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

[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.

i haven't seen that video clip in 30 years!

Ken Russell at his most restrained..

 

[Michael Marshall]

oh yeah and while it was almost a relief that everyone involved in collating Diamonds conveniently forgot all about 1986's "Leather Jackets" it is a bit of a shame that the largely excellent 1995 "Made In England" album was so under-represented on the compilation besides "Believe", at the very least i'd have expected the title track to represent a post-70's punchier tune and that 2004's "Peachtree Road" and 2006's "The Captain & The Kid" were also totally airbrushed out of the picture

it might have been fun to hear "The Bridge" or "Tinderbox", or "Answer In The Sky" or "Turn The Lights Out When You Leave" in Atmos.

ahh.. maybe not.. i better get my coat, dear, it looks like rain!

I too, was disappointed that the "Made In England" album was overlooked once again, as I felt (and still do!) that this was his most complete and musically satisfying (and sonically too...) album from the 90's onward.

 

[fredblue]

I too, was disappointed that the "Made In England" album was overlooked once again, as I felt (and still do!) that this was his most complete and musically satisfying (and sonically too...) album from the 90's onward.

hard to describe the palpable gut-wrenching i felt when Greg Penny wasn't Producer again after the mostly brilliant (was never massively keen on “Bel-faaaast") "Made In England" album and the resultant general awfulness of "The Big Picture"

 

[key_wiz]

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...

According to his autobiography, he wasn't joking.

 

[SeanSKA01]

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.

This is mind blowing in 5.1 on my (non-Atmos) system

 

[GilWave]

DR13 in not compressed. Maybe you mean lossy?

Sorry, yes. I was referring to the data being compressed so it will stream across various internet pipes - it is lower bandwidth than what is on physical media.

 

[jaybird100]

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.

It was also a hit, although to a lesser extent, here in the US, too. I noticed the version on this Blu-ray is a longer version than the single, and sounds really great in surround. This disc is, from what I can tell, the best fold-down from Atmos to 5.1, that I've heard yet.

 

[Bob Finholm]

I'm also happily luxuriating in the aural highs of the 'Diamonds' set.

Really enjoying the interesting comments regarding 'Honky Cat'. It reminded me of my older brother playing the 'Honky Chateau' 8-track continuously in his car back in the day. I remember DETESTING that song when I was 10 years old. Not sure why I hated it so much. I guess it was just too different for my pop music ears that were more attuned to Carpenters, Chicago, Bread and early solo Beatles.

Who knew that 50+ years later, it would become one of my favorite tracks? I still have the 8-track, by the way, and it still works! And my brother still has the same Cutlass (but that's another story). But the 8-track doesn't hold a candle to this new set.

 

[mrcond]

Oh, one more minor complaint-- I wish there was something on the insert that said which albums (and years) the songs were from, especially since the order of the songs gets a bit out of whack.

The Wikipedia entry for this collection is a good source for this information. I agree they should have included it in the booklet but this is still convenient.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamonds_(Elton_John_album)

Or, you could just ask @fredblue, he will know!

 

[fredblue]

for the Atmos tracklist, the album & year info is as follows;

1.) "Elton John" (1970),
2.) "Madman Across The Water" (1971),
3.) "Honky Château" (1972),
4.) "Honky Château" (1972),
5.) "Don't Shoot Me, I'm Only The Piano Player" (1973),
6.) "Don't Shoot Me, I'm Only The Piano Player" (1973),
7.) "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" (1973),
8.) "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" (1973),
9.) "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" (1973),
10.) "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" (1973),
11.) "Caribou" (1974),
12.) Single / Bonus Track on CD Remaster of "Captain Fantastic & The Brown Dirt Cowboy" (1975),
13.) "Rock Of The Westies" (1975),
14.) "Captain Fantastic & The Brown Dirt Cowboy" (1975),
15.) Single / Bonus Track on CD Remaster of "Rock Of The Westies" (1976),
16.) "Blue Moves" (1976),
17.) "21 at 33" (1980),
18.) "A Single Man" (1978),
19.) "Jump Up!" (1982),
20.) "Too Low For Zero" (1983),
21.) "Too Low For Zero" (1983),
22.) "Breaking Hearts" (1984),
23.) "Ice On Fire" (1985),
24.) "Reg Strikes Back" (1988),
25.) "Sleeping With The Past" (1989),
26.) "The Big Picture" (1997),
27.) "Songs From The West Coast" (2001),
28.) "The Lion King" (1994),
29.) "The Thom Bell Sessions" (1977/1989),
30.) Single / Bonus Track on Deluxe 2-CD reissue of "Peachtree Road" (2005),
31.) "The Diving Board" (2013),
32.) "Wonderful Crazy Night" (2016),
33.) "The Lion King" (1994),
34.) Single / Bonus Track on CD Remaster of "Don't Shoot Me, I'm Only The Piano Player" (1973),
35.) Single / Bonus Track on CD Remaster of "Captain Fantastic & The Brown Dirt Cowboy" (1974),
36.) Single / Bonus Track on CD Remaster of "Caribou" (1974),
37.) "The Thom Bell Sessions" (1977/1989),
38.) "A Single Man" (1978),
39.) "Jump Up!" (1982),
40.) "Too Low For Zero" (1983),
41.) "The One" (1992),
42.) "Duets" (1993),
43.) "Made In England" (1995),
44.) Single / Duet with Pavarotti (1996),
45.) Single / "Aida" (1999),
46.) "Songs From The West Coast" (2001),
47.) "Good Morning To The Night" (2012),
48.) Single / Bonus Track on CD Remaster of "Caribou" (1973).

