Elton John Diamonds (SDE Blu-Ray #31) Dec. 27th, 2024

[Rstaylor]

Listening to Honky Cat now. OK. While we all may be tired of this song.....to my ears, the Atmos mix brings it to a new level I thought I'd never appreciate. Killer...

Honky Cat is one of several EJ songs that I will never get tired of hearing.
And you are absolutely right, the Atmos mix is incredible

 

[sjcorne]

Listening to Honky Cat now. OK. While we all may be tired of this song.....to my ears, the Atmos mix brings it to a new level I thought I'd never appreciate. Killer...

Yeah, i cherry picked through the album today. I had to play Honky Cat 2x

Yeah, that track is definitely a standout. I remember the old 5.1 mix having all the horns mixed in stereo across the back, but in this version they seem to be floating above you (though not entirely in the top speakers) in more of a quad formation. Especially towards the end, it sounds like the higher-register notes are mostly in the front heights and the lower parts in the rear.

"Someone Saved My Life Tonight" is another one that felt like a big improvement over the previous 5.1 mix on SACD. The drums are just massive, and I love how the synth (or whatever that is) at around the 5-minute mark comes exclusively from the height speakers.

 

[perzon57]

Hope I'll get this sometime. The tracking said it was picked up on New Years Eve, after that no movement. Mailed SDE twice, no response.

 

[Bobby Martini]

i'd be a rich b!tch if i had a penny for every conversation about Elton's latest single/album over the last 30 or so years with both casual listeners and hardcore fans alike where they've said "ah it's alright but it's not as good as his old stuff"

I've said it before and I'll say it again.........his output was better when he was on the drugs !

 

[Bobby Martini]

BBC News - Elton John's hits album finally goes to number one - BBC News
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cp8kn2lr733o

I'd like to think we all had a hand in this

Bravo Elton

 

[GilWave]

The answer is simple: This is a Blu-ray Audio version of a previously released collection. Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Like Bleeding wasn't on that collection. That's why it's not on the Blu-ray.

Fair enough. And it is on the Atmos release of Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, so I've got it.

 

[GilWave]

This is not a collection curated for Atmos.

It was first released in 2017 in stereo as in both two and three CD versions. The first two discs are all singles and were hits on at least one chart.

The third disc was a "bonus disc" on the deluxe version with even more hit singles with every one of them having charted at least somewhere. The only true non-singles on the set were the Piano Version of "Skyline Pigeon" (b-side to "Daniel") and "Pinball Wizard", which received as much airplay at the time as if it were a single and charted in several countries based on airplay alone.

Could Funeral/Love Lies have been on the album? Sure. But so could have so many others. And GYBR is already well represented with 4 tracks. Tumbleweed Connection isn't represented at all. Some fairly big hits were left off. "Levon" could have been on here. "Border Song" . "Grow Some Funk Of Your Own" "I Feel Like A Bullet"

We can debate forever which tracks they could or could not have chosen but how well suited any are for Atmos clearly wasn't going to be the case for an album compiled without Atmos in mind at all.

You're right, of course. You are all right.

I will now soak my body in lamp oil and flagellate myself with the power cord of an original Technics SL1200MKII

 

[ar surround]

Comeback post of the (young) year from @GilWave regarding the Diamonds set:

"You're right, of course. You are all right.

I will now soak my body in lamp oil and flagellate myself with the power cord of an original Technics SL1200MKII"

 

[JediJoker]

Comeback post of the (young) year from @GilWave regarding the Diamonds set:

"You're right, of course. You are all right.

I will now soak my body in lamp oil and flagellate myself with the power cord of an original Technics SL1200MKII"

Perhaps it would be more pleasant to simplify purify oneself in the waters of Lake Minnetonka?

Sorry, wrong queer rock icon...

 

[Uncle Obscure]

So, it looks like somebody is buying these things! (Includes a shout out for the Blu-ray) https://deadline.com/2025/01/elton-...uk-top-spot-after-374-weeks-chart-1236254483/

 

[Tres Discrete]

Listening to Honky Cat now. OK. While we all may be tired of this song.....to my ears, the Atmos mix brings it to a new level I thought I'd never appreciate. Killer...

I’m actually never tired of that song!

 

[armyjazzer]

I just finished putting together a great 5.1 system. Still saving for expansion to Atmos. I ordered Diamonds and I hope it still sounds great on my 5.1 until I can make the upgrade. I have been surprised at how many of the SDE disks still sound fantastic even on just 5.1.

