Elton John

Reginald Kenneth Dwight was born in Pinner, Middlesex, England in 1947. In 1966, Elton formed his introductory band called Bluesology. Bluesology started out backing visiting U.S. soul artists, like the Isley Brothers, Billy Stewart and Patti LaBelle and the Bluebelles.

Also, in 1966, Bluesology became the supporting band for Long John Baldry. In fact, it was from this band that Reginald got his stage name by taking the basi names of Bluesology band members Elton Dean and John Baldry.

Elton teamed up with lyricist Bernie Taupin in 1967 in a cooperative relationship that proceeds today. They formed Rocket Records in 1973.

On the big screen, you’ll see Elton playing the Pinball Wizard in Pete Townsend’s film version of “Tommy.”

Little known fact: Elton plays piano on the Hollies 1970 hit, “He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother.”

On the charts, Elton John has had at least one Billboard top 40 song each year amid 1970 and 1990, including seven number one hits. He likewise has had seven successive number one albums.

Here are Elton John’s twenty greatest single hits, according to Billboard magazine:

1. That’s What Friends Are For – 1986 – Elton’s last #1 single, but his biggest, was a collaboration with Dionne Warwick, Gladys Knight and Stevie Wonder. Proceeds from this song went into AIDS research.

2. Don’t Go Breaking My Heart – 1976 – a duet with Kiki Dee.

3. Crocodile Rock – 1973 – Elton’s firstborn #1 single.

4. Island Girl – 1975

5. Philadelphia Freedom – 1975 – listed as The Elton John Band.

6. Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds – 1975 – a credit on the label goes to “the Reggae guitars of Dr. Winston O’Boogie” who was genuinely John Lennon doing backup vocals.

7. Bennie and the Jets – 1974 – from the “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” album.

8. Goodbye Yellow Brick Road – 1973

9. Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me – 1974 – from the “Caribou” album.

10. I Don’t Wanna Go On With You Like That – 1988

11. Daniel – 1973 – from the “Don’t Shoot Me, I’m Only The Piano Player” album.

12. Little Jeannie – 1980 – Elton’s greatest hit in four years.

13. I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues – 1984 – harmonica solo by Stevie Wonder.

14. Someone Saved My Life Tonight – 1975 – from the “Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy” album, which went to #1 on the album charts the primary week it was released.

15. The Bitch Is Back – 1974

16. Sad Songs (Say So Much) – 1984

17. Rocket Man – 1972 – a song many times equated to David Bowie’s “Space Oddity.”

18. Candle In The Wind – 1987 – in the first place recorded in 1973 for the “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” album, this haunting ballad was re-recorded with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and is a tribute to Marilyn Monroe. It has sold over 37 million copies.

19. Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word – 1976 – from the “Blue Moves” album.

20. Nikita – 1986 – featuring backing vocals from George Michael of Wham! fame.

Elton John was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994 and he was knighted in 1998.

Billboard rated Elton, in 2008, as the most successful male artisan on their list of “Top 100 All Time Artists”, coming in third, overall, just behind The Beatles and Madonna.

Most helpful client reviews

133 of 142 people found the following review helpful.
A Tasty Sampler
By Mike King
It’s out of the question to fit all of Elton John’s hits from 1970-2002 into a two-disc compilation, even with the addition of a third bonus disc. During the seventies, the songwriting team of Elton John and Bernie Taupin had the Midas touch. Wisely, the firstborn disc of this collection covers their heyday from 1970-1976. The song selection is superb, balancing hit singles with necessary album tracks. “Your Song” was Elton’s initial hit and the apparent choice for starting this collection. “Tiny Dancer” peaked at number 41 and, amazingly, “Candle In The Wind” wasn’t even freed as a single. Being amongst two of Elton’s best and most recognizable songs, they justly appear on the primary disc. “Island Girl” is a lightweight song that is not well remembered, but was included because it hit number one on the charts! On the other hand, Elton’s splendid version of “Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds” hit number one, but must have been excluded because it was a cover version of a Beatles’ song.

Like the import CD “The Very Best Of Elton John,” the second disc starts off with Elton’s number one song with Kiki Dee, “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart.” Whereas that former collection only went up to 1990, this disc goes up to 2001. It’s outstanding to have “Can You Feel The Love Tonight?” and “Circle Of Life” from the Lion King, as well as “Written In The Stars” from Aida, on an Elton John compilation. However, I would have included them on the bonus disc to make room for other worthy songs from his regular albums, such as “Nobody Wins,” “Blue Eyes,” “Empty Garden (Hey Hey Johnny)” and “Healing Hands,” to name a few. The second disc closes out on a strong note with the two best songs from Elton’s last album, namely the Lennonesque “I Want Love” and the autobiographical “This Train Don’t Stop There Anymore.”

