Michael Chapman's album Fully Qualified Survivor had just been released on Harvest. It featured some classic Mick Ronson guitar, instantly recognisable now as the sound Ronson would soon deliver on David Bowie's album The Man Who Sold The World. But in February 1970, it would be hard to say who was the more successful of the two, Bowie or Ronson.
Mick Ronson in 1970
David was at this point involved in his Arts Lab project and had formed an electric band, The Hype, a vehicle for the new songs he had written, some of which would be heard on his next album, The Man Who Sold The World.
The Hype was Bowie with Tony Visconti on bass, Mick Ronson on guitar and John Cambridge on drums. Cambridge had been replaced by Ronson's mate Woody Woodmansey by the time they came to record TMWSTW in the late summer of 1970.
Here's a short clip of them performing the Velvet Underground's 'I'm Waiting For The Man' at the 'Atomic Sunrise' festival in February 1970.
They also did a radio session for the BBC's Sounds Of The Seventies the following month.
Bowie was still a long way (another two years) from seeing any more commercial success, after his lone hit Space Oddity in 1969. Mick Ronson, on the other hand, was not only helping Bowie forge a new sound, but was being picked up by various other emerging artists, including Michael Chapman and Elton John.
Here is Ronson to the fore on this track from Fully Qualified Survivor, 'Stranger in the Room
The common denominator between Chapman and Elton was producer Gus Dudgeon. Gus was so impressed with Ronson's playing on Fully Qualified Survivor, he recommended Elton John check him out for his forthcoming album Madman Across The Water.
Ronson did record some guitar for Elton's record, but it didn't make the final mix of the original album release. In fact, it didn't see the light of day until much later, when a CD reissue of the album featured out-take tracks, including the version of Madman with Ronson's guitar part.
Meanwhile, as the above page from the Melody Maker of the time shows, on Tuesday this week, Ronson had started gigging with Bowie and The Hype, who were booked to play at the White Bear pub in Hounslow! In the advert, they were billed as 'David Bowie's new electric band'.
It's fair to say The Hype were not well received by the critics. Bowie's questing for the right sound to reboot his career would take a few more twists, before he finally hit the big time with Ziggy Stardust in 1972.
He was at a particularly low point when he appeared at Glastonbury in 1971, but took encouragement from the reception at the festival, even though he was playing at dawn.
Bowie told how he was up all night smoking dope with Terry Reid and Linda Lewis. He
took the stage at 5am, but
nonetheless he seems to have captivated those who were awake.
Bowie at Glastonbury in 1971
Audio
of his Glastonbury appearance exists, in which he thanks the
audience for appreciating him, at a time when he was considering giving
up playing live altogether:
"I just want to say that you’ve given me more pleasure than I’ve had in a
good few months of working. I don’t do gigs any more because I got
so pissed off with working, and dying a death every time I worked, and
it’s really nice to have somebody appreciate me for a change.”
The Supermen: Mick, David and Woody, 1971
Here's some rare footage of Michael Chapman, live in Paris in 1970, with Rick Kemp on bass and Richie Dharma on drums - both of whom are mentioned in the above news item about Chapman teaming up with Ronson in the MM cutting, under 'Folk News'.
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For his live shows in 1970 and afterwards, Elton reworked this heavily orchestrated song for the three piece band, with remarkable effect.
As he said of the breakthrough shows at the Troubadour in LA in August 1970 : "We came on; I was in flying boots and hotpants and did Sixty Years On. They weren't expecting it. They thought it was going to be a low-key thing, because the music on the 'Elton John' album was very orchestral. But with a three-piece band, we went out and did the songs completely differently and just blew everyone away. We knew halfway through the show that we were on fire."
I created this clip having discovered it buried in a much longer documentary and thought it was worth creating as a stand-alone, since the performance is so rare. Over 130,000 views last time I checked.
As a depiction of how you can go from being a pop fan to a pop idol in the blink of an eye, the story of how Elton John and Bernie Taupin went from sitting in the crowd at the 1969 Isle of Wight Festival watching Bob Dylan, to being ushered into Dylan’s presence at an LA club a few months later, is hard to beat.
In 1970, Elton was living at his mother’s house in Pinner, a suburb west of
London. with his songwriting partner Bernie Taupin. He was frustrated at their lack of success and had considered giving it all up and becoming a session pianist.
His recent album Elton John, had failed to capture the British public’s imagination, but it had gained a measure of recognition in America, where Elton was considered a new talent to match the singer songwriters of LA’s Laurel Canyon.
Russ Regan, an LA-based A&R man, picked up on the airplay the Elton John album was getting and wanted to bring Elton, drummer Nigel Olsson and bassist Dee Murray out to LA. Troubadour club owner Doug Weston agreed to give them a six night residency.
Having never been to America, but having worshipped its music from afar, Elton and Bernie went from the obscurity of a suburban living room in Pinner to the very centre of the music business in one move.
Elton and Bernie Taupin in 1970
Their opening night at the Troubadour, with Quincy Jones, Mike Love and Henry Mancini in the crowd, was the moment that changed Elton and Bernie’s lives forever.
