Elton John Music:

		List Price: $22.98		Label: Mca Salesrank: 100183 Released: August 12, 1997
		Our Price: $31.70
		Used Price: $17.97
		Media: Audio CD

Blue Moves Reviews:
Elton's hidden masterpiece
2009-12-14 - Everyone talks about the classic Elton John albums which includes everything he's done from his self-titled album released in the early 70's all the way through Rock of the Westies. I have some news for you folks- the bus didn't stop at the Rockies.

Blue Moves, while not particularly popular outside of the internet (hey, 70-something reviews for this album here on amazon DOES lead me to believe this album has a following) comes OH so very close to reaching the same level of deeply-rewarding satisfaction that Elton's previous classic albums did.

Some VERY brief and unsatisfying moments prevent the album from reaching classic status however, but what's good about the album *certainly* outweighs the bad.

What strikes me immediately about Blue Moves is that, even though Elton John was going through many serious problems with his band and personal life, his ability to put together an album of consistently enjoyable songs didn't really suffer. If it wasn't for the fact that Blue Moves has such a devastatingly sad, depressing and almost heart-breaking atmosphere to it, this might even be an album on the same level as Goodbye Yellow Brick Road and Tumbleweed Connection (and no, I'm NOT just some insane Elton John fan who needs a reality check- I know flaws when I hear them, but I'm honestly not hearing very many flaws with Blue Moves).

Despite the haunting and depressing vibe the album generates for at least 50% of it, it is my opinion that these songs definitely qualify as *good*. I can remember them, enjoy them, relate to them, and admire Elton John for attempting to branch away from his usual diverse and energetic style and give us a really deep and meaningful side to his songwriting talents.

The song that absolutely FLOORS me above the rest of the tracks is "Tonight". A lengthy orchestral build-up to some piano playing that almost feels *too* depressing for me to handle. That's because it's shocking to me that Elton would attempt to get inside the listeners head as hard (and passionately) as he does here.

Following that, Elton delivers a vocal melody that would surely make even the strongest men shed a tear. Of course, I can't deny some people believe there's a bit of a fake or bogus feeling to this entire song- I completely understand that. My family for instance HATES this song and they don't understand the special connection I have with it. I really admire and love what Elton John was attempting here because I connected to the song almost immediately, and I believe the uniqueness of the classical build-up leading to the inevitable vocal melody is the main aspect of the track that might steer someone the wrong way.

"One Horse Town" has amazing vocals, but even MORE amazing are the instrumental parts. I love the speedy style of the vocals and the close attention to melody for its entire length. Elton was going for a gospel vibe when he put together "Where's the Shoorah?", and the results are spectacular because the vocals are REALLY effective. "Crazy Water" has a highly memorable chorus and a funky style going in full swing, "Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word" sums up the hauntingly quiet and sincere atmosphere the album contains, "If There's a God In Heaven (What's He Waiting For?)" in an upbeat pop song delivered beautifully, and the same can be said for the funky pop creation "Between Seventeen and Twenty" (I LOVE this song- perhaps my second favorite song featured on Blue Moves).

I used to hate "Boogie Pilgrim" but I've warmed up to in recent years. The only song I don't particularly like (and perhaps the first song Elton John made up to this point that I don't like) is the closer "Bite Your Lip (Get Up and Dance!)". The song would have worked so much better had it kept that "Crocodile Rock" style it featured in the beginning and ditched the four-minute coda that's honestly not as memorable as Elton probably believes.

Overall yes, you have an odd mixture of instrumental tracks that can either be funky, beautiful, hard rocking or delivered in a classical vibe, or you have quiet, moody, emotionally-devastating songs that seem to come from deep within Elton John's personal side. Either way, this album works on all the right levels including being listenable and creative (and even daring). Not really any major signs of a musician losing his songwriting skills, or feeling exhausted or anything like that.


Flawed, yet just perfect...
2008-09-11 - One reviewer said this album was a flawed masterpiece and that perhaps is the best way to describe it.
As odd as it is to listen to, one can't help but be swept up in it. By the time Elton and the band settled in to record it in 1976, he and Bernie were feeling the pressure and the cracks in the facade were showing. They were tired, and Bernie's marriage was in big trouble, on its way to falling apart.
The song are near perfect reflections of this, at once moody, desperate, yet some also seeking release, solace, with Elton and the band drawing from an eclectic mix of musical styles in a way not seen perhaps since the range of expression found on the Beatles' so-called "White Album."
Even the record's biggest hit, "Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word," is a bit of downer, albeit a very lovely one.
What's really strange about it is that it's not like anything he's done before or since. It lacks the slick polish and storytelling linearity of "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" and is miles away from the brooding singer-songwriter that made "Madman Across The Water," never mind the 80s and 90s pop singer icon he'd become a few years later, but it works...rather the audio equivalent of Picasso, Seurat or Munch...something Brian Wilson might have done at the time.
"Tonight," "One Horse Town," "Cage The Songbird, "Chameleon," "Idol," "Where's The Shoorah," "Bite Your Lip (Get Up And Dance)" - it's not hard to hear where the songs came from emotionally, but how they ended up in this collection is one of rock's great mysteries. Gus Dudgeon said he thought it would have made a great single album. Maybe he was right, but having it complete as it was originally intended is something to behold, as bizarre as it is.
Even Elton fans aren't entirely sure what to make of it, so who knows what less devoted listeners will think of it, but if you're willing to take a chance on Elton as less of pop star and he and Taupin as more existential artists, I think you'll find the album rewards you handsomely, with songs that will stick with you long after you pop it out of the CD player. Throw it on one Sunday morning and see if you don't catch a vibe from it. My guess is you will and, surprise, you might actually like it, though some of you may scratch your head for days wondering why.
Don't try to figure it out - we Elton fans can't even do that - just play it and enjoy.


