JOHN, ELTON

To follow up an album that pretty much couldn't be followed--the flashy and brilliant GOODBYE YELLOW BRICK ROAD--Elton John hid away in the Caribou Ranch studio outside Denver, Colorado and recorded a certified pop mish-mash. CARIBOU contains bits of arena-rock corn ("Stinker") alongside period-pop pieces that could have passed for showtunes ("Dixie Lily"), complete goofs ("Solar Prestige A Gammon") and the usual magical ballads. It's easy to overlook CARIBOU when reviewing John's '70s catalog, but to do so is to miss a couple of his greatest singles. "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me," which features a chorus of two Beach Boys and Toni Tenille, is a gospelly ballad completely worthy of those contributions, and the strutting "The Bitch Is Back" is rock arrogance of the highest order--it became Tina Turner's signature concert opener. CARIBOU also contains some compelling filler. Among the lesser-known tracks are the lovely ballad "Pinky," which seems to be about some sort of secret liaison, "I've Seen The Saucers," an odd little number about UFOs that happens to feature one of John's most committed vocal performances, and "Ticking," an epic ballad about a mass-murderer.

Estimated despatch 5-10 days after ordering.