The fixed edition, bonus disc is another reason for buying this collection. It has Elton’s live version of “Candle In The Wind,” which peaked at number 6, and his duet with George Michael on “Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me,” which hit number one. “Live Like Horses” is an interesting curiosity, being a duet with Luciano Pavarotti. The last song on the bonus disc was recorded in 2002. It is Elton’s duet with Alessandro Safina on “Your Song.” Thus, Elton’s biggest hits comes full circle, including an unbelievable selection of fantastic songs in-between the two versions of “Your Song.”

65 of 69 persons found the following review helpful.
Some noteworthy omissions but a darn fine collection anyway
By Paul Tognetti
Yes I realize there is always substantial consternation among collectors in regards to the plethora of “Best of” and “Greatest Hits” packages that are put on the market each year. Some artists plainly don’t warrant a “Greatest Hits” collection while the music of more necessary and prolific performers is constantly being repackaged. But if you are someone like me “Elton John Greatest Hits 1970-2002″ is a fine value. This collection replaces 3 former vinyl “Greatest Hits” albums I now own. I will be keeping those vinyl LP’s for the tunes that were not included in this peculiar package.
I ought to say that Universal has done an great occupation with the series of anthologies they have freed in the past couple of years. This collection offers up 34 of Elton Johns’ biggest and best. There is no doubt that everyone will in all probability quibble in regards to a few of the tracks that were included as well as those that failed to make the cut. But overall, I am rather pleased with this one. Just when it comes to all the huge ones you would suppose to find are included. Among the hits that did not make it are 1979′s soulful “Mama Can’t Buy You Love” and 2 hits from 1982 “Empty Garden (Hey Hey Johnny)” and the wondrous “Blue Eyes”. The collection comes in a very beautiful package that includes a nicely done 40 page booklet. One of the distinguishable features of the booklet is a fold-out division showing all 41 album covers from Elton Johns’ extremely pleasing career. The remastering on these tracks is likewise primary rate. Again, if the price of this collection was $29.99 I would be much more critical. But the price is rather reasonable for a collection you are sure to get enjoyment from for years to come. Highly recommended.

42 of 44 humans found the following review helpful.
Stunningly Comprehensive
By retrowens
There’s not numerous artists that have as much as success or that have lasted as long as Elton John has. While not perfect, this album, Greatest Hits 1970-2002, isn’t far from it.

The thick booklet holds numerous pictures of the artisan himself and a nice biography of Elton John’s music career. Included in this biography are such things as what a lot of of the songs mean and how he and his songwriter, Bernie Taupin, met and bonded through the years musically.

As good as the booklet is, it’s not half as outstanding as the music that is encaptured on the two discs in this collection. From the initial song of disc one to the last song of disc two, the songs are all in chronological order, all the way from the beginning of the 70′s to the ones from recent times. The original disc is as classic as classic may be. From the love songs such as “Your Song”, “Tiny Dancer”, and “Candle In The Wind”, to upbeat rockers like “Crocodile Rock” and “Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting”, to just plain timeless hits with the likes of “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” and “Philadelphia Freedom”, the firstborn disc covers six years (1970-1976) of musical greatness.

The second disc may not be rather as strong, but it’s closely as outstanding and just as essential. With it you have outstanding more great songs from the late seventies (“Don’t Go Breaking My Heart” (With Kiki Dee) and “Little Jeannie”), the eighties (“Sad Songs (Say So Much)”, “I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues”, etc.), and more recent, more underrated pop hits such as “Blessed” and “This Train Don’t Stop Here Anymore.” Of course, everything in-between such as “The One”, “Sacrifice”, and the two major Lion King hits are likewise here to be heard at anytime you please.

With a two-disc compilation that includes not only the outstanding hits that closely any classic rock and adult contemporary radio listener may still listen played these days, but also the more hard to find necessities (“Levon”, “Island Girl”, “Believe”, etc.), how may you go faulty with purchasing this compilation called Elton John Greatest Hits 1970-2002 that hardly costs more than a normal single-disc album? The answer is that you can’t! There’s also an extra compact disc that has the songs, “Candle In The Wind (Live)”, “Don’t Let The Sun Go Down on Me” (With George Michael), “Live Like Horses” (With Luciano Pavarotti), and “Your Song” (With Alessandro Safina) to make it even more worthy of your purchase.

Yeah, of course there are a few outstanding songs that didn’t find their way onto this compilation, or in the case of Elton, rather a few, such as “Blue Eyes”, “Healing Hands”, “Simple Life”, “You Gotta Love Someone”, “Club At The End of The Street.” Many of those in all likelihood did not make the cut because they were not big Top 40 hits, though they made a huge affect on the Adult Contemporary charts (“Simple Life” and “You Gotta Love Someone” were both #1 Billboard AC hits). Nonetheless, this is by far the best Elton John compilation that has ever been made so far. It’s astoundingly comprehensive and it’s cheap, making it a suitable sampler for any casual fan. Get it now, while you can!

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