Elton John’s three favourite Elton John albums
Throughout his storied career, Elton John has left a permanent marker on the world with the songbook he’s crafted over the decades. His partnership with Bernie Taupin is a story for the ages, and the albums they’ve made together have empowered the lives in the same seismic way as only a handful of other acts.
As he’s released over 30 studio albums since beginning his musical journey, picking a favourite LP from his collection is difficult. Regarding the general public’s opinion, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road is revered as a masterpiece and the most favoured in the eyes of many. However, Elton has a different school of thought.
During a conversation with the Grammys, the first album that Elton named as one of his three favourite albums was Blue Moves, released in 1976. Although his previous six records all flew to the top of the chart in the United States, Blue Moves was a flop by his own high standards, as it only managed to reach three in the Billboard 200.
While it wasn’t received particularly warmly at the time of release, it did spawn beloved songs such as ‘Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word’ and ‘Crazy Water’. Rather than standing still, John and Taupin advanced their sound by expanding their sonic horizons, the singer-songwriter wrote in his 2019 autobiography: “I’m very proud of it, but the music was complex and hard to play, quite experimental and jazz-influenced.”
The next album mentioned by the Englishman was 1971’s Madman Across The Water, which was remarkably his third album released in the same calendar year. Notably, the opening track on the record is ‘Tiny Dancer’, which remains one of his most crucial contributions to the world. At this time, Elton could do nothing wrong creatively and was operating at an almost unprecedented speed.
Surprisingly, John’s final selection, Songs From The West Coast, came from a much later chapter in his career and was released following the turn of the century. Despite collaborating for decades, this album was the first time Taupin and Elton wrote together in the same room. It was a resounding success, with the LP receiving nominations for three Grammy Awards, including for ‘Best Pop Vocal Album’.
John explained why he chose these three albums from everything in his canon: “The other [albums] speak for themselves…some of them didn’t have that many singles on them, they just have different shades of my work on them.”
In the same conversation, Elton named the 1970s as his favourite decade, adding: “Everyone was playing with everybody, there was fusion everywhere… I grew up through, and recorded through, the most creative period in the history of popular music.”
Listen to Elton’s three favourite Elton John albums below.
Elton John’s favourite Elton John albums:
- Blue Moves
- Madman Across The Water
- Songs From The West Coast
