''Goodbye Yellow Brick Road'' is the seventh studio album by English singer, pianist, and composer

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, songwriter and pianist. His music and showmanship have had a significant, lasting impact on the music industry, and his songwriting partnership with l ...

. A

double album A double album (or double record) is an audio album that spans two units of the primary medium in which it is sold, typically either records or compact disc. A double album is usually, though not always, released as such because the recording ...

, it was released on 5 October 1973, by DJM Records. Recorded at the

Château d'Hérouville The Château d'Hérouville (commonly referred to as Honky Château) is a French 18th-century château located in the village of Hérouville, in the Val d'Oise département of France, near Paris. The château was built in 1740 by "Gaudot", an arc ...

in France, the album became a double LP once John and his band became inspired by the locale. Among the 17 tracks, the album contains the hits "

Candle in the Wind "Candle in the Wind" is a threnody-style ballad written by English musician Elton John and songwriter Bernie Taupin, and performed by John. It was originally written in 1973, in honour of Marilyn Monroe, who had died 11 years earlier. In 199 ...

", US number-one single " Bennie and the Jets", "

Goodbye Yellow Brick Road ''Goodbye Yellow Brick Road'' is the seventh studio album by English singer, pianist, and composer Elton John. A double album, it was released on 5 October 1973, by DJM Records. Recorded at the Château d'Hérouville in France, the album became ...

", and " Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting", along with the live favourites " Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding" and "All the Girls Love Alice". The album was a strong commercial success, reaching number one on the ''Billboard'' Top LPs & Tape chart; it has since sold more than 20 million copies worldwide and is widely regarded as John's

magnum opus A masterpiece, , or ; ; ) is a creation that has been given much critical praise, especially one that is considered the greatest work of a person's career or a work of outstanding creativity, skill, profundity, or workmanship. Historically, ...

. It was inducted into the

Grammy Hall of Fame The Grammy Hall of Fame is a hall of fame to honor musical recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance. Inductees are selected annually by a special member committee of eminent and knowledgeable professionals from all branches of ...

in 2003,"Grammy Hall of Fame Award
. ''Grammy.org''. Retrieved 21 December 2012 and continues to be highly regarded in various rankings. It was ranked number 112 on ''

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. The magazine was first known fo ...

''s 2020 list of the "

500 Greatest Albums of All Time 5 (five) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number, and cardinal number, following 4 and preceding 6, and is a prime number. Humans, and many other animals, have 5 digits on their limbs. Mathematics 5 is a Fermat pri ...

". In 2025, the album was deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

and selected for preservation in the

National Recording Registry The National Recording Registry is a list of sound recordings that "are culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant, and inform or reflect life in the United States." The registry was established by the National Recording Preservation ...

Production

Under the working titles of ''Vodka and Tonics'' and ''Silent Movies, Talking Pictures'',

Bernie Taupin Bernard John Taupin (born 22 May 1950) is an English lyricist and visual artist. He is best known for his songwriting partnership with Elton John, recognised as one of the most successful partnerships of its kind in history. Taupin co-wrote th ...

wrote the lyrics in two and a half weeks, with Elton John composing most of the melodies in three days while staying at the Pink Flamingo Hotel in

Kingston, Jamaica Kingston is the Capital (political), capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long spit (landform), sand spit which connects the town of Por ...

. John had wanted to go to Jamaica, in part because

the Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

had just recorded '' Goats Head Soup'' there. Production on the album was started in Jamaica in January 1973, but due to difficulties with the sound system and the studio piano, logistical issues arising from the

Joe Frazier Joseph William Frazier (January 12, 1944November 7, 2011) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1965 to 1981. Nicknamed "Smokin' Joe", he is widely regarded as one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time. He was known for ...

–

George Foreman George Edward Foreman (January 10, 1949 – March 21, 2025) was an American professional boxer, businessman, minister, and author. In boxing, he competed between 1967 and 1997, and was nicknamed "Big George". He was a two-time world heavyweig ...

boxing match Boxing is a combat sport and martial art. Taking place in a boxing ring, it involves two people – usually wearing protective equipment, such as protective gloves, hand wraps, and mouthguards – throwing punches at each other for a p ...

taking place in Kingston, and protests over the political and economic situation in the country, the band decided to move before any productive work was done. ''Goodbye Yellow Brick Road'' was recorded in two weeks at the Studio d'enregistrement

Michel Magne Michel Magne (20 March 1930 in Lisieux, Calvados, France – 19 December 1984 in Cergy-Pontoise, Val-d'Oise) was a French film and experimental music composer. Early life He was the fifth child in a family of eight. As young as age five, h ...

