Maps of Music

Jump Up! (1982)

Where the lyrics of Jump Up! take you, and where it was really made.

This album was recorded and mixed at AIR Studios in Montserrat, and Bernie Taupin later called it one of their worst albums.

Key places

Recorded at AIR Studios in Montserrat (1982)

Recording site AIR Studios Montserrat — The album was recorded and mixed digitally at AIR Studios in Montserrat. The source gives no exact session dates. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Recorded at Pathé Marconi Studios, France (1982)

Recording site Pathé Marconi studios — The album was also recorded and mixed digitally at Pathé Marconi Studios in France. The map point is set at Paris city centre, not the studio building. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Jump Up!: sixteenth studio album by British musician Elton John
• Released in 1982 by The Rocket Record Company; Geffen Records in the US and Canada
• Includes "Empty Garden (Hey Hey Johnny)", a tribute to John Lennon
• Inner sleeve shows John's lifelong friend Vance Buck and Gary Osborne's son Luke, then 5 years old

Background

• "Empty Garden (Hey Hey Johnny)" is a tribute to John Lennon
• Lennon had also signed with Geffen for Double Fantasy, which is now owned by EMI
• John sings in a deeper voice on several tracks, including "Blue Eyes", "Princess", "Ball and Chain" and "Spiteful Child"
• "Legal Boys" was written by John and Tim Rice, who later wrote lyrics for The Lion King and The Road to El Dorado
• Last studio album on which James Newton Howard played keyboards; he played with John again on the Gnomeo & Juliet soundtrack almost 30 years later

Recording

• Recorded and mixed digitally at AIR Studios in Montserrat and at Pathé Marconi Studios in France

Cover

• Inner sleeve artwork shows Vance Buck and Gary Osborne's then 5-year-old son Luke

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Born Reginald Kenneth Dwight in Pinner, Middlesex, on 25 March 1947.
• Won a junior scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music at age 11.
• Formed the blues band Bluesology in 1962; took the name Elton John in 1967.
• Joined DJM Records as a staff songwriter with lyricist Bernie Taupin in 1968.

Members

• Partnered with lyricist Bernie Taupin since 1967; Taupin writes lyrics and John composes the music.
• Backing band over the years included Davey Johnstone, Nigel Olsson, Dee Murray and Ray Cooper.

Career

• Debut album Empty Sky (1969); Honky Château (1972) became his first US number-one album.
• Seven consecutive US number-one albums between 1972 and 1975.
• Composed The Lion King and Aida with Tim Rice; won Academy Awards and a Tony Award.
• Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour (2018–2023) was the highest-grossing tour at the time.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Released in 1982 by The Rocket Record Company, except in the US and Canada, where Geffen Records released it

Reappraisal

• Lyricist Bernie Taupin, in a 2010 Sirius radio special, called it one of their worst albums
• Taupin called it a disposable album but said "Empty Garden" alone made it worth it
• Songs played on the Jump Up! Tour included "Ball and Chain", "Dear John", "Where Have All the Good Times Gone", "Empty Garden" and "Blue Eyes"
• "Blue Eyes" was added to the set lists of the 1984 Breaking Hearts and European Express tours
• "Blue Eyes" and "Empty Garden" were played in the 1999 solo piano tour sets

Records

• United States: certified gold by the RIAA in November 1982

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• "Desperation Train" was re-recorded by Bernie Taupin for his 1987 album Tribe, with a new melody written by Martin Page
• Outtakes such as "At This Time in My Life" and "Moral Majority" have not circulated on bootlegs or officially
• Pete Townshend played acoustic guitar on "Ball and Chain"
• "Take Me Down to the Ocean" was the B-side of "Empty Garden", and "Hey Papa Legba" was the B-side of "Blue Eyes"
• "Legal Boys" is credited to John and Tim Rice

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Maps of Ages ↗ (mapsofages.com)

Privacy · Contact