 

[esimms86]

for the Atmos tracklist, the album & year info is as follows;

1.) "Elton John" (1970),
2.) "Madman Across The Water" (1971),
3.) "Honky Château" (1972),
4.) "Honky Château" (1972),
5.) "Don't Shoot Me, I'm Only The Piano Player" (1973),
6.) "Don't Shoot Me, I'm Only The Piano Player" (1973),
7.) "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" (1973),
8.) "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" (1973),
9.) "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" (1973),
10.) "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" (1973),
11.) "Caribou" (1974),
12.) Single / Bonus Track on CD Remaster of "Captain Fantastic & The Brown Dirt Cowboy" (1975),
13.) "Rock Of The Westies" (1975),
14.) "Captain Fantastic & The Brown Dirt Cowboy" (1975),
15.) Single / Bonus Track on CD Remaster of "Rock Of The Westies" (1976),
16.) "Blue Moves" (1976),
17.) "21 at 33" (1980),
18.) "A Single Man" (1978),
19.) "Jump Up!" (1982),
20.) "Too Low For Zero" (1983),
21.) "Too Low For Zero" (1983),
22.) "Breaking Hearts" (1984),
23.) "Ice On Fire" (1985),
24.) "Reg Strikes Back" (1988),
25.) "Sleeping With The Past" (1989),
26.) "The Big Picture" (1997),
27.) "Songs From The West Coast" (2001),
28.) "The Lion King" (1994),
29.) "The Thom Bell Sessions" (1977/1989),
30.) Single / Bonus Track on Deluxe 2-CD reissue of "Peachtree Road" (2005),
31.) "The Diving Board" (2013),
32.) "Wonderful Crazy Night" (2016),
33.) "The Lion King" (1994),
34.) Single / Bonus Track on CD Remaster of "Don't Shoot Me, I'm Only The Piano Player" (1973),
35.) Single / Bonus Track on CD Remaster of "Captain Fantastic & The Brown Dirt Cowboy" (1974),
36.) Single / Bonus Track on CD Remaster of "Caribou" (1974),
37.) "The Thom Bell Sessions" (1977/1989),
38.) "A Single Man" (1978),
39.) "Jump Up!" (1982),
40.) "Too Low For Zero" (1983),
41.) "The One" (1992),
42.) "Duets" (1993),
43.) "Made In England" (1995),
44.) "The Big Picture" (1997),
45.) Single / "Aida" (1999),
46.) "Songs From The West Coast" (2001),
47.) "Good Morning To The Night" (2012),
48.) Single / Bonus Track on CD Remaster of "Caribou" (1973).

Adam, you’re the best! I don’t care what Ralphie says about you!

 

[JFHiggins]

for the Atmos tracklist, the album & year info is as follows;

1.) "Elton John" (1970),
2.) "Madman Across The Water" (1971),
3.) "Honky Château" (1972),
4.) "Honky Château" (1972),
5.) "Don't Shoot Me, I'm Only The Piano Player" (1973),
6.) "Don't Shoot Me, I'm Only The Piano Player" (1973),
7.) "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" (1973),
8.) "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" (1973),
9.) "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" (1973),
10.) "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" (1973),
11.) "Caribou" (1974),
12.) Single / Bonus Track on CD Remaster of "Captain Fantastic & The Brown Dirt Cowboy" (1975),
13.) "Rock Of The Westies" (1975),
14.) "Captain Fantastic & The Brown Dirt Cowboy" (1975),
15.) Single / Bonus Track on CD Remaster of "Rock Of The Westies" (1976),
16.) "Blue Moves" (1976),
17.) "21 at 33" (1980),
18.) "A Single Man" (1978),
19.) "Jump Up!" (1982),
20.) "Too Low For Zero" (1983),
21.) "Too Low For Zero" (1983),
22.) "Breaking Hearts" (1984),
23.) "Ice On Fire" (1985),
24.) "Reg Strikes Back" (1988),
25.) "Sleeping With The Past" (1989),
26.) "The Big Picture" (1997),
27.) "Songs From The West Coast" (2001),
28.) "The Lion King" (1994),
29.) "The Thom Bell Sessions" (1977/1989),
30.) Single / Bonus Track on Deluxe 2-CD reissue of "Peachtree Road" (2005),
31.) "The Diving Board" (2013),
32.) "Wonderful Crazy Night" (2016),
33.) "The Lion King" (1994),
34.) Single / Bonus Track on CD Remaster of "Don't Shoot Me, I'm Only The Piano Player" (1973),
35.) Single / Bonus Track on CD Remaster of "Captain Fantastic & The Brown Dirt Cowboy" (1974),
36.) Single / Bonus Track on CD Remaster of "Caribou" (1974),
37.) "The Thom Bell Sessions" (1977/1989),
38.) "A Single Man" (1978),
39.) "Jump Up!" (1982),
40.) "Too Low For Zero" (1983),
41.) "The One" (1992),
42.) "Duets" (1993),
43.) "Made In England" (1995),
44.) "The Big Picture" (1997),
45.) Single / "Aida" (1999),
46.) "Songs From The West Coast" (2001),
47.) "Good Morning To The Night" (2012),
48.) Single / Bonus Track on CD Remaster of "Caribou" (1973).

