Zambelli 1 Dominic Zambelli Ms. Olding Eng.

200 October 6, 2013 Elton John Analysis I have chosen to write about Elton John for this glam rock analysis paper for a couple of reasons. I have always been a fan of Elton Johns music and first started listening to him when the Lion King soundtrack was released. There was something about his songs on that specific album that were catchy enough for me in wanting to discover more about who he was as a person, and his musical background. Elton John started to engage in music at a young age, which is when his career started to bloom. At age eleven, he received a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music, which is where he attended every Saturday morning for the next four years (EltonJohn.com). From here on out, Elton John exploited and took full advantage of his wonderful talent and is why he is considered as one of the top artists belonging in this genre. Elton John is incredible and has had a wonderful career when you take a look at some of the accolades that he has received throughout his career. He is the third most successful artist in the history of American charts, and lies behind Elvis Presley and the Beatles (EltonJohn.com). He has had fifty-six top forty singles in the United States, and achieved seven number one albums in the three and half year period from 1972-1975 (EltonJohn.com). He was born on March 25, 1947 in Pinner, Middlesex, England, and was given the name of Reginald Kenneth Dwight. He had an incredible talent at a young age and would sit down at the piano to play songs repetitively by ear (EltonJohn.com). His family was amazed by his capability in doing this and is when they knew something was good to come for his future. As I touched upon earlier, Elton John received a

Zambelli 2 scholarship at the age of eleven to attend the Royal Academy of Music. Elton John attended this Academy every Saturday morning for the next four years to broaden his talents. This was important because it served as a starting point for where he began and helped pave a path for him regarding his musical options for later on in life. Elton John began doing live performances in 1962 when he played the piano at The Northwood Hills hotel and went on to soon join his first band from here named The Corvettes (EltonJohn.com). Elton John also played the keyboard all throughout the UK with a band named Bluesology, and is when Eltons stage name became his legal name in 1967 (EltonJohn.com). Elton John has had a tremendous impact on music and has had a great level of success as well. Regarding the genre of Glam Rock, Elton Johns album named Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, was released in 1973. This album of his made a big statement for this genre. During this time, Glam Rock artists based their music off of three common core themes, which involve sexual exploration, exploration of self and drug exploration in regards to lyrics, vocal presentation, instrumentation and theatrics. I will describe in detail about two of his songs from the album Goodbye Yellow Brick Road and explain how they relate to the common core glam themes during this era according to my opinion. The first song that I am going to explore is called Dirty Little Girl. I strongly believe this song was written based upon sexual exploration. I think this is talking about sex because when I take a look throughout the lyrics, there are numerous times that deal with dirty and raunchy talk from a guy to a girl. For example, Im gonna put buckshots in your pants if you step into my yard (AZlyrics.com) is a lyric that stands out to me relating to sexual intercourse. This lyric is pretty aggressive from the guys standpoint

Zambelli 3 and sounds extremely sexual. Another part of the lyrics that stands out to me having to do with sex are Rub her down, scrub her back, And turn her inside out and You have to clean the oyster to find the pearl (AZlyrics.com). These lyrics are very aggressive, sexual, and talk about actions that are touchy pertaining to the girls body. When I listen to this song, Elton John is singing very confidently, his voice is a little scratchy, and the instruments that are used are performed in a secure manner. It comes across as he is pretty positive about what he is trying to say and wants this girl to know that she is a dirty little girl, but is willing to take advantage of her if the chance arises. This song relates to the Glam Rock Movement because it has many hints throughout the song that can relate to sexual exploration, which was one of the three main core themes of Glam. The second song by Elton John that I have chosen to explore is called Saturday Nights Alright (For Fighting). I strongly believe this song is written based upon drug exploration and exploration of self. When I take a look at the lyrics for this specific song, there are times where it sounds like Elton John is talking about actions happening when people are on drugs, while he also, may have been doing drugs during this time as well. It could have been his way of exploring himself during this specific time to see who he wanted to be as a person since drugs were such a common theme during this time frame. A few lyrics that give me these expressions are Dont give us none of your aggravation we had it with your discipline Saturday nights alright for fighting get a little action in (AZlyrics.com). These lyrics seem pretty tense and give me a thought that it is talking about drugs. Fighting is not a normal action to take part in, and when drugs are being used, you cant always necessarily control what is happening and never know what some people may be thinking. This is why I believe drug exploration takes place during this

Zambelli 4 song. Another example that I see relating to drugs is the lyric I may sink a little drink and shout out Shes with me! (AZlyrics.com). I view these lyrics talking about putting a form of drug in a girls drink, and taking advantage of her by saying Shes with me! All of these actions that are being talked about in this song are not normal actions people do above the influence and is why I have a hard time believing drugs are not being involved. While listening to this song being performed, you are able to hear the different types of instruments being used to put this piece together. You hear the drums, guitars, keyboard and symbols very loudly. Elton Johns voice also comes across scratchy, loud, and sings the lyrics very quickly. A lot of yelling is involved at different parts throughout the song and makes me refer back to the music during the drug era (1970s) when the majority of the songs sounded very similar to this one. I also believe Elton John may have been trying to explore himself as a person here by experimenting taking drugs on his behalf relating to the exploration of self theme. I chose to analyze this song to pertain to the Glam Rock Movement because I feel it has some of the qualities that are needed to belong in this group of music and it also carried along a couple of common themes to relate to the Glam Rock genre as well. Elton John is a great musical artist who has had a lot of success throughout his career. He used his talent to the highest degree and took every advantage he was able to get his hands on to make his music stand out. This is why people consider him to be one of the greatest musical artists of all time. After listening to a variety of songs written by Elton John, I can see how he can be linked to many different genres of music. However, after releasing one of his most successful albums, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, it was a

Zambelli 5 great way of showing his contribution to the Glam Rock movement during the 1970s.

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Works Citied "Elton John's Biography." The Official Site of Elton John. Elton John, 2012-2013. Web. 6 Oct. 2013. "Dirty Little Girl." ELTON JOHN LYRICS. AZ Lyrics, n.d. Web. 6 Oct. 2013. "Saturday Night's Alright For Fighting." ELTON JOHN LYRICS. AZ Lyrics, n.d. Web. 6 Oct. 2013.