, at the

near

Pontoise Pontoise () is a commune north of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris, in the "new town" of Cergy-Pontoise. Administration Pontoise is the official (capital) of the Val-d'Oise '' département'', although in reality the ' ...

, in France, where John had previously recorded '' Honky Château'' and ''

Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player ''Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player'' is the sixth studio album by English musician Elton John. Released on 26 January 1973 by DJM Records, it was the first of two studio albums he released in 1973 (the second was '' Goodbye Yellow Br ...

''. While a version of " Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting" was recorded in Jamaica, that recording was discarded; the released version of the song came from the sessions at the Château. The band plays on all the songs except "This Song Has No Title", on which John performs all the piano, keyboard and vocal parts. According to the album's producer,

Gus Dudgeon Angus Boyd "Gus" Dudgeon (30 September 1942 – 21 July 2002) was an English record producer, who oversaw many of Elton John's most acclaimed recordings, including his commercial breakthrough, " Your Song". Their collaboration led to seven US N ...

, the album was not planned as a two-record collection. John and Taupin composed a total of 22 tracks for the album, of which 18 (counting "Funeral for a Friend" and "Love Lies Bleeding" as two distinct tracks) were used, enough that it was released as a

, John's first (three more such albums followed up to 2011). Through the medium of cinematic metaphor, the album builds on nostalgia for a childhood and culture left in the past. Tracks include " Bennie and the Jets", "

", the 11-minute " Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding", and the

Marilyn Monroe Marilyn Monroe ( ; born Norma Jeane Mortenson; June 1, 1926 August 4, 1962) was an American actress and model. Known for playing comic "Blonde stereotype#Blonde bombshell, blonde bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex ...

tribute "

". "Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting" was inspired by memories of a

Market Rasen Market Rasen ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish within the West Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. The River Rase runs through it east to west, approximately north-east from Lincoln, England, Lincoln, eas ...

pub, Taupin frequented when younger. "Grey Seal", previously the B-side of the 1970 single " Rock and Roll Madonna", was re-recorded for the album. "

Harmony In music, harmony is the concept of combining different sounds in order to create new, distinct musical ideas. Theories of harmony seek to describe or explain the effects created by distinct pitches or tones coinciding with one another; harm ...

" the album's final track, was considered as a fourth single, but was not issued at the time because the chart longevity of the album and its singles brought it too close to the upcoming releases of ''

Caribou The reindeer or caribou (''Rangifer tarandus'') is a species of deer with circumpolar distribution, native to Arctic, subarctic, tundra, boreal, and mountainous regions of Northern Europe, Siberia, and North America. It is the only represe ...

'' and its proposed accompanying singles. It was, however, used as the B-side of the American release of the "Bennie and the Jets" single, and was popular on FM playlists of the day, especially

WBZ-FM WBZ-FM (98.5 FM) is a commercial sports radio station licensed to Boston, Massachusetts, serving Greater Boston and much of surrounding New England. Owned by the Beasley Broadcast Group, WBZ-FM is the Boston affiliate for Fox Sports Radio; t ...

in Boston, whose top 40 chart allowed for the inclusion of LP cuts and B-sides as voted for by listeners. "Harmony" spent three weeks at no. 1 on WBZ-FM's chart in June 1974 and ranked no. 6 for the year, with "Bennie and the Jets" at no. 1 and "

Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" is a song with music written by English musician Elton John and lyrics by songwriter Bernie Taupin. It was originally recorded by John for his eighth studio album, ''Caribou (album), Caribou'' (1974), and was ...

" behind "Harmony" at no. 7. "Harmony" was released as a single in Britain in 1980 and failed to chart.

Release and reception

The album was released on 5 October 1973 as a double LP, with cover art by illustrator Ian Beck depicting John stepping into a poster. It debuted at no. 17 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and quickly rose to no. 1 on its fourth week on the chart, where it stayed for eight consecutive weeks. It was the best-selling album in the US in 1974. The album was preceded by its lead single, "Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting", which reached no. 7 on the UK singles chart and no. 12 in the US. Its next single, "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" reached no. 6 in the UK and no. 2 in the US. "Bennie and the Jets" was released as a single in the US, and it topped the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for one week in 1974. And its final single, "Candle in the Wind", released in the UK, reached no. 11. The original 1973 LP was released on two discs, while the 1992 and 1995 CD remasters put the album on one disc, as it was slightly less than 80 minutes. The 30th anniversary edition followed the original format, splitting the album across two discs to allow the inclusion of the bonus tracks, while a DVD on the making of the album was also included. The album has also been released by Mobile Fidelity as a single disc 24-karat gold CD. The album (including all four bonus tracks) was released on SACD (2003),

DVD-Audio DVD-Audio (commonly abbreviated as DVD-A) is a digital format for delivering high-fidelity audio content on a DVD. DVD-Audio uses most of the storage on the disc for high-quality audio and is not intended to be a video delivery format. The ...