The audience had come to hear the new British balladeer. Before the show Neil Diamond took the stage and introduced Elton: “Folks, I’ve never done this before, so please be kind to me. I’m like the rest of you; I’m here because of having listened to Elton John’s album. So I’m going to take my seat with you now and enjoy the show.”
Elton himself recalled: “It was very hot and smoky and a great vibe. We came on; I was in flying boots and hotpants and did (a heavy version of) Sixty Years On. They weren’t expecting it. They thought it was going to be a low-key thing, because the music on the Elton John album was very orchestral. But with a three-piece band, we went out and did the songs completely differently and just blew everyone away. We knew halfway through the show that we were on fire.”
I have discovered some rare footage from 1971 of the trio playing Sixty
Years On, which shows perfectly how they beefed-up the songs; Elton pounding the piano, Nigel using mallets with gusto on the drums while Dee uses his bass like a lead guitar. It's had 260 thousand views so far.
On the second night at the Troubadour, Elton had looked up to see another hero, Leon Russell staring straight at him: “I nearly shat myself”. Then, one night at the Fillmore West in San Francisco, Elton and Bernie were led to a booth for an audience with Bob Dylan himself.
Elton told Mojo magazine: "Dylan said he loved the song My Father’s Gun, from Tumbleweed Connection. Bernie and I were petrified. Dylan has an aura about him. It’s not frightening, it’s just - foo, blimey."
Melody Maker Sept 5th 1970 notes Elton's success in LA
Having seen the Troubadour show, Robert Hilburn, music critic for the Los Angeles Times, wrote: “Tuesday night at the Troubadour was just the beginning. He’s going to be one of rock’s biggest and most important stars.”
But much like the Stax artists who toured Britain in the 60s as major stars, only to return to the US as nobodies, back in London, Elton's career moved slowly forward.
Record sales remained sluggish, but that all changed in February 1971, when his label DJM released Your Song from Elton John as a single. A whole different phenomenon was about to begin – the era of Elton as a pop star in the UK.
With a run of hit singles in 1971 and '72 - Honky Cat, Rocket Man, Crocodile Rock, Daniel etc, Elton found himself increasingly part of the developing Glam Rock scene, along with T. Rex, David Bowie and Roxy Music. This played well with his natural flamboyance on stage, and the costumes became more outrageous.
Front page of Melody Maker 1973
In contrast, his reputation in the US grew on the strength of his albums, particularly the ersatz Americana of Tumbleweed Connection and the Laurel Canyon songwriter vibe of Madman Across The Water.
In the UK, his albums from 1972’s Don’t’ Shoot Me, I’m Only The Piano Player onwards sold well, but his earlier albums such as Tumbleweed and Madman, both full of great songs, did not get the attention they deserved at the time, nor probably even today from record buyers in the UK.
The elaborate lyric books that came with Elton's early 70s LPs
For more insight into how good those early shows were, the album 17-11-70 captures a live radio broadcast in New York that year. Also worth checking out, for the sheer power of their performance, is the Cleveland Music Hall show on 26th November 1970, available at the Concert Vault website - http://www.wolfgangsvault.com/elton-john/concerts/music-hall-cleveland-november-26-1970.html
It's easy to see why he created such a buzz in America. He demanded your attention and rightly so - these are powerful performances.
With his mother and stepfather in Pinner, 1971
Pinner happens to be my hometown too, though Elton is
significantly older than me and our paths have never crossed. When he was making the journey to LA for his big breakthrough, I was about to enter my second year of high school. One of the first singles I bought was Rocket Man.
To conclude this piece, here's another example of how Elton's life changed so dramatically in 1970. Every year, Pinner has its May Fair. In his diary for May 1969, Elton wrote, “Went to Pinner Fair with Mick and Pat. I won a coconut and two goldfish!" He called them John and Yoko.
Wind forward five years and Elton played a key role in reuniting the real John and Yoko after their brief separation. During this period, Elton collaborated with Lennon on the songWhatever Gets You Through The Night.
May 1974. Elton John was already an international star and had recently been appointed as a director of Watford Football Club, my home team.
These were the days before Watford were even close to getting into the top division (Division 1 as it was then) of the football league. They were in need of a boost financially, so Elton agreed to put on a benefit concert. Tickets were £1 and it was billed as Elton John and guests.
Nazareth opened the concert. My mates and I were fans of their album 'Loud 'N Proud' which included the hit single version of Joni Mitchell's 'This Flight Tonight' as well as a cover of the Little Feat song 'Teenage Nervous Breakdown'.
We held back during Nazareth's set but then a couple of us moved
right to the front of the stage for Elton's show.
This was the classic EJ band, with Dee
Murray, Nigel Ollson and Davey Johnstone, plus Ray Cooper on
percussion.
Watford are known as The Hornets and so Elton naturally arrived on stage in a hornet (well, more like a bee) costume. You can see from the footage of the concert here that Elton's colourful outfit was a contrast with the long hair and denim of most of us in the crowd (I'm down there at front centre). It was a good-natured crowd and I remember at least one streaker. There were a few glammed-up Rod-alikes and by the sound of the screaming, quite a few girls.
