His closest competition when making new music is his own back catalogue.
Save this article to read it later.
Find this story in your accountsSaved for Latersection.
This article originally ran on June 22, 2023.
Were republishing it in honor of Elton John and Brandi Carliles new album,Who Believes in Angels?
The biggest obstacle to creating ranked list of every Elton John song ever is Elton John himself.
The 78-year-old songwriter hasnt just set a curve for success against which other artists best songs can be judged.
Hes destroyed the very idea of a curve.
Half a century ago, he released a total of seven LPs (including one double album!)
And they were good.
The boisterous, flamboyant front man could often be mistaken for the ringleader of a one-man circus.
Through it all, he waited anxiously for the other shoe to drop.
I never feel as if Ive really arrived, he complained in 1975.
Not every one of his best songs was a hit, or even a single.
All it took was a lyrical fragment and a couple emoji on Instagram to immediately spur a fan frenzy.
1 dance-chart hits in 2021 and 2022.
Whats not in this ranking: B-sides.
It was also helpful for tracking at which point the drugs truly overtook the creative process.
Also recommended for detail on the 1970s era: Tom DoylesCaptain Fantastic.
Enough of all that lets start at the bitter end.
(This seems unfair to dogs, honestly.)
Hoop of Fire:Dont pretend you wouldnt spend some time in a hoop of fire.
Dont Trust That Woman:A woman half crazy, oh then again lazy.
Gypsy Heart:You come and go, just like the rain.
Slow Rivers (with Cliff Richard):Shallow waters never sank so low.
Heartache All Over the World:Girls, girls, girls, have pity on me.
Angeline:Bite me, Angeline, let me use you like a sex machine, Angeline.
Memory of Love:Why conceal you still feel / the need to push and shove me.
Paris:Art has its price.
(This is maybe,maybe, the least awful.)
I Fall Apart:This fools suffered gladly, each and every day.
Why fucking not?!
(Its not.)
Theres a duet version with Luciano Pavarotti thats not much better.
Take Me Back,21 at 33
Open up your heart, little girl, and take me back.
This is not a credible plea on any level.
January,The Big Picture
January is the month that cares.
Self-care, no matter the time of year, means respecting Bernie Taupins dislike ofThe Big Picture.
They Call Her the Cat,Peachtree Road
This is certainly no Honky Cat.
Ball and Chain,Jump Up!
(1982)
One of my least favorite John songs simply because it feels so lazily cliche.
Dixie Lily,Caribou(1974)
One of their least impressive country crooners.
This is so literal it could be aDoctor Whoteleplay.
And not a good episode, either.
Tell me what your hound dogs think, goes one solicitous lyric.
I dont know, but its awful no matter where it pops up.
Actual lyric: Why, lil frigerator, youre so cold.
theres not much hope.
350, 351, 352.
Cocaine is, as they say, a helluva drug, and this trio is caked with it.
That backstory doesnt quite make the song gel, but it explains a little.
Princess,Jump Up!
This is an example of the division of labor between John and Taupin causing more confusion than harmony.
Its not that its impossible to imagine John found some kind of love with one (or more!)
So what the hell is this song or at least Bernie trying to tell us?
I Am Your Robot,Jump Up!
Never Gonna Fall in Love Again,21 at 33(1980)
Wouldve made a good Kenny Rogers song.
That should be a compliment, but this isnt a Kenny Rogers song.
340, 341, 342.
I love this mans work so much Im relistening to every song in his catalogue (again!
), but I have no way to distinguish these tracks from each other.
For Tambourine, see Guilty Pleasure, except this one is from a tambourines POV.
It starts off with some throwback harpsichord but meanders its way through a middling rise-and-fall chorus and key-changing bridge.
But the studio manager liked it and urged them to try writing more for themselves.
Even if he was right that Kershaw was gifted, you cant tell in this duet.
Alas, this song is not fun.
(This was a No.
1 song in the U.S.)
330.
When I Think About Love (I Think About You) (with P.M.
Dawn),Duets(1993)
I have more questions than answers about this song off 1993sDuets.
Did P.M. Dawns Attrell Cordes write itfora duet with Elton?
Did they just dust it off and go in and see how it went?
Did anyone bother asking why at all?
(Still, this song isnt great.)
But this watery pop gospel doesnt begin to do justice to that influence.
By then shed sucked all the fun out of being British.
Cold,Made in England(1995)
There are more key changes than a song this forgettable needs.
But mostly it makes me want to listen to the criminally underratedThe Foxagain.
Its about my life.
Its a really joyous song about being happy.
The joy comes through, as does a heavy dose of jukebox classic rock.
Especially not one where the narrator refers to himself and his brothersasslave.
But its still Elton John singing it.
Man stumbles on his own belief, sings John.
