Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy

Performer: Elton John
Artist: John Lennon
Engineer: Jeff Guercio; Jeff Guercio...
Producer: Gus Dudgeon; Greg Penny; Gus Dudgeon...
Distributor: Universal Distribution

Notes: Personnel: Elton John (vocals, strings, piano, electric piano, harpsichord, Clavinet, Mellotron, keyboards, synthesizer, ARP synthesizer); Elton John; John Lennon (guitar); Dee Murray (bass guitar, background vocals); Ray Cooper (congas, bongos, cymbals, Jew's harp, shaker, tambourine, triangle, percussion, bells, hand bells, gong); Davey Johnstone (vocals, guitar, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, mandolin, piano, synthesizer, background vocals); David Hentschel (keyboards, synthesizer, ARP synthesizer); Nigel Olsson (drums, background vocals). Audio Mixer: Greg Penny. Audio Remasterer: Tony Cousins. Audio Remixers: Gus Dudgeon; Phil Dunne. Liner Note Author: John Tobler. Recording information: Caribou Ranch, CO. Ensemble: Elton John. Illustrators: Harry Willock; Alan Aldridge. Arranger: Gene Page. Sitting atop the charts in 1975, Elton John and Bernie Taupin recalled their rise to power in Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy, their first explicitly conceptual effort since Tumbleweed Connection. It showcases each at the peak of his power, as John crafts supple, elastic, versatile pop and Taupin's inscrutable wordplay is evocative, even moving. Although the musical skill on display here is dazzling, as it bounces between country and hard rock within the same song, this album needs time to reveal its treasures, but once it does, it captures John and Taupin at a career pinnacle. They collapsed in hubris and excess not long afterward, but this remains a testament to the strengths of their creative partnership. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Rolling Stone (12/11/03, p.134) - Ranked #158 in Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Albums Of All Time"

With his outrageous costumes and campy theatricality, the man formerly known as Reginald Dwight typified 1970s rock in all its excess, yet evaded fad-dom with an indomitable spirit, genial persona, and simple genius. From his beginnings as a sensitive singer and pianist through his ascent to superstardom, Elton John has enjoyed one of the longest and most successful careers in rock & roll. While a brief breakup with songwriting partner Bernie Taupin left some scars, John would rebound by the end of the '80s, remaining a constant on the pop charts, the definitive voice of musical eulogy with ever-evolving hit "Candle in the Wind," and a Broadway mover-and-shaker with long-running hits like LION KING, AIDA, and BILLY ELLIOT.

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