 

[mrcond]

Song for Guy is a pleasant surprise. Not really familiar with the song previously but it sure sounds sweet on this. Strange to me that this was a hit single (in the UK apparently), being an instrumental and all.

 

[mrcond]

My goodness does Nikita sound phenomenal! Probably my favorite of his 80s output. This mix takes it to another level.

 

[fredblue]

My goodness does Nikita sound phenomenal! Probably my favorite of his 80s output. This mix takes it to another level.

"Nikita" is my favourite of the new mixes of 80's material as well, a stunning Surround showcase with layers galore and so many lovely things happening all round the room to engage the senses

that said, "Little Jeannie" also sounds totally beautiful to me on the Blu-ray and wrapped up in a better Surround mix than i could have ever hoped for

it's January now but everyday is like stepping into Christmas when i play this set i even enjoyed "Empty Garden" last night and got through it without dissolving into a wet heap of blubbing because i was so busy picking out all the delightful details -- and that fabulously gutsy drumming of Jeff Porcaro never sounded better than it does now!

 

[fredblue]

Song for Guy is a pleasant surprise. Not really familiar with the song previously but it sure sounds sweet on this. Strange to me that this was a hit single (in the UK apparently), being an instrumental and all.

"Song For Guy" was a tune Elton was playing about with one morning when thinking of music he would like to have played at his own funeral.

coincidentally at the same time as he was composing it, a young employee of his record company who was like a courier for Rocket Records, called Guy Burchett, was tragically killed on his motorcycle aged just 18.

as soon as Elton heard the awful news the following day he dedicated the instrumental track to Guy, hence it's title "Song For Guy".

it ultimately got released as a single, unbelievably got in the Top 10 and is a track Elton couldn't get away without playing in concert throughout the 80's in certain territories, especially Australasia.

edit: 1978's "A Single Man" is for me one of his most underrated albums, imho the best tracks on it ("It Ain't Gonna Be Easy", "Madness", "Part-Time Love") are as good as anything he did for the next decade

 

[mrcond]

"Song For Guy" was a tune Elton was playing about with one morning when thinking of music he would like to have played at his own funeral.

coincidentally at the same time as he was composing it, a young employee of his record company who was like a courier for Rocket Records, called Guy Burchett, was tragically killed on his motorcycle aged just 18.

as soon as Elton heard the awful news the following day he dedicated the instrumental track to Guy, hence it's title "Song For Guy".

it ultimately got released as a single, unbelievably got in the Top 10 and is a track Elton couldn't get away without playing in concert throughout the 80's in certain territories, especially Australasia.

edit: 1978's "A Single Man" is for me one of his most underrated albums, imho the best tracks on it ("It Ain't Gonna Be Easy", "Madness", "Part-Time Love") are as good as anything he did for the next decade

You’re better than Wikipedia! Thanks for the background, interesting info for sure.

 

[ar surround]

My goodness does Nikita sound phenomenal! Probably my favorite of his 80s output. This mix takes it to another level.

"Nikita" is my favourite of the new mixes of 80's material as well, a stunning Surround showcase with layers galore and so many lovely things happening all round the room to engage the senses

Nikita is one of my favorite EJ songs in his entire output. I always liked the music video to:



Tidbit: The fellow in the music video who plays the male border guard was a henchman in the Bond film The Living Daylights.

 

[fredblue]

You’re better than Wikipedia! Thanks for the background, interesting info for sure.

i've got a book about Elton inside me!
sadly it's unpublishable!

 

[fredblue]

Nikita is one of my favorite EJ songs in his entire output. I always liked the music video to:



Tidbit: The fellow in the music video who plays the male border guard was a henchman in the Bond film The Living Daylights.

my favourite tidbit of trivia about "Nikita" is Bernie allegedly actually wrote it about a bloke and in a Classic case of misinterpretation with their "you wash, i'll dry" songwriting technique, Elton turned it into a love song with a woman!!

Nikita is a man's name after all... and Bernie apparently thought it was funny because Elton had joked about having interpersonal relations with a Russian soldier while he was on tour in the U.S.S.R. in 1979!

certainly made me feel differently about the track when i heard that bit of bar room banter...

a similarly funny incident like that was when Bernie was asked in an interview if he had ever been surprised by a melody Elton had set his Lyrics to. he replied that he had written this song in the 70's called "Hey Papa Legba", about mysticism and voodoo and when he finally heard the track Elton had unbelievably turned it into a big uptempo sh!t-kicking rocker with a wall of horns sound! needless to say it was relegated to a B-side some years later...