Dont lose hope if you’ve got the option to.
I dont know that it was in any way inspired by this one, but its actually good.
Sometimes the lyrics he gave me felt quite pointed, John admitted later.
I had the brass balls to sing it as if it was about someone else.
And even after repeated listens I cant decide if static is an insult or a compliment.
This comes off like a forced tourism tune.
Imagine if it were an amped-up crazed rocker like Take Me to the Pilot.
Ive never been so mad at an intro track just for existing.
Give Me the Love,21 at 33(1980)
The hook is serviceable.
All Quiet on the Western Front,Jump Up!
This was actually released as a single, though that version did not include the giant church-organ swell.
Passengers,Breaking Hearts(1984)
This one is trying to do a lot.
This Town,Ice on Fire(1985)
Now were stuck in a cheap 80s comedy.
And Sister Sledge is on backing vocals (really).
No birthday songs to sing again / Just brick and stones to give them.
It was rough up there for a lad, and hes not done reminiscing about it.
Pinky,Caribou(1974)
A drowsy easy listen you forget almost as soon as its gone.
Well done, I guess.
Its as enjoyable as any generic Stones track from this era.
Not a single person seemed to notice what I was singing about, he said later.
This probably makes sense as a bold defiant statement given enough of all three of those.
But that introduced its own new dissonance.
Compared to the cast recording, this studio version is … fine.
This is the John well hear later onGoodbye Yellow Brick Road.
Sure he can make a big sound and then do something totally different now its a jazz interlude!
Now theres some Chuck Berrylike solo guitar!
and then back into a groovy reprise of … every other track on the album.
Its almost like a badly edited montage of exciting scenes from his future career.
The joy, the fuckery, the fashion.
(He has balls of steel, John says.)
He and Taylor Swift, overachievers to the very end.
This is like an alternate universe where Gal Gadot produced an MTV tribute performance.
The End Will Come,The Big Picture(1997)
The production isnt doing this song any favors.
The lyrics and melody arent actually awful; its just a bit hard to tell through all the effects.
And unlike the spare perfection of Sixty Years On, the dramatic arrangement doesnt seem warranted.
Just a bit weird.
This is not one of them.
Its the only real sign of life on his otherwise moribund 1979 album, but thats truly faint praise.
Teardrops (with k.d.
lang; to be fair, it only made slightly more sense at the time.
Dark Diamond,Songs from the West Coast(2001)
A decent rocker with Stevie Wonder on harmonica.
Elton sounds good and sells it well, but then its just gone in the wind.
Learn to Fly (with Surfaces),The Lockdown Sessions(2021)
Feel-good light funk.
I dont think its terrible or nearly that bad, but its a bit of an artifact.
By 1997, American rock had long moved on from this soft, breathy big-bass vibe.
It just feels a little late for 1997.
If nothing else, its great to see Johns life captured during slightly simpler times.
But its a touch too clever it takes a silver tongue to have the Midas touch to read true.
Also, I am pretty sure this is the first name-check cocaine receives on an Elton record.
Part-Time Love,A Single Man(1978)
The most overtly poppy single offA Single Man.
Dont worry, it still has a disco backbeat and a gospel choiranda guitar solo the whole kitchen sink.
But compared to the other uneven tone ofRock of the Westies, its identifiably an Elton John joint.
The weight of cocaine in the captains quarters, that is.
Im not in it for the bread / Im in it for the gravy, honey.
He got trouble / But he aint got joy, Elton sings.)
Theres a catchy melody, but it doesnt fit.
Not as good on that theme as Ticking fromCaribouis.
Kiss the Bride,Too Low for Zero(1983)
This album was where Elton met Renata Blauel.
(Its a wedding song like how Panic!
You may recognize a bit of this from the Dua Lipa duet, too.
Where Have All the Good Times Gone?,Jump Up!
1 single in both the U.K. and U.S.
But to me, instead of a brilliant send-up, its too easy, a cheap derivative.
The original was written quickly.
Johns diary entry from that day lists his achievements, in staccato, as: Got up.
Watched football on TV.
Wrote Candle in the Wind.
Ringo Starr came to dinner.
A live version from Australia recharted massively in 1986.
It seemed unhealthy to me.
This almost sounds like a Dire Straits song, but this timenotin a bad way.
Emily,The One(1992)
Such a gothic song for a 90s rocker.
Spiteful Child,Jump Up!
He even gets to sing.
In other great (?)
Davey Johnstone makes the point well enough that the times they were a-changin.
It has a little Paul Simon vibe to it, but years ahead.
Hold Me Closer (with Britney Spears) (2022)
First listen: WTF am I hearing?
Twentieth listen: Cant stop, wont stop.
Shes been away so long, he told theGuardian.
Theres a lot of fear there because shes been betrayed so many times.
