The 10 best Elton John deep cuts
Elton John has held down a position of music royalty for decades. From his enduring pop hits to some of the fiercer songs in his catalogue, nothing was ever off the table for John to try as long as he had lyricist Bernie Taupin by his side. Elton John may have been unstoppable in his 1970s prime, but a handful of songs still fell through the cracks.
Across some of his best albums, a select few tracks never quite got the credit they deserve. While songs like ‘Goodbye Yellow Brick Road’ have stood the test of time for a damn good reason, the songs listed below are just as worthy as John’s classics to be timeless tunes, having the same enduring appeal that came out of his hits.
While John has always been a master of melody, some of the best parts of these songs come from those around him, either the superb playing of his backing band or Bernie Taupin’s lyrics. As much as John could turn any melody into solid gold, the context of the words is enough to make any jaded music fan shed a tear.
So as fans go through John’s classic albums once again, give these tunes a second chance when they come up on a playlist. They might not rake in the big numbers, but giving John the right lyric and a good tune can put miles on any artist’s soul.
The 10 best Elton John deep cuts:
‘The Ballad of The Boy In the Red Shoes’ – Songs From the West Coast
By the new millennium, John was no longer looking to chase the hit parade. He had seen his fair share of stardom and was happy to write songs that reflected where he was coming from rather than cower to trends. John and Taupin had been through a lot, and ‘Ballad of the Boy in the Red Shoes’ could be a fond farewell to his glory days.
Staying at a plodding tempo, John delivers a master class on how to deliver a slow burn on this song, having the story unfold about a man looking back on his life and all of the good times he had. Instead of looking back with any bitter regret, John seems content to see his life in the rearview, as if the listener is hearing him dig up some old photo albums and seeing glimpses of his past.
All good things must come to an end, though, and John is ready to bow out gracefully, offering to lay his red shoes down with the same reverence that Bob Dylan talked about in ‘Knocking on Heaven’s Door’. John has continued to release fantastic records since this song, but this is the song that most fans might be drawn to once he finally decides to hang it up for good.
‘Elton’s Song’ – The Fox
During the ‘80s, John made a fairly bold move: messing with the formula. After over a decade of hard work together, he decided to step away from working with Bernie Taupin to see where his muse would lead him with other songwriters. Every partnership needs space to breathe, though, and there’s a good chance that ‘Elton’s Song’ might not have been made if Taupin decided to stick with him.
While John has made no secret about his sexuality in the past, this semi-autobiographical song is about a boy coming to terms with his homosexuality and feeling comfortable in his skin. Considering mainstream society’s stance on topics like this in the ‘80s, John was unashamed of this song, with LGBT activist Tom Robinson helping him set the scene in the lyrics.
When listening to John’s delivery, there’s almost a cathartic slant to his tone of voice, as if he’s trying to get everything down on paper to finally let his creative self out of the closet. John was always one for flamboyance, and when he set himself free like this, no one else could touch him.
‘Indian Sunset’ – Madman Across the Water
To say that Elton John likes to do things over the top is like saying that The Beatles had a few hits: true, but a massive understatement. When John commits to a song, he puts every piece of his soul into it, taking the listener on a journey they won’t soon forget when he picks his fingers off the piano. While Madman Across the Water led off with the epic ‘Tiny Dancer’, John may have topped himself elsewhere on the record.
While the main single off this record talked about a seamstress lost in the excess of rock and roll, this is a drastic turn into serious territory, telling the story of Native Americans being run down by pilgrims. In every verse, John drenches the song in melancholy as he sings about these natives doing everything they can to survive while settlers either run them down or treat them like savages.
Combined with the orchestral backing, ‘Sunset’ plays out like an extravagant rock and roll stage production, brought to a chilling end after John mentions the line about a bullet being put in the chief’s head. John may have become the lovable rock star who wrote songs for Disney movies, but the ending of this song is about as blunt an ending as one can get.
‘Grey Seal’ – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
One commonly overlooked part of John’s sound is his ability to rock. In recent years, John’s penchant for ballads has made people forget about some of the more forceful sides of his catalogue. While ‘Saturday Night’s Alright’ might be the more identifiable song of his rock phase, John kicked some ass a little earlier on the record in ‘Grey Seal’.
Then again, this song almost sneaks up on the listener when it gets started, sounding like a simple happy-go-lucky tune in the beginning as John weaves in and out of the verses. Once the chorus opens up, John goes for broke, hammering the hell out of his piano and reaching towards the top of his range, as he acts how it feels to see through eyes that only see the truth.
Outside of John’s work, the real MVP of this song is Dee Murray on bass, keeping up at a breakneck pace until the song’s outro, where he tears through runs of insane triplets in the background. As much as John could hold down a simple song by himself, the low end never lets up for a minute on this tune.
‘Empty Sky’ – Empty Sky
Not every great artist has to be phenomenal right out of the gate. For as much as fans like to call everything that their favourite artist does perfect, a few albums tend to miss the mark. And when it comes to John and Taupin’s partnership, they were still working out the bugs on Empty Sky.
While his debut fell on deaf ears upon release, the title track is far rawer than what is expected out of John these days. Most artists try to emulate their heroes, and John is pulling a page out of The Rolling Stones’ playbook on this song, albeit with his signature sense of charm that he would never shake for the rest of his career.
