"Indian Sunset" is a song written by English musician
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career a ...
and songwriter
Bernie Taupin
Bernard John Taupin (born 22 May 1950) is an English songwriter, singer and visual artist. He is best known for his long-term collaboration with musician Elton John, a songwriting partnership that is one of the most successful in history. Tau ...
, and performed by John. It was released on John's 1971 album ''
Madman Across the Water
''Madman Across the Water'' is the fourth studio album by English musician Elton John, released in 1971 through DJM and Uni Records. The album was his third album to be released in 1971, at which point John had been rising to prominence as a p ...
''.
Background
The song chronicles the story of an unnamed
American Indian warrior
A warrior is a person specializing in combat or warfare, especially within the context of a tribal or clan-based warrior culture society that recognizes a separate warrior aristocracies, class, or caste.
History
Warriors seem to have been ...
on the verge of defeat from the white man. Taupin was inspired to write the lyrics after visiting a Native American reservation. It contains numerous inaccuracies, most notably the line about
Geronimo
Geronimo ( apm, Goyaałé, , ; June 16, 1829 – February 17, 1909) was a prominent leader and medicine man from the Bedonkohe band of the Ndendahe Apache people. From 1850 to 1886, Geronimo joined with members of three other Central Apache ba ...
being shot by U.S soldiers. In reality, the Apache warrior died of pneumonia at the age of 79.
John told ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its cov ...
'' in 2011 that this is one of his favourites to play live: "I do 'Indian Sunset' with
Ray Cooper
Raymond Cooper (born 19 September 1947) is an English musician who has worked as a session and road-tour percussionist. During his career, Cooper has worked and toured with numerous musically diverse bands and artists including Elton John (as ...
. Nobody knows that song at all, it's an obscure track from ''Madman Across the Water'', and it gets a standing ovation every night. It's a six-minute movie in a song."
Sampling
In 2004, the song was
sampled
Sample or samples may refer to:
Base meaning
* Sample (statistics), a subset of a population – complete data set
* Sample (signal), a digital discrete sample of a continuous analog signal
* Sample (material), a specimen or small quantity of so ...
in an
Eminem
Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing hip hop in middle America and is critically acclai ...
-produced
Tupac Shakur
Tupac Amaru Shakur ( ; born Lesane Parish Crooks, June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known as 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential rappers of all time. Shakur is among the b ...
song entitled "
Ghetto Gospel". It topped the charts in United Kingdom, Australia, Czech Republic, Ireland, and Scotland. It also become a Top Ten and Top 20 hit on some countries.
References
1970s ballads
Rock ballads
Songs with music by Elton John
Songs with lyrics by Bernie Taupin
Indian Sunset
1971 songs
Song recordings produced by Gus Dudgeon
Songs about Native Americans
{{1970s-rock-song-stub