The song was a No.
I want to know what he would have sounded like singing it: Bold?
Hes not even singing about being queer so much as having a long-time pine for someone.
But it would have, as they say, hit different then.
Wrap Her Up,Ice on Fire(1985)
There are two ways to interpret this song.
Get all the way to the end and you win a prize: Youre done.
(The album cover features a pile of hats and clothes collected to auction off at Sothebys post-divorce.)
This is Elton at his Billy Joel best.
Its getting mellow as fuck up on his ship.
Its the beginning of some legitimately feel-good power-rock efforts and does more than hold its own in that genre.
Step into Christmas (1973)
Without this one-off I cant imagine wed ever have gottenLove, Actually.
Dear John,Jump Up!
Its fucking catchy, though.
Hes a little more bitter, but hes also taking himself seriously again.
I Never Knew Her Name,Sleeping with the Past(1989)
The Taupin-John wedding band is back.
This is a solid duet, but the slide guitar is doing a lot of the work.
Plus John plays harpsichord.
An early hint of brilliance.
were a formative part of my MTV age or because even as a youngster it seemed quite obviously queer?
Maybe its just because it has a nice throwback vibe to it (those Kokomo backing vocals!).
It was also a top-ten hit in the U.S. when covered by Three Dog Night.
Or consider the regret you have for how youve treated the ones you love most?
We can build a bridge between us / But the empty space remains.
You Without Me,Who Believes in Angels?
Carliles other songs about motherhood peel back layers of unconditional love and the complexity of her parental identity.
Legal Boys,Jump Up!
Its exactly the right amount of bitter and biting and melodic.
Its not included on that release but can be seen (thank God)on YouTube.
What we need are willing hands, John sings.
You must feel the sweat in your eyes.
The waltzing troubadour construction hints at Streets of Laredo, a John and Taupin fave.
It was a really hard instrument to play, but I did it.
The video even reflected the theme a boys crush on an older guy though Elton doesnt actually appear himself.
If this could be slotted into any jukebox still playing Sweet Home Alabama, wed all be better off.
The River Man,Who Believes in Angels?
Theres a modern-rock throatiness to this that will get folks to their feet at either stars shows.
(Thankfully Eltons ego doesnt extend to overestimating his onscreen acting ability.)
A Dream Come True (with Leon Russell),The Union(2010)
135.
Eltons piano work here dances by so quickly and smartly its easy to miss how brilliant it is.
Still, the bridge breaks into a livelier if bitter barroom bounce, evoking Wildes flashy comebacks.
Somebody cover this gem!
Merry Christmas (with Ed Sheeran),The Lockdown Sessions(2021)
Unexpectedly sincere and sweet.
(You may recognize it from Sinead OConnors excellent cover or that hook from the Dua Lipa megamix.)
A Little Light,Who Believes in Angels?
(Listen closely and you might hear George Michael, still in his Wham days, singing backup.)
an old soldier sitting at a bar, sorting through his memories of friends and days gone by.
Its timeless could be any fighter from any war in any country left to his own long survival.
(Start here.)
The lyrics arent groundbreaking, but they showcase a more involved-sounding Elton on vocals.
Stevie sounds like hes 19 again, John wrote in the liner notes.
Theres a foot-stomping grin of a heartbeat to Johns piano riffs, too, content but happy.
He has ten of everything.
I went in and sang it, two keys too high.
Then I did it again, lower.
Thats the take on the album.
Cameron Crowe filmed the recording session, because of course he did.
Its hard but not impossible to find the doc online and worth it.
Swing for the Fences,Who Believes in Angels?
A pretty perfect slice of acute lovelorn regret.
99, 100, 101.
Its also catchy as hell.
Wheres the Shoorah?,Blue Moves(1976)
Amoreena all grown up, including a gospel chorus.
Evocative, emotional, quietly wrenching
89.
But it feels a bit repetitive.
Johns voice here sounds raw, almost his age, a vivid plea to be heard or hear himself.
If Theres a God in Heaven (Whats He Waiting For?
Bite Your Lip (Get Up and Dance!
),Blue Moves(1976)
85.
The Wide-Eyed and Laughing,Blue Moves(1976)
Earlier onBlue Moveswe heard sweet harmonies like CSN.
This is like the weirder Neil Young entry, swirly and evasive, beautiful but uncomfortable.
But thats the point of a second LP in a double album, right?
Weird shit that would never, ever be a single.
Theme from a Non-Existent TV Series,Blue Moves(1976)
An unhinged and hilarious instrumental.
What happens in this imaginary show?
Why does Taupin get a credit for a song with nonexistent lyrics?
Johns raspy voice here works so well for a later-in-life memoirist.
Blue Eyes,Jump Up!
But the heavy bass endures, making it a kind of historical monument to queerness and another legendary groundbreaker.
