Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy
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| Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy | ||
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| Studio album by Elton John | ||
| Released | May 1975 | |
| Recorded | June-July 1974, Caribou Ranch, Nederland, CO | |
| Genre | Rock | |
| Length | 47:02 | |
| Label | MCA | |
| Producer(s) | Gus Dudgeon, Greg Penny |
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| Professional reviews | ||
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| Elton John chronology | ||
| Greatest Hits (Elton John album) (1974) |
Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy (1975) |
Rock of the Westies (1975) |
Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy is the ninth album by British singer/songwriter Elton John, released in 1975).
Contents |
[edit] History
Captain Fantastic is a concept album that gives an autobiographical look at the struggles John (Captain Fantastic) and lyricist Bernie Taupin (the Brown Dirt Cowboy) had in the early years of their musical careers in London. The lyrics and accompanying photo booklet are infused with a specific sense of place and time that would otherwise be rare in John's music.
The record debuted at number 1 on the U.S. Pop Albums chart, the first to ever do so, and stayed there for seven weeks. It has gone on to be certified as triple platinum. On the UK Albums Chart, the record peaked at number 2.
"Someone Saved My Life Tonight", the only single released from the album (and a number 4 hit on the U.S. Pop Singles chart), is a semi-autobiographical story about John's disastrous engagement to Linda Woodrow, and his related 1969 suicide attempt. The "Someone" refers to Long John Baldry, who convinced him to break off the engagement rather than ruin his music career for an unhappy marriage. It was generally viewed as the best track on the album; Rolling Stone writer Jon Landau said, "As long as Elton John can bring forth one performance per album on the order of 'Someone Saved My Life Tonight', the chance remains that he will become something more than the great entertainer he already is and go on to make a lasting contribution to rock."
In 2003, the album was ranked number 158 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.
In 2006, John and Taupin released a sequel to Captain Fantastic. According to Eltonjohn.com, the album, titled The Captain and the Kid, "features ten new songs reflecting on the phenomenal success, the sadnesses, the creativity and the optimism within the 39-year songwriting partnership of Elton John and Bernie Taupin."
[edit] Later releases
"Philadelphia Freedom" was originally released as a non-album single, but years later was included as a bonus track on the remastered Captain Fantastic CD reissue. The song was dedicated to tennis player Billie Jean King, who coached a tennis team called the Philadelphia Freedoms.
A deluxe 30th Anniversary edition CD was released September 2005, containing the complete album and the bonus tracks included on prior reissues and adding the new to CD B-side "House of Cards". Also included is a second disc containing the complete album performed live at Wembley in 1975.
In September 2005, Elton John and his band again performed the entire album (minus "Tower Of Babel" and "Writing") in a series of sold-out concerts in Boston, New York City and the tour's final stop, Atlanta, in October. These "Captain Fantastic Concerts" were a part of the Peachtree Road Tour and were the longest concerts in Elton's career, lasting nearly three and a half hours. The songs from Captain Fantastic were aired by Capital Gold Radio in a broadcast taken from the September 16, 2005 performance in Boston.
[edit] Track listing
- "Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy" – 5:46
- "Tower of Babel" – 4:28
- "Bitter Fingers" – 4:34
- "Tell Me When the Whistle Blows" – 4:20
- "Someone Saved My Life Tonight" – 6:45
- "(Gotta Get A) Meal Ticket" – 4:01
- "Better Off Dead" – 2:37
- "Writing" – 3:40
- "We All Fall in Love Sometimes" – 4:11
- "Curtains" – 6:40
[edit] Bonus tracks (1996 CD reissue)
- "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds" (John Lennon, Paul McCartney) – 6:18
- "One Day (At a Time)" (Lennon) – 3:49
- "Philadelphia Freedom" – 5:23
[edit] Bonus tracks (2005 30th Anniversary Deluxe Edition)
- "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" (John Lennon, Paul McCartney) – 6:18
- "One Day (At a Time)" (Lennon) – 3:49
- "Philadelphia Freedom" – 5:23
- "House of Cards" – 3:12
All songs by Elton John and Bernie Taupin, except where noted.
[edit] Personnel
- Elton John - synthesizer, piano, strings, harpsichord, keyboard, electric piano, vocals, clavinet, harmony vocals, mellotron, ARP, string ensemble, lum-de-lums
- Ray Cooper - percussion, bongos, conga, cymbals, gong, tambourine, triangle, bells, shaker, jawbone, bell tree
- David Hentschel - synthesizer, keyboard, ARP
- Davey Johnstone - synthesizer, acoustic guitar, guitar, mandolin, electric guitar, vocals, background vocals
- Dee Murray - bass, background vocals
- Nigel Olsson - drums, background vocals
- John Lennon (credited as Dr. Winston O' Boogie) - guitar
[edit] Production
- Producers: Gus Dudgeon, Greg Penny
- Engineer: Jeff Guercio
- Mixing: Greg Penny
- Remixing: Gus Dudgeon, Phil Dunne
- Remastering: Tony Cousins
- Assistant: Mark Guercio
- Digital transfers: Ricky Graham
- Surround sound: Greg Penny
- Orchestral arrangements: Gene Page
- Art direction: David Larkham, Bernie Taupin
- Graphic conception: David Larkham, Bernie Taupin
- Cover design: Alan Aldridge
- Package design: David Larkham
- Illustrations: Alan Aldridge
- Liner notes: John Tobler
[edit] Charts
Album - Billboard (North America)
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1975 | Pop Albums | 1 |
Singles - Billboard (North America)
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | "Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds" | Pop Singles | 1 |
| 1975 | "Philadelphia Freedom" | Black Singles | 32 |
| 1975 | "Philadelphia Freedom" | Pop Singles | 1 |
| 1975 | "Someone Saved My Life Tonight" | Pop Singles | 4 |
