Episodes
Saturday Nov 25, 2017
Episode 7 - Reconstructing 'A Song For Europe 1969'
Saturday Nov 25, 2017
Saturday Nov 25, 2017
I attempt to piece together the weekly Saturday evening TV shows, hosted by the impish Lulu, that led up to the UK's selection being made for the 1969 Eurovision Song Contest, and follow up the progress of the careers of the six sets of songwriters who got through to that final stage. Whatever became of them? |
Saturday Nov 18, 2017
Episode 6 - Cool As Christmas - Collaborations That Make Elton Cooler
Saturday Nov 18, 2017
Saturday Nov 18, 2017
Elton's not always seen as a particularly cool musician to be a fan of. Lots of well-respected artists have no problem associating themselves with him though. In this episode, I go through those collaborations and connections, and pick out the ones, some more obscure than others, which, I feel, elevate Elton's position as an innovative creative force. |
Sunday Nov 12, 2017
Episode 5 - Don't Say It With 'Diamonds'
Sunday Nov 12, 2017
Sunday Nov 12, 2017
This week, Elton released another greatest hits collection, to somehow celebrate his and Bernie's 50 year anniversary of writing together. In this episode I look at 12 'genuine diamonds' - products that would actually be essential purchases for anyone who already owns the mainstream EJ releases. In the end I just make myself a bit angry - there's so much not being released, and we get this basic greatest hits.... |
Friday Nov 03, 2017
Episode 4 - It Was 40 Years Ago Today, Grumpy Elton Sacked The Band On Stage
Friday Nov 03, 2017
Friday Nov 03, 2017
This is the story of the band that Elton essentially sacked, live on stage, entirely out of the blue. 40 years ago, Elton played a charity gig at Wembley Pool. The band were expecting him to announce that he was going out on tour again, with them as his backing band. A very different announcement was made. In this episode we work out what led Elton to make that decision. Here's a picture of the band in question. Here's the setlist.fm page for the night. Here's the full show on YouTube. |
Wednesday Nov 01, 2017
Episode 3 - Regimental Sgt Zippo - The Debut Album That Never Was
Wednesday Nov 01, 2017
Wednesday Nov 01, 2017
This episode skips through the 1968 almost-debut album, track-by-track. How good would this album have been if it had come out in 1968? How would it have fared? Actually that's a question I don't answer. I think we know the answer. There are some real surprises along the way, and some things that even the most ardent early Elton fan will probably be hearing for the first time. The auction for the acetate took place momentarily here. The release was discussed on the Steve Hoffman forum here. Information about Bayons Manor, Tealby, can be found here. |