As much as this song might have been a decent effort at the time, it wasn’t enough to get John a hit on the radio, with tracks like ‘Skyline Pigeon’ sinking like a stone. John didn’t have time for moping around, though. The ‘70s was the golden age of the singer-songwriter, and he was ready to make something heartbreaking on the next album.
‘The Greatest Discovery’ – Elton John
Despite Empty Sky’s lukewarm reception, most fans got their first true exposure to Elton John on his self-titled album. As much as some bands might falter after their first release, this is the opposite of a sophomore slump, with ‘Your Song’ becoming a staple of John’s catalogue until his final tour. Now that he had studio experience, John could flex his chops on a handful of deep cuts.
Originally trained in classical piano, the core melody of ‘The Greatest Discovery’ feels like it’s pulled out of some Elisebethian concerto, as John weaves melodies together like a modern-day Svengali. It was a high task for anyone to write lyrics over this melody, but Taupin’s words about a man embracing his role as a parent are tear-jerking in context.
Although the song might be serving the music, this is the perfect marriage of words and melody together, as Taupin paints a picture of the moment when a kid has to grow into an adult, having to show his child what the world has to offer. It might seem scary at first, and the narrator might not be that sure of himself, but seeing his child’s eyes makes all that anxiety worth it.
‘Country Comfort’ – Tumbleweed Connection
There has always been a side of Elton John that tends to veer a little towards country music. One of the common threads between John and Bernie Taupin was a love of westerns, and Taupin’s love of the western side of music would always seep into his writing gradually. After a few hits under their belt, Tumbleweed Connection was the first time John was able to explore his fascination with the Old West.
Penning this ballad as a reminder of home, ‘Country Comfort’ is the kind of song anyone could relate to when pining for home. Although not every listener will be hearing a sermon from Deacon Lee or working out of a barn, the conviction in John’s voice feels like he’s lived it firsthand, knowing the terrain of the countryside and wanting to give anything to smell that country ai once again.
John would eventually include this song as part of his setlist when playing The Troubadour in Los Angeles, which became one of the first big breaks he had across the pond in the US. While he might not have been brought up in the American South, none of that mattered. It was all about how this guy made the listener feel when he sang those words.
‘Blues For Baby and Me’ – Don’t Shoot Me, I’m Only the Piano Player
Around the time of Don’t Shoot Me, I’m Only the Piano Player, John was building up momentum like a rocket ship. Although not everyone is going to think tunes like ‘Crocodile Rock’ were the greatest in his repertoire, John’s penchant for crafting hooks was landing many of his songs on the radio on both sides of the Atlantic. Nothing gets in the way of John and a good story, though, and ‘Blues For Baby and Me’ is the teenage runaway song that any angsty kid could relate to.
Without the song’s context, the lyric sheet of this tune is something that most kids could experience firsthand, as the narrator tries to coax his girlfriend to travel the world with him despite her family’s wishes. Although the father might disapprove of this boy because of his track record, nothing gets in the way of young love, as they both depart for the big city and never look back for a second.
Compared to some of the other love songs John has sprinkled throughout his catalogue, this tune feels indebted to movies like The Graduate, with two lovestruck kids attempting to find themselves outside their small town. This tune might not have been the first thing that most Elton John fans would have expected, but there’s a good chance that Bernie Taupin was trying to compete with Bruce Springsteen when writing this tune.
‘Levon’ – Madman Across the Water
One thing Elton John never forgot throughout his career is his humanity. Though he might have more money than most people could dream of and likes to indulge in his extravagance, he never forgot the importance of writing about the man on the street. In between those sequins was a heart of gold, and ‘Levon’ was one of the first character pieces that seemed a bit close to the chest.
Framed as a story of a man and his son, Levon tries his best to be a decent man while also realising that his son will grow up to resent his father. Since Levon was raised as a pauper, he has spent most of his life making sure he can provide for his family, all while watching his son grow up without having anyone around for him.
Instead of dwelling on the deadbeat dad nature of the story, John empathises with Levon, knowing that he’s trying his best but often has to sacrifice his time with his family to make sure that they can be happy once he’s gone. Although Levon might have some war wounds left over from his 20s, no amount of military shrapnel will cut deeper than having his son turn his back on him.
‘Roy Rogers’ – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Every one of Elton John’s songs has been written to be as close to reality as possible. Although not every one of his fans has gone down the Yellow Brick Road of fame, John is looking to tell stories about what he knows that anyone could recognise. Some musical fluff might be added to a few of his songs, but his nostalgia for his youth in ‘Roy Rogers’ is about as pure as he will ever get.
Reminiscing on their days watching old westerns on TV, Taupin’s portrait of watching Roy Rogers and Trigger’s adventures makes the listener feel like they’re right next to him in the theatre, watching him discover his love for the first time. As the band provides a nice bed, the strings in the background offer a nostalgic touch, almost sounding like nostalgic memories that are often in the distance but always kept at arm’s length.
For an artist as larger than life as Elton John, it’s easy to forget the human that hides behind those outrageous outfits. Stripped away of any of his add-ons, ‘Roy Rogers’ is a song sung by Reggie Dwight, wanting nothing more than to kick back and feel what it’s like to be a child again. One can never go back, but it’s easy to use these songs as a way to visit from time to time.
