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Elton goes Country

W

westlife

Guest
This morning i heard "Cat Country 107.3" (WPUR Atlantic City, NJ) play a new country duet called "Where We Both Say Goodbye" by Elton John & Catherine Britt. Are other stations picking up this song? Upon first (and only) listen, it's hard to tell whether it'll just be a novelty song among country fans, or if it'll actually gain some success. But stranger things have happened... for example, who would've thought a duet by Kid Rock and Sheryl Crow would become a country hit? And maybe if Elton scores a Country hit, then maybe we'll see a new duet by Randy Travis & Dolly Parton.... hint hint wink wink.

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Elton John has done country material before - he recorded "A Woman Needs" duet with Tammy Wynette and also sang "Stand By Your Man" on a Tammy Wynette tribute album. Some of his early material had a folk-country feel. I would think that country radio would love to play a crossover song like this, especially if it also gets played on AC stations, good appeal to the target female audience.
 
Is the "Rocket Man" only the second musician in the "country" music books with the name of Elton?

Anyone recall Elton Britt? Were there any other "Eltons"?

http://www.mp3.com/elton-britt/artists/21682/biography.html<P ID="signature">______________
"Be seeing you..."</P>
 
> Is the "Rocket Man" only the second musician in the
> "country" music books with the name of Elton?
>
> Anyone recall Elton Britt? Were there any other "Eltons"?
>
> http://www.mp3.com/elton-britt/artists/21682/biography.html

Well, Elton's real name isn't "Elton John", but I guess that's besides the point since we've never really known him as anything else.

That being said, the only other Elton to ever show up on the Billboard pop chart since 1955 was Elton Anderson, who only had one Top 100 chart appearance with "Secret Of Love" at a whopping #88 in 1960. I don't have the data for the Country charts on hand, so like you say there may be some other Elton(s) out there as well.

In the "close, but no cigar" category would be Elvin Bishop, who had four Top 100-charting pop singles in the late '70s, but is best known for his #3 1976 hit "Fooled Around and Fell In Love" -- later covered as a country duet by T. Graham Brown and Tanya Tucker.

Anyway.... I bet the folks at <a target="_blank" href=http://www.americanpridetv.com/>American Pride</a> would be a bit befuddled if the first openly gay man to have a legitimate Country hit was not one of their candidates, but rather Sir Elton (who wouldn't even qualify for their competition, since he's not an American).

And as for some of Elton's '70s hits having a Country-ish sound, I think that's most true of "Tiny Dancer", with the prominent steel guitars in its arrangement -- which, of course, has since been covered by Tim McGraw.
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Re: Elton Britt

> Is the "Rocket Man" only the second musician in the
> "country" music books with the name of Elton?
>
> Anyone recall Elton Britt? Were there any other "Eltons"?
>
>
> http://www.mp3.com/elton-britt/artists/21682/biography.html
>
I'm too young to really remember Elton Britt - but my grandmother remembers him and says he was quite the yodeler. One of his biggest songs was "There's A Star-Spangled Banner Waving Somewhere," released in 1942 on the RCA Bluebird label.

Apparently, his career had peaked by the time the charts came into existence in 1944.<P ID="signature">______________
..broadcasting from the land of bent towers, flooded studios and wind...Florida!!</P>
 
Re: Elton Britt

According to the BB Book of Country Hits, Elton Britt had 11 chart singles between 1945 and 1950, the highest charting being "Someday (You'll Want Me To Want You)" which peaked at #2 (for 5 weeks) in 1946. "There's A Star Spangled Banner Waving Somewhere" was his biggest hit by far, but was released in 1942, I believe, before the charts were started. I've heard sales estimates as high as 5 million copies. After 1950, he faded from the charts, but returned in the summer of 1968 with a song called "Jimmie Rodgers' Blues" which actually got into the mid 20's on the charts, which I think is amazing for that time, because A. it's a singer who hadn't had a hit in about 18 years, B. the song was about a singer who, while legendary, had been gone for over 30 years, and C. the song is about 5 1/2 minutes long; a rarity in those days. I also heard one time on American Country Countdown, several years ago, that Britt's 1948 hit "Chime Bells" holds the distinction of having longest held note of any song to ever reach country's top 40. Now that's trivia!!!!

Mike

> > Is the "Rocket Man" only the second musician in the
> > "country" music books with the name of Elton?
> >
> > Anyone recall Elton Britt? Were there any other
> "Eltons"?
> >
> >
> >
> http://www.mp3.com/elton-britt/artists/21682/biography.html
> >
> I'm too young to really remember Elton Britt - but my
> grandmother remembers him and says he was quite the yodeler.
> One of his biggest songs was "There's A Star-Spangled Banner
> Waving Somewhere," released in 1942 on the RCA Bluebird
> label.
>
> Apparently, his career had peaked by the time the charts
> came into existence in 1944.
>
 
Re: Elton Britt

> I'm too young to really remember Elton Britt - but my
> grandmother remembers him and says he was quite the yodeler.
> One of his biggest songs was "There's A Star-Spangled Banner
> Waving Somewhere," released in 1942 on the RCA Bluebird
> label.

