The
year is 1969 and while an unsuspecting world is soon to witness the
sunset
of the Beatles, followed by the losses of Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison
and
Janis Joplin, good things are about to happen in the world of rock and
roll. In the studios of Dick James during December 1968 and the spring
of 1969, Elton John and his songwriting "brother" Bernie Taupin were
hard
at work on the tracks that would comprise the very first Elton John
album,
"Empty Sky". This album and its related singles were not Elton's first
recordings. Coming off of his tenure with Bluesology, Elton had already
been on three of the band's singles between 1967 and 1968. Produced by
Steve Brown, originally on staff with DJM (later to go on to work for
Elton
as his project coordinator), "Empty Sky" ironically had no singles
generated
from the nine tracks on the original album, but the sessions for it
produced
two 45's that came out prior to the LP. The first was "Lady Samantha"
with
"All Across The Havens" as its' b-side. A solid single, it was Elton's
first "turntable hit" - a designation for a single that didn't sell
well,
but got lots of airplay. Released in January, 1969, it no doubt came
out
of the December recording sessions and got enough notice to be covered
by Three Dog Night the following year. Later in the Spring came the
issue
of yet another single, "It's Me That You Need" and its flipside, "Just
Like Strange Rain". This single (the only track from the sessions
recorded
at Olympic Studios) is interesting since it features the first use of
strings
and horns on an Elton record, though who did the arrangement is unknown
and currently under investigation. All four of these are included as
bonus
tracks on Rocket's remastered issue of "Empty Sky", which we'll look
into
forthwith. Remastered by Gus Dudgeon from the original mix masters,
"Empty
Sky was part of the first group of discs released under the "Classic
Years"
banner, and if you're starting in chronological order, then this album
is a good showcase for the pluses and minuses of both the audio and the
packaging. Before we get to that, let's look at some of the featured
highlights.
First off, "Empty Sky" is not unlike Billy Joel's "Cold Spring
Harbor"...
not a brilliant album but the signs of brilliance to come are all
around.
Joel's album featured "She's Got A Way", the first of his ballads that
embodied his burgeoning songwriting ability. And so perhaps the piece
de
resistance of "Empty Sky" is Elton and Bernie's stunningly beautiful
"Skyline
Pigeon" that showcases their growing mastery of the genre. But that's
not
all... the title track could well be the best Rolling Stones track the
band never wrote, an obvious tip of the hat to one of Elton's favorite
bands. Following that are an interesting assortment of tracks ranging
from
the metaphysical lyrics of "Valhalla", to the pop confection of "Lady,
What's Tomorrow?", to the blues-rock flavored "Sails" (with a
spectacular
guitar lead by Caleb Quaye) and the qwirky, ambitious and slightly
bizzare
"Gulliver/Hay Chewed/Reprise" medley, complete with its jazz
improvisational
break intercut between the dark dirge about the recollection of the
death
of beloved dog. The "Reprise" part of the track is an odd mixture of
"Gulliver"
and snippets of all the tracks before it all cross-faded until coming
to
a screeching halt at the end of the last bars of "Gulliver". In all
fairness,
while much of the songwriting, but later standards is pretty average,
considering
when it was done, it more than shows off the promise of the future to
follow.
Elton's melodies, while slightly pedestrian at times, go hand in hand
with
Bernie's now -and-then pretentious and abstract lyrics. When they work,
however, they are pretty effective and any shortcomings can be written
off to youth. Bottom line: the songs on "Empty Sky" were good practice
and by the time they sat down to work on the follow-up, the improvement
was dramatic. Technically, "Empty Sky" has had the best remastering
(esp.
Gus's) can offer it. It's new CD version features better bottom end,
improved
clarity and less noise than previous discs, though some of the inherent
shortcomings in the original production are still (and probably forever
more) part of the recordings. Even the bonus tracks sound generally as
if they were meant to be part of the collection and with the exception
of "It's Me That You Need", which is only a stand-out because of its
additional
instrumentation. MOST of the CD artwork is reproduced and John Tobler's
notes are typically enlightening and interesting, if in need of a bit
of
editing. What is missing is the original back cover artwork featuring
the
two reviews that were part of the sleeve design. Also, there are no
specific
credits relating to the bonus tracks. Some description about them is
made
here and there in Tobler's liner notes, but one is more or less left to
assume certain things about them, which is fine, but if you're going to
the trouble to assemble a remaster and include the tracks, spend a
little
extra time and annotate them better. Even though it's his first solo
effort,
there are some impressive and historically notable things in evidence
on
"Empty Sky". There's the first appearance of Nigel Olsson on "Lady,
What's
Tomorrow?" and some brilliant guitars by Caleb Quaye, who would do some
superlative work on several Elton recordings in the future. Bass player
Tony Murray also turns in stellar work, as does Roger Pope. There are
some
great guest bits turned in by Graham Vickery on sax and harmonica and
Don
Fay on flute. Elton himself plays multiple keyboards including piano,
electric
piano, organ and harpsichord. He even double tracks his voice well,
though
it's plainly obvious how untrained it is at this point. And as if that
weren't enough, Clive Franks makes his first appearance as Tape
Operator
and provides whistles on "Hymn 2000"! Not bad for a relatively obscure
record by one of rock's legendary royals! "Empty Sky" in spite of its
title
isn't really EMPTY. It's actually full of very listenable songs done by
a young singer full of youthful energy, partnered with a gifted lyric
writer,
written and performed with on a tiny budget to be sure but with enough
tender loving care that it makes the final product rise above its
technical
limitations.
Andy
Geisel - 22nd Row 2003
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