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List Price: $14.98 | | Label: Universal UK
Salesrank: 55441
Released: May 12, 2003 |
| Our Price: $6.65 |
| Used Price: $5.19 |
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| Media: Audio CD |
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The Fox Track Listing:
1. Breaking Down Barriers
2. Heart in the Right Place
3. Just Like Belgium
4. Nobody Wins
5. Fascist Faces
6. Carla/Etude/Fanfare/Chloe
7. Heels of the Wind
8. Elton's Song
9. Fox
Editorial Review:
Remastered reissue of 1981 album, his first for Geffen, that's out-of-print domestically. Ten tracks including four co-written with Bernie Taupin & the hit, 'Nobody Wins'. Features new sleevenotes. Rocket. 2003.
The Fox Reviews:
still a great record! 
2008-02-17 - Elton John had just decided to come back to public view with this record. The summer of 1981 saw the release of his single "Nobody Wins" met with a yawn. I was a big EJ fan. I gave the record a close listen after I'd heard Nobody Wins on the radio. I thought the song was great. I was ready to like the album before I heard it. I put the vinyl record on the turntable and played it through. The rockers like "just like begium" truely rocked and the ballads like "chloe" were breathtaking. Enough cannot be said about "Chloe". The titled intro that fades into Chloe is the finest orchestral ballad EJ had ever done. I'm serious. Just listen to it. The music is gorgeous and the tune with the vocals is truely a masterpiece. It's just that good. The fox is a nice ballsy tune. Every tune on the album is first rate elton john. Elton's song is beautiful. I saw the video, shot in 1980. The video makes the song about a young boy who is totally infatuated with the school jock. It's very touching, and the song is so strong that it stays with you all day. It's very hard to judge this album against the many Elton John masterpieces of the seventies. The eighties started a new career for Elton John and he proved to be a huge eighties' star, just like he'd been in the seventies. I recommend The Fox to everyone who likes or loves Elton's music. It may not be considered a masterpiece by many who compare it to his earlier works...still, it's a great record. Try listening to it without comparing it to the seventies or the eighties. It stands with it's head held high on its own. The Fox is a "GREAT" Elton John record. Listen to whole album, there's not a weak song on it and there are at least three Elton John Classics. The Fox, Chloe, & Elton's Song. You really can't go wrong with this wonderful record. It's truely that good.
The start of breaking down barriers
2007-08-18 - Luis Mejia(son) - 21 At 33 represented a slight comeback to Elton John's classic compositions and light style, and then came The Fox. Although the album keeps some musical distance and poor critics, its Elton John second and better aproach to a musical breakthrough in the 80's. The Fox may contain some weak sounds and a certain lack of cohersion and creativity, but still the album keeps a more recognizable piano rock basis, an experimental techno pop movement, a fancy, intelligent interest for beautiful orchestrations and a bit of a piano balladry, classic style. The Fox is mainly focused on detached, mellow moods among the album. It starts with Breaking Down Barriers, a common piano rock song with a mellow use of piano; later comes the suburban, guitar crafted Heart In The Right Place, a correct, potent composition. Just Like Belgium is the first track in the album being co-written by Bernie Taupin, and luckily it assembles an obvious sensitivity and a focused interest in its lyrics, the song I most recommend in this album. Nobody Wins was released before as a single, and its a techno pop song, although very strange to see Elton releasing techno, this song possesses some awesome mellodies. Fascist Faces may be a recognizable composition because of David Bowie pronounced phrase, although its a rock, urban, stylish song. And here comes a big surprise nobody expected in one of Elton's lost in the map 80's albums, a beautifully structured, orchestrated classical composition, Carla/Etude/Fanfare, with the London Symphony Orchestra, which connects with the most beautiful song in the album, Chloe. Heels Of The Wind is a song that would had fit perfectly in 21 At 33, mainly because of its strong similarities with Two Rooms At The End Of The World. The controversial Elton's Song actually is a great composition, although it possesses explicit gay content, people got so scared with this song that even some countries banned it in the radio, I guess is just an exagerated warning to Elton for not going on with that kind of personal material. Finally, the title song, The Fox, is a pop rock, piano based balladry very enjoyable and familiar with Elton John past works.
Regarding some of the album's highlights, James Newton Howard explosive keyboard performance gives an original touch to the album, and the definitive return of the band's original lineup gives new hopes and expectations. The Fox may be a little bit controversial, but still keeps a memorable, correct popcraft.
Not Elton's Best 
2007-06-27 - "The Fox", was Elton John's first record on his then new label, Geffen. You would need to be a hard core fan to really want this lack-luster effort. However, I wanted it for two reasons, the first being, this recording has not been available on cd before, and secondly, the song "Nobody Wins" has been all but impossible to find. "Nobody Wins" was the song that was released as a single and is the best song of this collection. In fact, it was and is, a really great song. Another truly good gem off of "The Fox", was "Heart in the Right Place", which boasted Elton John's by now recognizable way with the blues. As for the other songs, they are fine as background music but nothing special.
An Overlooked Gem; One of John's Best 
2007-02-28 - "The Fox," Elton John's first album for Geffen Records, went largely unnoticed in the spring of 1981. And that is a shame because the set is full of wonderful tunes. The first two tracks, "Breaking Down Barriers" and "Heart In the Right Place" are classic Elton; and the title track could just as easily fit in on 2001's "Songs From the West Coast" or 2006's "The Captain and the Kid" as on this release.
The first single, "Nobody Wins," tells the story of lost love backed by swirling synthesizers and a haunting piano hook. The track took off on radio upon release in 1981 and raced up the lower half of the Hot 100 singles chart before stalling quickly at a disappointing number 21. "Chloe," is a wonderful ballad, yet only managed to make it to number 34 on the chart.
"Fascist Faces" has found its way back into my rotating music library. With the Republicans in control of the American government during 6 of the last 7 years, the song takes on new meaning.
"Heels of the Wind" is an uplifting precursor to "I'm Still Standing" yet stands on its own merits. Had it been released as a single, it probably would have done well.
Finally, no review of "The Fox" would be complete without a mention of the superb "Elton's Song." A heart-wrenching ballad of a school boy-on-boy crush. Sir Elton's vocals cut deep. And the writing shows early indications of songs he would later write for movies and stage.
The next time a retrospective of Elton's music is released, the producers would do well to include a track or two from "The Fox." This is a wonderful album and I urge you to give it a listen.
A Forgotten Early 1980s Near Classic From Elton John
2006-12-28 - A few years before Elton John's career was revived dramatically due to ample assistance from producers Chris Thomas and Gus Dudgeon, Elton was working with an assortment of other album producers as well as co-producing with long-time associate, recording - and concert - sound engineer Clive Franks. I regard "The Fox" as one of the best from this period, featuring elegant songs co-written with Bernie Taupin, Gary Osborne and Tom Robinson. It includes such memorable ballads as "Chloe", the title track "The Fox", and "Just Like Belgium", as well as the minor hit - a remake of a French hit - "Nobody Wins". Musically this album is significant too for being a partial studio reunion of Elton John with his original rhythm section comprised of bassist Dee Murray and drummer Nigel Olsson, who had officially rejoined his touring band in 1980. Artistically, I would rank "The Fox" as among Elton's best from the 1980s; this underappreciated, often overlooked, album of his shouldn't be ignored by his diehard fans and others interested in his music.