(2004), and Blu-ray Audio (2014). These high resolution releases included the original stereo mixes, as well as 5.1 remixes produced and engineered by Greg Penny. ''Goodbye Yellow Brick Road'' is widely regarded as one of John's best albums, and is one of his most popular;. It is his best-selling studio album. In the US, it was certified gold on 12 October 1973 (just days after release), 5× platinum in March 1993, and eventually 8× platinum in February 2014 by the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

Legacy

The album was inducted into the

in 2003, and was included in the 2005 book ''

1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die ''1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die'' is a musical reference book first published in 2005 by Universe Publishing. Part of the ''1001 Before You Die'' series, it compiles writings and information on albums chosen by a panel of music criti ...

''. In 2003 and 2012, the album was ranked number 91 on ''

'' magazine's list of

the 500 greatest albums of all time "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" is a recurring opinion survey and music ranking of the finest albums in history, compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and indu ...

, and re-ranked number 112 in a 2020 revised list. ''Goodbye Yellow Brick Road'' ranked number 59 in

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

's 2009 list of 100 Greatest Albums. In 2023, Joe Lynch of ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' ranked the album cover, depicting the "bedazzled rocker – wearing ruby red platform heels and a bomber jacket with his name on it — step

ing Ing, ING or ing may refer to: Art and media * '' ...ing'', a 2003 Korean film * i.n.g, a Taiwanese girl group * The Ing, a race of dark creatures in the 2004 video game '' Metroid Prime 2: Echoes'' * "Ing", the first song on The Roches' 199 ...

into a poster of the famed yellow brick road Dorothy and her coterie followed to the

Emerald City The Emerald City (sometimes called the City of Emeralds) is the capital city of the fictional Land of Oz in L. Frank Baum's ''Oz'' books, first described in '' The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' (1900). Fictional description Located in the center of ...

of Oz," as the 74th best album cover of all time. Lynch dubbed the image career-defining, as it "

came out Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBTQ people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. This is often framed and debated as a privacy issue, ...

three years before Elton himself did – but if you didn't get that he was a

Friend of Dorothy A "friend of Dorothy" (FOD) is a code word (communication), code word for a gay man, first used in LGBTQ slang. Stating that, or asking if someone is a ''friend of Dorothy'', is a furtive way of suggesting sexual orientation while avoiding hostilit ...

based on this, that's on you." The liner note illustration for the song "I've Seen That Movie Too", depicting silhouettes in front of a movie screen, inspired the staging of the comedy television series ''

Mystery Science Theater 3000 ''Mystery Science Theater 3000'' (abbreviated as ''MST3K'') is an American science fiction comedy television series created by Joel Hodgson. The show premiered on WUCW, KTMA-TV (now WUCW) in Saint Paul, Minnesota, on November 24, 1988. It then ...

''.

Track listing

Personnel

According to the album's liner notes. Track numbers refer to CD and digital releases of the album. *

– vocals, acoustic piano (1–6, 8–10, 12–17),

Fender Rhodes The Rhodes piano (also known as the Fender Rhodes piano) is an electric piano invented by Harold Rhodes, which became popular in the 1970s. Like a conventional piano, the Rhodes generates sound with keys and hammers, but instead of strings, t ...

(5, 6), Farfisa organ (3, 5, 7, 13),

Mellotron The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical musical instrument developed in Birmingham, England, in 1963. It is played by pressing its keys, each of which causes a length of magnetic tape to contact a Capstan (tape recorder), capstan, which pulls i ...

(5, 6, 11) *

David Hentschel David Hentschel (born 18 December 1952) is an English recording engineer, film score composer and music producer who engineered on George Harrison's ''All Things Must Pass'' and Elton John's ''Goodbye Yellow Brick Road'', as well as for such a ...

–

ARP synthesizer ARP Instruments, Inc. was a Lexington, Massachusetts manufacturer of electronic musical instruments, founded by Alan R. Pearlman, Alan Robert Pearlman in 1969. It created a popular and commercially successful range of synthesizers throughout the ...

(1, 12) *

Davey Johnstone David William Logan Johnstone (born 6 May 1951) is a Scottish rock guitarist and vocalist, best known for his long-time collaboration with Elton John as a member of the Elton John Band. Career Johnstone was born in Edinburgh. At the age of s ...

