Elton John
Aida

The second collaboration where Elton relies on lyricist Tim Rice, following the soundtrack of The Lion King, this Aida was released five years later, in 1999. It is a concept album inspired by Giuseppe Verdi's opera and based on the musical, which came out shortly after the album. This record showcases a certain eclecticism of genre, ranging from the reggae of Another Pyramid to the gospel of The Gods Love Nubia, and the more pop songs like A Step Too Far and Written in the Stars, which also happen to be the most well-known from this work. As in Duets, this album features many varied colleagues, from Lee Ann Rimes to Janet Jackson, but also includes appearances from Sting, Tina Turner, the Spice Girls, and Lenny Kravitz. This album should not be confused with the one released in 2000 called Original Broadway Cast Recording, as the latter contains Elton's songs performed by the musical's actors. Moreover, the 2000 record contains more songs than the one from 1999, which we must remember came out before the stage production of the musical. Due to this premature release, this Elton John and Tim Rice's Aida did not receive favorable feedback, neither from critics nor the public. Unlike the musical, it was rather disappointing. I give the album 2 stars. But as is known, after the decline comes the rise, and after One Night Only, still his last live release primarily on CD, Elton will regain momentum with Songs from the West Coast, rediscovering a creativity that seemed lost for two decades and producing a series of absolutely convincing and valid albums. Of this misstep, Written in the Stars remains prominent, which also appears in the Greatest Hits 1970-2002 collection representing the album.