained during a conversation with Esquire, “It was supposed to be futuristic. They were supposed to be a prototypical female rock ‘n’ roll band out of science fiction. Automatons.”
His lyrics captured this perfectly, capturing the strange story of Bennie and the Jets in every word. “They’re so spaced out,” John sings, “But Bennie and the Jets, yeah, they’re weird and their wonderful.” The song was just as weird and wonderful as the band it described, but John wasn’t confident that it was primed for commercial success.
Much to his surprise, audiences were just as entranced by the story of Bennie and the Jets as he and Taupin were. Though chart positioning in the UK was slightly disappointing – the song peaked at 80 – the situation in the States was another story. ‘Bennie and the Jets’ found favour with American audiences, shooting to the top of the charts. Whether it was the baseball motifs or something harder to place, the forward-thinking track was never off the radio in the US, either.
Despite John’s doubts in the song, listeners were clearly taken by the strange story of an otherworldly rock band and by his choices to delve into new worlds instrumentally. It was also further proof of John and Taupin’s ability to pen hit after hit, whether they were working in piano pop realms or pushing into glam rock.
Even now, 50 years after the song was first released, it remains one of the most well-known and well-loved songs in John’s catalogue. It also still has appeal to this day – a mash-up of the track and ABBA’s ‘Chiquitita’ recently took Tiktok by storm. John may not be able to predict an enduring hit, but he sure can pen one. This is an odd quirk of pop that the likes of Billy Joel have also bemoaned. But no other anthem proves how difficult it is to pick a hit more than this gem from ’73.
Since its release, the singer has also performed the song live on 2344 occasions, making it the third most-played hit in his repertoire behind ‘Rocketman‘ and ‘Your Song‘. Not bad for something he thought was too ahead of its time to truly succeed.