– acoustic guitar, electric guitar, Leslie guitar,

slide guitar Slide guitar is a technique for playing the guitar that is often used in blues music. It involves playing a guitar while holding a hard object (a slide) against the strings, creating the opportunity for glissando effects and deep vibratos that ...

steel guitar A steel guitar () is any guitar played while moving a steel bar or similar hard object against plucked strings. The bar itself is called a "steel" and is the source of the name "steel guitar". The instrument differs from a conventional guitar i ...

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and in modern forms is usually made of plastic, where early membranes were made of animal skin. ...

, backing vocals (1, 2, 4, 10, 13, 17) *

Dee Murray David Murray Oates (3 April 1946 – 15 January 1992), known as Dee Murray, was an English bass guitarist. He was best known for his long-time collaboration with Elton John as a member of the Elton John Band. Biography Murray was born in Gilli ...

– bass guitar, backing vocals (1, 2, 4, 10, 13, 17) *

Nigel Olsson Nigel Olsson (born 10 February 1949) is an English drummer, best known for being a lifelong member of the Elton John Band. He has had an equally long career as a session musician and composed, recorded and produced albums as a solo artist. Ca ...

– drums,

congas The conga, also known as tumbadora, is a tall, narrow, single-headed drum from Cuba. Congas are stave (wood), staved like barrels and classified into three types: quinto (drum), quinto (lead drum, highest), tres dos or tres golpes (middle), an ...

tambourine The tambourine is a musical instrument in the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zills". Classically the term tambourine denotes an instrument with a drumhead, thoug ...

, backing vocals (1, 2, 4, 10, 13, 17), car effects (12) *

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 ...

– tambourine (12) * Del Newman – orchestral arrangements (4, 8–10, 15, 17) * David Katz – orchestra contractor (4, 8–10, 15, 17) * Leroy Gómez – saxophone solo (16) *

Kiki Dee Pauline Matthews (born 6 March 1947), better known by her stage name Kiki Dee, is an English pop singer. Known for her blue-eyed soul vocals, she was the first female singer from the UK to sign with Motown's Tamla Records. Dee is best known f ...

– backing vocals (12) * Uncredited – Vocal interjections on "Jamaica Jerk-Off" (credited to Prince Rhino, Reggae Dwight and Toots Taupin, possibly a pseudonym for Elton John and Bernie Taupin, though this is uncertain), drum machine,

maracas A maraca ( , , ), sometimes called shaker or chac-chac, is a rattle which appears in many genres of Caribbean and Latin music. It is shaken by a handle and usually played as part of a pair. Maracas, also known as tamaracas, were rattles of d ...

timbales Timbales () or pailas are shallow single-headed drums with metal casing. They are shallower than single-headed tom-toms and usually tuned much higher, especially for their size.Orovio, Helio 1981. ''Diccionario de la música cubana: biográfic ...

claves Claves (; ) are a percussion instrument consisting of a pair of short, wooden sticks about 20–25 centimeters (8–10 inches) long and about 2.5 centimeters (1 inch) in diameter. Although traditionally made of wood (typically rosewood, ebony ...

on "Jamaica Jerk-Off",

castanets Castanets, also known as ''clackers'' or ''palillos'', are a percussion instrument ( idiophonic), used in Spanish, Calé, Moorish, Ottoman, Greek, Italian, Mexican, Sephardic, Portuguese, Filipino, Brazilian, and Swiss music. In ancient ...

on "Funeral for a Friend", shaker on "I've Seen That Movie Too", tambourine on "Social Disease",

accordion Accordions (from 19th-century German language, German ', from '—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a Reed (mou ...

vibraphone The vibraphone (also called the vibraharp) is a percussion instrument in the metallophone family. It consists of tuned metal bars and is typically played by using Percussion mallet, mallets to strike the bars. A person who plays the vibraphone ...

on "Sweet Painted Lady" Production *

– producer, liner notes *

– engineer * Peter Kelsey – assistant engineer * Andy Scott – assistant engineer * Barry Sage – tape operator (not listed in album credits) * David Larkham – art direction, artwork * Michael Ross – art direction, artwork * Ian Beck – artwork *

John Tobler John Hugen Tobler (born 9 May 1943) is a British rock music journalist, writer, occasional broadcaster, and record company executive. With Pete Frame, he was one of the founders of ''ZigZag'' magazine in April 1969. The magazine focused on the ...

– liner notes

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

References

External links

* {{Authority control Elton John albums 1973 albums Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients Albums produced by Gus Dudgeon Albums recorded at Trident Studios DJM Records albums MCA Records albums Albums recorded in a home studio Music based on The Wonderful Wizard of Oz United States National Recording Registry albums United States National Recording Registry recordings