Elton's set included recent classics like Candle In The Windand Daniel. They also debuted a new single, a cover version of The Beatles' Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds. Rod Stewart’s appearance certainly added an extra element of star quality. He strode on stage wearing a white silk suit and matching scarf and his trademark
haircut - every inch the rock star. This was pre-Atlantic Crossing,
the point at which he focussed on making it big in America. He sang a
mix of Elton material that he had covered on his early solo albums.
Melody Maker's front page about the Watford gig and rock's football fans
The second video clip shows Rod's entrance and the run-through of Country Comforts. It's just a shame the sound balance has his vocals way down. There are no official release clips from this concert, so this is all we have to go on. I remember the Elton John Band being really professional and excellent musicians. It was a treat to see them up-close. I remember thinking I had never seen a drummer wearing headphones on stage, the way Nigel Ollson did.
The photo here, taken from the front page of the following week's Melody Maker, is pretty much the view I had down at the front. The article in the MM - 'How rock gets its kicks' was about how people like Elton, Rod, Ian Hunter, Rick Wakeman, Dave Gilmour and Roger Waters were "confirmed soccer freaks". This was 10 years before Watford had their period of
success in the old first division under the management of Graham Taylor.
At this point, they had made it up from the third to the second
division and were holding their own without ever really looking like
being promoted to the first division. They had a brief glory period in
the 1969-70 season, beating Liverpool 1-0 in the FA cup quarter finals
before being trounced 5-1 by Chelsea in the semis.
The Liverpool manager Bill Shankly said
bitterly they had never lost to a worse team, but to judge from the clip
below, Watford could have won three or four - nil. Anyway, Chelsea went
on to
win the cup that year, beating Leeds United in a replay at Old Trafford.
Watford continued in lower league mediocrity for several years until
Taylor was appointed and took them right up to the First Division.
My son and I at a recent game
Having stood on the terraces as a 12
year-old through my mid-teens, I drifted
away in adulthood. And now I live overseas I don't get to the football much, but I keep track of the team's fortunes.
The
ground is looking much better now, enclosed on all sides. And for the
past few seasons, despite a revolving door of managers, the team have
held their own in the Premier League. (Edit: the current owners have lost the plot with this firing managers business and Watford now sit mid-table in the Championship (2nd division)).
Rod Stewart joins Elton on stage at Watford FC, May 1974
And to bring it all up to date (almost), here is Elton playing Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding at Watford FC in his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour in 2022. The tickets cost a bit more than £1!!
It's May 1971, Andy Williams is top of the album charts and the front page of the MM announces that the legendary Fillmore rock venues in San Francisco and New York are to close.
Promoter Bill Graham says he refuses to pay the increasingly high prices being charged by the top groups for what he sees as a decline in the quality of the music.
The front page on May 8 1971 also has details of a European tour by Rod Stewart & The Faces, including an appearance at the Crystal Palace Garden Party in August.
In the 'Pop 30', Double Barrel by Dave and Ansil Collins retains the top spot but Tony Orlando and Dawn are knocking at the door (or is it the ceiling?).
The Stones are at 3 with Brown Sugar, while T. Rex's first big hit has peaked. There's some classic singles in there, and this being the singles chart, some odd ones too. The album chart is quite impressive for the sheer number of classic rock albums in the list.
American soul artists did very well in the singles charts throughout
the late 60s and early 70s, including these gems from this week in 1971.
What's interesting at this time is how different the British albums charts are from the US charts. Bands like Three Dog Night, Grand Funk, Chicago, Brewer & Shipley didn't make any impression in the UK.
Good to see The Yes Album, my favourite of theirs, riding high in the UK album charts, alongside Jethro Tull's Aqualung.
Elton John was making his first breakthrough in the UK at this time
(on the back of Your Song) with three albums in the British charts.
Interesting, then, that on page 8 (below) in MM's news from America, it says that Elton is struggling to sell tickets. "Elton is dead in New York," says an unnamed observer.
Page 8 of Melody Maker starts by noting the popularity of the all-girl band Fanny and the news that a film about Jimi Hendrix, called Rainbow Bridge is about to be released. Further down the page , there's a report about The Doors having abandoned all future plans to tour. The report says, "Jim Morrison can be reached right now somewhere in France." And sadly for Jim, he died there two months later.
Here's a couple of gig reviews from this week
In the letters page, the jury is still out on whether Led Zeppelin's new acoustic direction (on LZ III) is going down well with the fans. "Please leave the gentle songs to people like The Strawbs," says one. Further down, Stevie Wonder is referred to as an "abominable popcorn merchant". On the left of the page, John Peel gets a kicking for his criticism of Deep Purple. The letter says, "By dismissing groups like Deep Purple, ELP and more recently CSN&Y and at the same time applauding musical dullards like Medicine Head, Bridget St. John, Ron Geesin, Brinsley Schwartz etc, John Peel is influencing the hard-core of his non-musical followers with his worthless opinions."