I personally know that song from hearing Peter Gruzdien's version of it on WFMU's "Incorrect Music" program. I never knew that was a cover version until you mentioned this. And I bet Peter took the song's lyrics into a direction that Mr. Britt never thought of -- the chorus is largely the same as the original, but one of the verses goes: "Though I realize I'm **** that is true, sir / don't judge me by my preference or sex / Let me show Uncle Sam what I can do, sir / Let me help to bring the terrorists down a peg"...

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Re: Elton Britt

There's a classic country show on our local community station WRDV in Hatboro, suburban Philadelphia, Pa. that still plays a lot of Elton Britt & pre-50's artists. You can listen online at wrdv.org Fridays 7-10pm eastern. I'm sure if you called & requested any of these songs host Jack Boland would have them & play them. The long yodel note on Chime Bells IS amazing to hear!



> According to the BB Book of Country Hits, Elton Britt had 11
> chart singles between 1945 and 1950, the highest charting
> being "Someday (You'll Want Me To Want You)" which peaked
> at #2 (for 5 weeks) in 1946. "There's A Star Spangled
> Banner Waving Somewhere" was his biggest hit by far, but was
> released in 1942, I believe, before the charts were started.
> I've heard sales estimates as high as 5 million copies.
> After 1950, he faded from the charts, but returned in the
> summer of 1968 with a song called "Jimmie Rodgers' Blues"
> which actually got into the mid 20's on the charts, which I
> think is amazing for that time, because A. it's a singer who
> hadn't had a hit in about 18 years, B. the song was about a
> singer who, while legendary, had been gone for over 30
> years, and C. the song is about 5 1/2 minutes long; a rarity
> in those days. I also heard one time on American Country
> Countdown, several years ago, that Britt's 1948 hit "Chime
> Bells" holds the distinction of having longest held note of
> any song to ever reach country's top 40. Now that's
> trivia!!!!
>
> Mike
>
> > > Is the "Rocket Man" only the second musician in the
> > > "country" music books with the name of Elton?
> > >
> > > Anyone recall Elton Britt? Were there any other
> > "Eltons"?
> > >
> > >
> > >
> >
> http://www.mp3.com/elton-britt/artists/21682/biography.html
> > >
> > I'm too young to really remember Elton Britt - but my
> > grandmother remembers him and says he was quite the
> yodeler.
> > One of his biggest songs was "There's A Star-Spangled
> Banner
> > Waving Somewhere," released in 1942 on the RCA Bluebird
> > label.
> >
> > Apparently, his career had peaked by the time the charts
> > came into existence in 1944.
> >
>
 
Re: Elton Britt

Anyone who's never heard that is definately in for an experience. I actually have it on a late 60's-early 70's RCA album of Elton Britt hits.


> There's a classic country show on our local community
> station WRDV in Hatboro, suburban Philadelphia, Pa. that
> still plays a lot of Elton Britt & pre-50's artists. You
> can listen online at wrdv.org Fridays 7-10pm eastern. I'm
> sure if you called & requested any of these songs host Jack
> Boland would have them & play them. The long yodel note on
> Chime Bells IS amazing to hear!
>
>
>
> > According to the BB Book of Country Hits, Elton Britt had
> 11
> > chart singles between 1945 and 1950, the highest charting
> > being "Someday (You'll Want Me To Want You)" which peaked
>
> > at #2 (for 5 weeks) in 1946. "There's A Star Spangled
> > Banner Waving Somewhere" was his biggest hit by far, but
> was
> > released in 1942, I believe, before the charts were
> started.
> > I've heard sales estimates as high as 5 million copies.
> > After 1950, he faded from the charts, but returned in the
> > summer of 1968 with a song called "Jimmie Rodgers' Blues"
> > which actually got into the mid 20's on the charts, which
> I
> > think is amazing for that time, because A. it's a singer
> who
> > hadn't had a hit in about 18 years, B. the song was about
> a
> > singer who, while legendary, had been gone for over 30
> > years, and C. the song is about 5 1/2 minutes long; a
> rarity
> > in those days. I also heard one time on American Country
> > Countdown, several years ago, that Britt's 1948 hit "Chime
>
> > Bells" holds the distinction of having longest held note
> of
> > any song to ever reach country's top 40. Now that's
> > trivia!!!!
> >
> > Mike
> >
> > > > Is the "Rocket Man" only the second musician in the
> > > > "country" music books with the name of Elton?
> > > >
> > > > Anyone recall Elton Britt? Were there any other
> > > "Eltons"?
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > >
> >
> http://www.mp3.com/elton-britt/artists/21682/biography.html
> > > >
> > > I'm too young to really remember Elton Britt - but my
> > > grandmother remembers him and says he was quite the
> > yodeler.
> > > One of his biggest songs was "There's A Star-Spangled
> > Banner
> > > Waving Somewhere," released in 1942 on the RCA Bluebird
> > > label.
> > >
> > > Apparently, his career had peaked by the time the charts
>
> > > came into existence in 1944.
> > >
> >
>
 
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