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The persistent punctuality with which - while many seasoned gentlemen of light music still manage to savor melodic delights, endlessly postponing their swan song - some seasoned musicians hasten, through artistic thuds, to refute the saying "an old hen makes good broth" is surprising. Thus - still lulled by the smoky, scotch-infused voice of dear old Van or enchanted by the ever more subtly communicative James Taylor - little surprise is evoked by the inevitable appointment with the cunning hues of Sir Reginald Wright, aka Elton John. Reduced now to a more or less aware puppet of show biz, he hasn't produced anything worthy of his resounding name since 1992 - the year when the decent "The One" gave birth by cesarean section to the greatest piece in our artist's repertoire in five decades, "The North".
The story is nauseatingly familiar: from the horrific and unjustifiable experiment of "Victim Of Love" (1979) onwards, the baronet struggled - alternating indecorous or useless works with some barely adequate ones - to revive the magic that, in the short span between 1970 and 1973 (some say 1975), managed to string together imperishable gems such as "Tumbleweed Connection", "Madman Across The Water", "Honky Chateau", "Don't Shoot Me", and the double "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road". Supported by the eternal box office success of pieces like "Rocket Man", "Candle In The Wind", "Daniel", and a thousand others - the memory of this excellent songwriting risks failing to honor the genius inherent in the construction of the works themselves, which appear mostly (at least to the lay audience) as mere containers of exquisite hits. The issue becomes thorny where these hits are scarce or entirely absent: such is the case of the progenitor of the glorious lineage, the extraordinary visual-literary treatise of "Tumbleweed Connection" (1971) - which even 35 years after its appearance still elicits a poignant ovation.
This intense and rich reinterpretation of the western epic sees Bernie Taupin's lyricism and Elton's melodic inventions reach a degree of fusion so effective that it leaves one astounded with each listen. Put aside the sugared pop chart-toppers like "Sacrifice" or "Word In Spanish" in favor of embracing without reservations the irresistible rock-blues of "Ballad Of A Well-Known Gun" and "Son Of Your Father", the sublime gospel-pop experiment in "My Father's Gun", or the west-coast delight of "Love Song" (sung and signed by Lesley Duncan). Allow yourself a break, before confronting the terrifying melodic completeness of "Where To Now St. Peter?", the disarming singability of "Country Comfort" (admirably reinterpreted the same year by Rod Stewart, in "Gasoline Alley"), and the emotional crack of "Talking Old Soldiers". Let the poignant song of "Amoreena" flow through your veins and the restless piano of the extraordinary boogie-rock in the concluding "Burn Down The Mission". And if all this is still not enough to make you dizzy, the sweet orchestra led by Paul Buckmaster is ready to accompany Karl Jenkins' oboe in announcing those three minutes of unparalleled and total perfection known as "Come Down In Time" - the absolute pinnacle of melodic inspiration that, at least in these grooves, knows no age.
Tracklist and Lyrics
04 Son of Your Father (03:46)
I'll catch the tramline in the morning
With your leave Van Bushell said
He had further heard the cock crow
As he stumbled out the shed
Then blind Joseph came towards him
With a shotgun in his arms
He said you'll pay me twenty dollars
Before you leave my farm
Van Bushell saw the hook
Which replaced Joseph's hand
He said now calm you down my brother
Let's discuss this man to man
It's no good you getting angry
We must try to act our age
You're pursuing your convictions
Like some hermit in a cage
You're the son of your father
Try a little bit harder
Do for me as he would do for you
With blood and water bricks and mortar
He built for you a home
You're the son of your father
So treat me as your own
Well slowly Joseph well he lowered the rifle
And he emptied out the shells
Van Bushell he came towards him
He shook his arm and wished him well
He said now hey blind man that is fine
But I sure can't waste my time
So move aside and let me go my way
I've got a train to ride
Well Joseph turned around
His grin was now a frown
He said let me just refresh your mind
Your manners boy seem hard to find
Well there's two men lying dead as nails
On an East Virginia farm
For charity's an argument
That only leads to harm
So be careful when they're kind to you
Don't you end up in the dirt
Just remember what I'm saying to you
And you likely won't get hurt
08 Amoreena (04:58)
Lately I've been thinking how much I miss my lady
Amoreena's in the cornfield brightening the daybreak
Living like a lusty flower, running through the grass for hours
Rolling through the hay like a puppy child
And when it rains, the rain falls down
Washing out the cattle town
And she's far away somewhere in her eiderdown
And she dreams of crystal streams
Of days gone by when we would lean,
Laughing fit to burst upon each other
I can see you sitting eating apples in the evening
The fruit juice floating slowly, slowly, slowly
Down the bronze of your body
Living like a lusty flower, running through the grass for hours
Rolling through the hay like a puppy child
And when it rains, the rain falls down
Washing out the cattle town
And she's far away somewhere in her eiderdown
And she dreams of crystal streams
Of days gone by when we would lean,
Laughing fit to burst upon each other
Oh if only I could nestle in the cradle of your cabin
My arms around your shoulders the windows wide and open
While the swallow and the sycamore are playing in the valley
I miss you Amoreena like a king bee misses honey.
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Other reviews
By Giuseppe13
"My Father’s Gun is truly the perfection of music, at least that of this genre, of those years."
"Tumbleweed Connection is destined to remain as the epitaph of a finished, dead music. But you only die once, and this is forever."
