Elton John – “Honky Château” (1972)
Jon Landau’s Aug. 17, 1972 Rolling Stone review of The Rocket Man’s Honky Château album — my personal favorite of his, perhaps because it was the first album of his I ever purchased and it contains my favorite Elton song, “Rocket Man”…
Elton John’s Honky Chateau is a rich, warm, satisfying album that stands head and shoulders above the morass of current releases and has now succeeded in toppling the Stones from the top spot on the charts in only three weeks. Musically more varied, emotionally less contrived, lyrically more lucid than Tumbleweed Connection, Chateau rivals Elton John as his best work to date and evidences growth at every possible level.
The core of Tumbleweed was lyricist Bernie Taupin’s confused evocation of the American past, especially the Civil War epoch. On Chateau, his interest in myth has been transformed into an obsession with fantasy. John continues to assume a wide range of separate personalities who act out their personal trials against suggestive social backgrounds Read the rest of this entry »
The Beat Patrol 