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<p><img src="https://www.songfacts.com/img-artalbums-145-dd813838f487b4cb1c417f80637eb92c.png"></p><p><br></p><p>Album: Caribou (1974)</p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p>This was an extremely difficult and frustrating song to record. Elton was not satisfied with any of his vocal takes, and producer Gus Dudgeon had fits trying to mix all the voices and instruments that went into it. In Philip Norman's book Sir Elton: The Definitive Biography, Dudgeon said, "When Elton recorded this track, he was in a filthy mood. On some takes, he'd scream it, on others he'd mumble it, or he'd just stand there, staring at the control room. Eventually, he flung off his headphones and said, 'Okay, let's hear what we got.' When Gus played it for him, Elton said, 'That's a load of crap. You can send it to Engelbert Humperdinck, and if he doesn't like it, you can give it to Lulu as a demo.'"</p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p>Elton claims he would not have attempted a song like this early in his career. He feels his voice has improved over the years, and by 1974, he had enough confidence and ability to sing with a very broad range.</p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p>This song came at a time when Elton was at the peak of his powers, but on an absurdly tight schedule that created a lot of tension. He and his band toured the last five months of 1973 before heading into Caribou Ranch studios in Colorado in January 1974 to record their next album in a window of just 10 days. They had to cut some corners (fewer takes, less refinement), but still made a very impressive album, a testament to the creative energy of those involved (including Bernie Taupin, who had to write a lot of lyrics very quickly).</p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p>Soon after recording the album - which was named after the studio - Elton shipped off to Japan where he started his tour on February 1. After being mixed in Los Angeles, the album was released in July with "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me" the first single. It went to number 2 in America, and the album hit number 1, where it stayed for four weeks. One more single was released from the set: "The Bitch Is Back," which went to number 4.</p>