Little Richards Bible,Who Believes in Angels?
John and Carlile getloudhere, stomping and slamming around for a tight little radio-length banger.
This is the most believably lusty delivery by John of lyrics about Taupins earthly urges.
This fully settles into a New Orleansesque honkey-tonk bridge, with Hammond organ (and accordion!)
played by none other than Yes keyboardist Rick Wakeman.
Bernie and Elton have fully hit their stride.
Believe, Made in England
The epitome of mid-1990s radio hits.
You know every word to this even if you dont realize it.
44), but things dont go so well for her either.
Someone to Belong To,Who Believes in Angels?
(2024)
This is a song sung by two good friends with love for each other.
Johns deep voice is as strong and knowing as its ever been.
I invite you to also now fully integrate on the bonk into your vocabulary.
Empty Garden (Hey Hey Johnny),Jump Up!
This revamped duet version of her own LGBTQ-pride power ballad adds an appropriate gravitas without making it self-serious.
Johns parts on this are the embodiment of that intergenerational love.
The stripped-down 1979 version onLive From Moscowis perhaps the best, capturing an earnest yearning.
The two seem deeply mutually enamored.
(Hah, says Elton John.)
Never Too Late,Who Believes in Angels?
Dont the years make jokes of all of us?
they ask, but we all know whos getting the last laugh.
/ Who gets to win and who gets to lose?
A wildly underrated eulogy that wouldnt have been out of place on the much more critically acclaimedThe Union.
(Daisy Jones & the Six might try, but could never.)
and When stars collide like you and I!
and No shadows block the sun!
(Bonus: the album cover is designed by Gianni Versace.)
Its from a desperate time, he said.
And, you know, I love miserable songs.
Its heartbreaking all the same.
Johns reaction: What the fuck is happening?
A lost gem that sneaks up and leaves you on the brink of tears, and then its done.
When I started the album, I had one son.
When I finished the album I had two sons.
I think subconsciously all that played into the end sound and the end product.).
Famous at least half because it made us all ask the unbelievably ridiculous question: Who is Sugar Bear?
This song is huge big chords and big questions, without ever being too much.
I dont care / Hes my brother, let us live in peace.
(John is said to have added those last lines himself to Taupins other lyrics.)
Johns early work as a paid musician who toured with soul groups goes to good service here.
By the time it folds itself from instrumentals into vocals, youve almost forgotten thats what youre waiting for.
Thelive version from Australiashould probably go down as the definitive version rather than this studio recording.
And then when you get it, you have to repay what you sold your soul for.
And some people survive it, and some people dont.
25. Who Believes in Angels?,Who Believes in Angels?
Grey Seal,Goodbye Yellow Brick Road(1973)
A sleeper banger.
Turn it way, way up.
Daniel has rightfully endured as both a killer karaoke option and a classically misunderstood lyric.
And in this case Elton was right the track went to No.
4 in the U.K. and 2 in the U.S..
21.
The Rose of Laura Nyro,Who Believes in Angels?
What is this song about?
Like the best of Johns 70s hits, who cares?
with a lusty guitar and smashed piano chords.
It wasnt an act of charity, he writes inME.
It was more pure indulgence for me.
At its strongest, as on Hey Ahab, the sheer joy John conveys bears this out.
When This Old World Is Done With Me,Who Believes in Angels?
Release me like an ocean wave, return me to the tide, he sings.
But nowhere so much as this straightforward song about writing songs.
thats then immediately answered: We will still be writing in approaching years.
Would this list even exist if he hadnt channeled childhood hero Little Richard and manifested that moment?
Make no mistake, though.
This is a call to action wrapped in a revival tent jam.
I got very down one day, he said.
I like tearful, plodding music.
its clear this isnt a wake.
Its a welcome party.
), seemingly bringing John out of his own belting shell with soaring harmonies.
Painful was the word most likely to be dropped in press interviews John gave at the time.
It was done under pressure and really tortured out of us, he said of the album.
I think its remarkable that it turned out as well as it did.
It wasnt that I wanted to turn the clock back.
I didnt have any interest in doing something retro.
I think nostalgia can be a real trap for an artist.
But its the way it dances on the head of a pin that makes it an unforgettable forever favorite.
Its that he absolutelywantsyou to know.
He wants you to brag and telleverybodythis is your song.
But it was enough to turn heads.
The album version features Eltons falsetto at its strongest.
the ad read under side-by-side photos of John in full regalia and the spacecraft.
Both launchings bound to set new records.
2 in the U.K. and becoming triple-platinum in the States.
Elton remixed the refrain into his own 2022 pop hit with Dua Lipa, Cold Heart.
That a catalogue so deep and varied and enjoyable to a listener isnt bound to one format or generation.