Better than most reviewers will tell you
2008-05-13 - EJ doesn't usually make the kind of albums one can analyse at length, but I feel the need to defend this one. It's on a par with Yellow Brick Road in terms of (in)consistency but the best material - in my opinion - betters that of the earlier album, because Elton is more experimental musically here.
Disregarding the irrelevant instrumental overture, "Tonight" is as dramatic an album-opener as you can get, four minutes of grand, sweeping piano-and-orchestra music (to me it sounds suitable for the opening titles of a tragic-romantic film set in the late 19th century) before Elton enters singing a simple lyric that serves the purpose of introducing the album's main theme: Bernie's first marriage drawing to its deeply-unhappy close.
The subject is addressed more directly in "Between Seventeen And Twenty" (one of the weaker, more self-derivative songs) which refers to Mr & Mrs Taupin's ages when they first met and (possibly) the fact that she left him for the bass player on this album.
It seems to underly several other songs though, and most of them are highpoints. First "Chameleon" - about a childhood/adolescent friendship that could have gone further, one of the more inventive ballads on the album, allowing Elton to exercise his falsetto whilst musically combining Beach Boys ingluences (it was written with them in mind, and had been in EJ's repertoire since '74!) and a touch of jazz (the chord changes). And then "Crazy Water", about the romantic travails of a fisherman, easily one of the best flop singles in EJ's catalogue, and another combination of vaguely jazzy chord progressions and uneven phrases with '50s/'60s vocal ideas (the sung-bassline is hilariously good). "Cage The Songbird", a she-died-for-love type lyric (probably not about Edith Piaf!) set to delicious folk-rockish music, worthy of a Crosby & Nash vocal cameo. "Shoulder Holster" is a catchy, funky rocker with a David Sanborn sax break, and the failed relationship in this song almost leads to a Frankie-and-Johnny type ending (almost but not quite!). There's the simple heartache of "Sorry Seems To Be..." which needs no introduction to anyone reading this; the simple despair of "Wide Eyed And Laughing", actually an amazingly accomplished George-Harrison-in-India pastiche, and a particular favorite of mine; and another suicide song in the form of the gorgeously soulful "Someone's Final Song" (with its impressive mid-song modulation).
The "non-personal" songs are more of a mixed bag. British readers will know the instrumental "Out Of The Blue" (even if they don't know the name) because for many years it served as the theme tune to the "Top Gear" programme, and it's actually a pretty good showcase for Elton and Caleb Quaye. "Idol" is fabulous, the most convincing "jazz" number Elton ever wrote, with lyrics about a fallen pop star exploited by his management (a meditation on his own future?). Of "One Horse Town", I shall simply say that it's one of the most unorthodox musical flights-of-fancy in Elton's catalog, in a way THE highlight of the entire album. And, while Elton has disfigured some of his songs with over-extended "Hey Jude" type codas, the closing raveup "Bite Your Lip" is not disfigured - in fact, the three-minute-plus closing chorus is actually made overwhelmingly powerful by James Newton Howard's arrangement.
It's not all good - "Boogie Pilgrim" is thumb-twiddling nonsense, "If Thers's A God..." is well meant but lyrically and musically a bit of a mess. "Shoorah" is the kind of absurd messed-up mash-up you expect from Pual McCartney at his worst: that combination of nonsensical "lyric" and would-be-emotive music will not be made any more palatable by time and distance. And to make matters worse "Theme From..." trumps it as a musical joke that's not at all funny.
But one dodgy track per vinyl side isn't such a bad ratio. And the good stuff here is not only as good as Elton gets, it's occasionally unlike anything else he's ever done. That surely makes it a must-buy.

Who's IS this?
2008-05-03 - Up until I heard Blue Moves, I wasn't the least bit interested in Elton John's pop music. Only after buying this did I even listen to his earlier music.

I grew up in the early 70's and my diet was mainly ELP, Kansas, Yes, Floyd, Black Sabbath and the like. When I got Blue Moves, I played it endlessly and still enjoy belting out the tunes along with EJ. The is one of the most feeling and soul-full cd's I own today.

Blue Moves Moves Me.
2008-05-02 - I love this album. It's one of my favorite Elton Albums and when it came out I was a huge Elton Fan. After this album I stopped listening to Elton for about twenty years except to catch him in concert occasionally. This last year Captain and the Kid rekindled my interest in Elton. As for Blue Moves - it should have been a single album not a double album set - the two disks aren't strong or consistent enough to warrant two discs. And even though I like it better than Yellow Brick Road Yellow Brick Road is a better overall album. It continues to grow on me. Blue Moves - if I were to turn it into a single album - I would keep all of side one - One Horse Town is one of his best rockers after the Rock of the Westies album. Side two I would keep, Crazy Water - which is a strange song but I love it - Elton's piano playing on it alone makes it a worthwhile track - and Cage the Songbird about Edith Piaf is a beautiful song. If you could take those two tracks from side two and pair them with Between 17 and 20, The Wide Eyed and Laughing, Someone's Final Song and Idol from side four - one of the best songs Elton ever wrote - you would have a perfect album. Blue Moves resonates and it just doesn't feel like it has its eye on the top ten with every song the way the previous albums had. It is a rare album from a pop star that comes at you on its own terms take it or leave it - which I guess is what makes it so moving, charming and I think with all it's missteps a great album.