Breaking Hearts

by Elton John

Overview

Building off of the success of his previous long player Too Low For Zero (1983), Elton John (piano/vocals) retained his 'classic quartet' for the follow-up Breaking Hearts (1984). After an eight year ('75 -- '83) hiatus Dee Murray (bass/backing vocals), Davey Johnstone (guitar/backing vocals) and Nigel Olsson (drums/backing vocals) briefly reunited with John and Bernie Taupin (lyrics) to attempt a musical resurrection of their early-to-mid '70s sound. Without question this is one of John's most consistent efforts during his half decade on Geffen Records ('81 -- '86). However the shift in pop music styles since 1975 as well as lack of edgy material, seemed to stifle the band's return to full form circa Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (GYBR) (1973) or Captain Fantastic And The Brown Dirt Cowboy (1975). Breaking Hearts was not light on hits either, yielding "Who Wears These Shoes" as well as the Top 5 smash "Sad Songs (Say So Much)"." The oft over looked "L'il 'Frigerator" is a high octane rocker that could be considered a post script to "Your Sister Can't Twist (But She Can Rock 'n' Roll)" from GYBR. The opening cut "Restless" is also one of the spunkier tracks and came off particularly well when John hit the road with his formidable sidemen to support the disc. The vast majority of Breaking Hearts however, is met with varying degrees of success. Both "In Neon" and the reggae-dub influenced "Passengers" were best suited to the lighter pop genre and Adult Contemporary radio format where John joined the ranks of Phil Collins, Lionel Ritchie and George Michael. This stylistic direction, while concurrently popular, also criminally under-utilised the synergy between the artist and band. With the exception of the noir 'unplugged' title performance "Breaking Hearts (Ain't What It Used To Be)" a majority of the LP is indistinguishable from much of the rest of his mid '80s and early '90s catalogue. ~ Lindsay Planer

Product Details

Release Date:	05/27/2003
Label:	Geffen / Mercury / Rocket Group
UPC:	0044007711125

Tracks

1. Restless
2. Slow Down Georgie (She's Poison)
3. Who Wears These Shoes?
4. Breaking Hearts (Ain't What It Used to Be)
5. Li'l 'Frigerator
6. Passengers
7. In Neon
8. Burning Buildings
9. Did He Shoot Her?
10. Sad Songs (Say So Much)

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Elton John   Primary Artist,Vocals,Keyboards
Ray Cooper   Percussion
Nigel Olsson   Drums,Vocals
Bernie Taupin   Wind
Davey Johnstone   Guitar,Vocals,Synthesizer
Andrew Thompson   Soloist,Saxophone
Dee Murray   Bass,Vocals

Technical Credits

John Tobler   Liner Notes
Joe Black   Project Coordinator
Bernie Taupin   Composer
David Costa   Design,Art Direction
Davey Johnstone   Composer
Elton John   Composer
Chris Thomas   Producer
Renate   Engineer
Jane Hitchin   Tape Research
Zoe Roberts   Tape Research
Jim Taig   Tape Operator
Richard D. Young   Photography
Phineas McHize   Composer
Patrick Jones   Photography
Tim Young   Mastering