Maps of Music

Tumbleweed Connection (1970)

Where the lyrics of Tumbleweed Connection take you, and where it was really made.

The album was recorded before Taupin and John had even been to the States, yet it is built on American country and Americana themes.

Key places

Where the album was recorded (1970)

Recording site Trident Studios — The album was recorded at Trident Studios in London in March 1970. Basic tracks for three songs were first recorded here during the sessions for the previous album. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Cover photo at Sheffield Park station (1970)

Album cover Sheffield Park railway station — The wraparound cover photo was taken at this late-nineteenth-century station on the Bluebell Railway in Sussex. The station was restored in 2020 to look as it did at the time of the photo. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Tumbleweed Connection: third studio album by British singer-songwriter Elton John
• Concept album based on country and western and Americana themes
• All songs written by John and Bernie Taupin, except "Love Song" by Lesley Duncan
• Recorded at Trident Studios, London, in March 1970
• Released October 1970 in the UK and January 1971 in the US
• UK Albums Chart peak: number two; US Billboard 200 peak: number five
• Ranked number 458 on Rolling Stone's 500 greatest albums of all time list (2012)

Background

• Taupin: the album was written and recorded before the two had been to the States
• Taupin: the album was totally influenced by The Band's album Music From Big Pink and Robbie Robertson's songs
• Taupin cited "El Paso" as the song that made him want to write songs
• Basic tracks for "Come Down in Time", "Country Comfort" and "Burn Down the Mission" recorded at Trident during the sessions for the previous LP, Elton John
• Overdubs for these tracks completed for this album
• Early version of "Madman Across the Water", with Mick Ronson on electric guitar, recorded during the sessions
• That early version was ultimately re-recorded for the Madman Across the Water album

Recording

• Dee Murray and Nigel Olsson appear together for the first time as the rhythm section on "Amoreena"
• Olsson had played on one track on Empty Sky in 1969
• Murray's first appearance on an Elton John album
• Several studio players from John's previous self-titled album also perform here
• Several tracks feature backing musicians from the band Hookfoot, DJM Records label mates
• Hookfoot guitarist Caleb Quaye and drummer Roger Pope had also appeared on Empty Sky

Cover

• Wraparound cover photo taken at Sheffield Park railway station in Sussex
• Location: about 30 miles (50 km) south of London on the Bluebell Railway
• Photographer Ian Digby Ovens shot John and Taupin in front of the late-nineteenth-century station
• Setting represents the rural Americana concept despite the English location
• August 2020: Bluebell Railway restored the station to its look at the time of the cover photo, for the album's 50th anniversary

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

• Rolling Stone's David Fricke: "1971's Tumbleweed Connection needs no improvement; it is one of the best country-rock albums ever written by London cowboys."
• Los Angeles Times's Robert Hillburn: called it a near-perfect album that artists often spend a whole career trying to produce
• Yahoo! Music's Dave DiMartino: called it a step up from the more overtly commercial Elton John, beautifully recorded, bordering on classic status
• The Word's Andy Gill: called it a full-bore paean to a forgotten America, clearly inspired by the Band's first two albums
• Gill: praised the swamp-rock sound of "Ballad Of A Well Known Gun" and "Son Of Your Father"

Reappraisal

• AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine: "These experiments are remarkably successful, primarily because Taupin's lyrics are evocative and John's melodic sense is at its best."
• The Rough Guide to Rock (1999), Neil Patrick: album best of the three John released in 1970
• The Great Rock Discography (2006), Martin C. Strong: "relatively successful attempt at retro Americana"
• Robert Christgau's 1981 Record Guide: "good melodies and bad Westerns on it."

Records

• UK Albums Chart peak: number two
• US Billboard 200 peak: number five
• Debuted at number 28 on Billboard's Top LPs, reaching its peak position in four weeks
• US: gold certification March 1971
• US: platinum certification August 1998 (RIAA)
• Rolling Stone's 500 greatest albums list (2012): number 458

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Dee Murray and Nigel Olsson first worked together as a rhythm section on "Amoreena", and this was Murray's first Elton John album.
• "Amoreena" was played from the getaway car's radio in Sidney Lumet's film Dog Day Afternoon; Lumet had shot the scene silent and only added the song after an editor played it.
• "Country Comfort" was also featured on Rod Stewart's Gasoline Alley, recorded and released shortly before this album.
• "Burn Down the Mission" is the album's most enduring song and one of very few non-singles played every night on the Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour.
• Phil Collins covered "Burn Down the Mission" in 1991 for the tribute album Two Rooms.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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