Wee tweak to this… #44 is not the version of Live Like Horses that is found on The Big Picture. This Pavarotti version is from a stand-alone single that followed the album’s release.

 

[fredblue]

Wee tweak to this… #44 is not the version of Live Like Horses that is found on The Big Picture. This Pavarotti version is from a stand-alone single that followed the album’s release.

duly amended, including year change from 1997 as the CD Single(s) came out in 1996. thank you for the tweak!

 

[ar surround]

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!!

What is strange is that I knew "Nikita" was a man's name, but it didn't register as such because the first time I heard the song was on the MTV music video; and Nikita is a female love interest.

I guess we had the wrong Nikita all along. Maybe it was this Nikita:

https://historicimages.com/products/dfpy88209

But somehow I think not!

 

[fredblue]

What is strange is that I knew "Nikita" was a man's name, but it didn't register as such because the first time I heard the song was on the MTV music video; and Nikita is a female love interest.

I guess we had the wrong Nikita all along. Maybe it was this Nikita:

https://historicimages.com/products/dfpy88209

But somehow I think not!

sorry, i can't keep up, the posts keep moving!

 

[esimms86]

sorry, i can't keep up, the posts keep moving!

Adam, if you can’t keep up on an “Elton” thread where does that leave the rest of us!

 

[colsky]

What is strange is that I knew "Nikita" was a man's name, but it didn't register as such because the first time I heard the song was on the MTV music video; and Nikita is a female love interest.

I guess we had the wrong Nikita all along. Maybe it was this Nikita:

https://historicimages.com/products/dfpy88209

But somehow I think not!

I always thought Nikita was a song about Elton's love of his camera!

I'm really enjoying Diamonds and am still regularly playing it. It prompted me to watch the Rocketman biopic film over the weekend. Excellent, no idea why I'd never watched that before. Possibly because the previous biopic film that I had watched was the Queen film, which had major historical inaccuracies that ruined it. No idea of the historical accuracy of Rocketman though. *** paging fredblue !!!

 

[esimms86]

I always thought Nikita was a song about Elton's love of his camera!

I'm really enjoying Diamonds and am still regularly playing it. It prompted me to watch the Rocketman biopic film over the weekend. Excellent, no idea why I'd never watched that before. Possibly because the previous biopic film that I had watched was the Queen film, which had major historical inaccuracies that ruined it. No idea of the historical accuracy of Rocketman though. *** paging fredblue !!!

They didn’t use real cocaine.

 

[fredblue]

I always thought Nikita was a song about Elton's love of his camera!

I'm really enjoying Diamonds and am still regularly playing it. It prompted me to watch the Rocketman biopic film over the weekend. Excellent, no idea why I'd never watched that before. Possibly because the previous biopic film that I had watched was the Queen film, which had major historical inaccuracies that ruined it. No idea of the historical accuracy of Rocketman though. *** paging fredblue !!!

there's maybe the odd instance of a minor anachronism in Rocketman, the main one people bring up is "Crocodile Rock" (1973) in The Troubadour (1970) but i've also heard some criticism about "I Want Love" being used when Elton's a little kid and "Saturday Night's Alright For Fighting" when Elton's a teenager.

i never had a problem with any of that tbh, it's artistic licence in a musical after all and using the music to develop the narrative rather than stick slavishly to a timeline or whatever.

it was also suggested he was possibly 'somewhat off his tits' in rehab in the telling of the movie, which might account for any haziness in Reg's recollections!

 

[fredblue]

Adam, if you can’t keep up on an “Elton” thread where does that leave the rest of us!

we're all at sea in this Crazy Water discussion! oops wrong forum!