TINY
DANCER
ELTON
JOHN
SONGWRITER: ELTON JOHN & BERNIE TAUPIN
COUNTRY: U. K.
ALBUM: MADMAN ACROSS THE WATER
LABEL: DJM RECORDS
GENRE: POP ROCK
YEAR: 1971
Sir Elton Hercules John(born Reginald Kenneth
Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly
nicknamed the Rocket Man after his 1972 hit single of the same
name, John has led a commercially successful
career as a solo artist since the 1970s, having released 31 albums since 1969. Collaborating
with lyricist Bernie Taupin since 1967, John is acclaimed by critics and musicians, particularly
for his work during the 1970s, and his lasting impact on the music industry. John's
music and showmanship have had a significant impact on popular music. His songwriting
partnership with Taupin is one of the most successful in history.
Raised in Pinner,
John learned to play piano at an early age, and by 1962 had formed Bluesology, a blues
band he was a member of until 1967. He met his longtime musical partner Taupin
in 1967, after they both answered an advert for songwriters. For two years,
they wrote songs for other artists, and John worked as a session musician for
artists. In 1969, John released his debut album Empty Sky.
In 1970, he formed the Elton John Band and released his first hit single, "Your Song",
which became his first top ten in both the UK and the US. John's critical
success was at its peak in the 1970s, when he released a streak of
chart-topping albums in the US and UK, which began with Honky Château(1972)
and culminated with Rock of the
Westies(1975). John continued his success in the
1980s and 1990s, having several hit singles and albums in both decades, and has
continued to record new music since then. He has also had success in musical
films and theatre, composing music for The Lion King and its stage
adaptation, Aida and Billy Elliot
the Musical. In 2017, John released the
greatest hits album Diamonds,
spanning his hits from 1970 to 2016. In 2018, John began his ongoing farewell
tour Farewell
Yellow Brick Road, which will conclude in 2023.
John's autobiography, Me, was
published in 2019. That same year, his life and music career was dramatised in
the biopic Rocketman. While
he did not appear in his own biopic, John has made cameos in other films and
television shows.
Outside of music, John is an HIV/AIDS charity
fundraiser, and has been involved in the fight against AIDS since the late
1980s. Following the deaths of Ryan White and Freddie Mercury, John
established the Elton John
AIDS Foundation in 1992, and a year later
he began hosting his annual Foundation Academy Awards Party,
which has since become one of the biggest high-profile Oscar parties in the Hollywood film industry. Since its inception, the foundation has raised over
£300 million. John owned Watford F.C. from 1976 to 1987 and again from 1997 to 2002, and is an honorary
life president of the club.
John is one of the best-selling
artists of all time, having sold over 300 million
records worldwide in a six decade career in music. He has more than fifty Top
40 hits in the UK Singles Chart and US Billboard Hot 100,
including nine number ones in the UK and US, as well as seven consecutive
number-one albums in the US. His 1973 double album Goodbye
Yellow Brick Road and his 1974 Greatest Hits compilation album are among the best-selling
albums worldwide. His tribute single "Candle in the
Wind 1997", a rewritten version of his 1974 single in dedication to Diana,
Princess of Wales, sold over 33million copies
worldwide and is the best-selling
chart single of all time. In 2019, John was ranked
by Billboard as the top solo artist in US chart history (third overall), and the
top Adult
Contemporary artist of all time. In 2021, John
became the first solo artist with UK Top 10 singles across six decades.
Madman Across the Water is the fourth studio
album by English musician Elton John,
released in 1971 through DJM and Uni Records. The
album was his third album to be released in 1971, at which point John had been
rising to prominence as a popular music artist. The album contains nine tracks,
each composed and performed by John and with lyrics written by songwriting
partner Bernie Taupin. Yes band
keyboardist Rick Wakeman plays
Hammond organ on three songs.
There were two singles released from Madman
Across the Water, "Levon"
and "Tiny Dancer".
The album was certified gold in February 1972, followed by platinum in March
1993, and 2× platinum in August 1998 by the RIAA. The
album was included in Robert Dimery's 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.
On 10 June 2022, the album was reissued as a deluxe edition for its 50th
anniversary, featuring 18 unreleased tracks including demos, outtakes and
alternate takes, as well as a 40-page book detailing the album's creation with
notes from John and Taupin.
Blue-jean baby
L.A. lady
Seamstress for the band
Pretty-eyed
Pirate smile
You'll marry a music man
Ballerina
You must've seen her
Dancing in the sand
And now she's in me
Always with me
Tiny dancer in my hand
Jesus freaks
Out in the street
Handing tickets out for God
Turning back
She just laughs
The boulevard is not that bad
Piano man
He makes his stand
In the auditorium
Looking on
She sings the songs
The words she knows
The tune she hums
But oh, how it feels so real
Lying here, with no one near
Only you and you can hear me
When I say softly, slowly
Hold me closer, tiny dancer
Count the headlights on the highway
Lay me down in sheets of linen
You had a busy day today
Hold me closer, tiny dancer
Count the headlights on the highway
Lay me down in sheets of linen
You had a busy day today
Blue-jean baby
L.A. Lady
Seamstress for the band
Pretty-eyed
Pirate smile
You'll marry a music man
Ballerina
You must have seen her
Dancing in the sand
Now she's in me
Always with me
Tiny dancer in my hand
Oh, oh, how it feels so real
Lying here, with no one near
Only you, and you can hear me
When I say softly, slowly
Hold me closer, tiny dancer
Count the headlights on the highway
Lay me down in sheets of linen
You had a busy day today
Hold me closer, tiny dancer
Count the headlights on the highway
Lay me down in sheets of linen
You had a busy day today.