Ice On Fire

''Ice on Fire'' is the nineteenth studio album by English musician Elton John. It was released on 4 November 1985 through Geffen Records in North America and The Rocket Record Company elsewhere. Stemming from a desire for a change in sound, John fired the rhythm section of Dee Murray and Nigel Olsson, both of whom had performed on the preceding two albums, and opted to use multiple lineups of session musicians, including Fred Mandel, David Paton, and Charlie Morgan, as well as guest appearances by Sister Sledge, George Michael, and members of Queen. The album was recorded at The Sol in Cookham, Berkshire, and was John's first since '' Blue Moves'' (1976) to be produced by Gus Dudgeon.

In comparison to the pop rock sound of previous albums, ''Ice on Fire'' contains elements of soul and rhythm and blues music, while also exhibiting a contemporary 1980s sound, emphasizing synthesizers and electronic percussion. Bernie Taupin's lyrics explore both personal and political themes, such as war ("Cry to Heaven"), the economic decline in working-class communities ("This Town"), and the Cold War-themed " Nikita". A duet with Millie Jackson, "Act of War", was included as a bonus track on CD and cassette editions of the album.

''Ice on Fire'' was released to mixed commercial success. The album's first two singles—"Nikita" and " Wrap Her Up"—were successful, with the former reaching the top 10 in the US and UK, and the latter reaching the top 20 in both territories as well. The album itself reached number three in the UK, and has since received a Platinum certification by the BPI. However, the album was John's lowest-charting up to that point in the US, where it stalled at number 48, though it was eventually certified Gold by the RIAA. Reviews were mostly negative, and retrospective assessments of John's catalogue tend to rank the album near the bottom of his discography.

Background

The title of the album contains a line from the lyrics of " Nikita": "With eyes that looked like ice on fire".

Guests on the recording include Nik Kershaw; Sister Sledge; Pino Palladino; Mel Gaynor and Millie Jackson, who duetted with John on "Act of War"; George Michael, then of Wham!, who appears on " Nikita" and " Wrap Her Up"; and Roger Taylor and John Deacon of Queen who play drums and bass guitar on "Too Young".

According to Elizabeth Rosenthal in her book, ''His Songs: The Musical Journey of Elton John (p. 260; First edition)'', the LP's closing track, "Shoot Down the Moon", was considered for the James Bond film '' A View to a Kill'', but the producers instead decided to go with the title track as performed by Duran Duran for the film's soundtrack.

Track listing

* Sides one and two were combined as tracks 1–10 on CD reissues.

Notes
*The remastered 1999 version did not include "Act of War"; the 1999 remaster had a longer intro to "Satellite" than the LP and the 1985 CD issue, and has a slightly different vocal mix. The live version of "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word" is not the version found on the 12" single of "Nikita", but is an unreleased version from 1977 (Live at Rainbow Rock in May). It is unknown why the switch occurred. The other two live tracks were recorded at Wembley Stadium during the tour for the album ''Breaking Hearts''.
*"The Man Who Never Died" is a song written about John Lennon, in addition to " Empty Garden (Hey Hey Johnny)", from Elton John's album '' Jump Up!''

Personnel

Track numbering refers to CD and digital releases of the album.

Musicians

* Elton John – lead vocals, acoustic piano (1–3, 5, 8, 10, 11), Yamaha GS1 piano (4, 5), synthesizer (4, 7, 9, 11), backing vocals (4)
* Fred Mandel – synthesizers (1, 4, 5, 10, 11), keyboards (2, 3, 6–9), sequencer (6), electric guitar (7, 11), finger snaps (7), arrangements (10)
* Davey Johnstone – electric guitar (1, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9, 11), Spanish guitar (2), synth guitar (2, 7), backing vocals (3, 5, 6–9)
* Nik Kershaw – electric guitar (4, 7, 11), backing vocals (4)
* Paul Westwood – bass (1, 2, 6)
* Deon Estus – bass (3, 7, 11)
* David Paton – bass (4, 8, 9)
* John Deacon – bass (5)
* Pino Palladino – bass (10)
* Charlie Morgan – drums (1, 2, 6)
* Mel Gaynor – drums (3, 7, 11)
* Dave Mattacks – drums (4, 8, 9), military snare (5)
* Roger Taylor – drums (5)
* Frank Ricotti – percussion (3, 5), vibraphone (9)
* James Newton Howard – string arrangements (3, 6)
* Gus Dudgeon – horn arrangements (3, 6), Simmons drums (5, 11), arrangements (10)
* David Bitelli – horn arrangements (1, 3, 6, 9), baritone saxophone (1, 6, 9), tenor saxophone (3, 6)
* Bob Sydor – tenor saxophone (3)
* Phil Todd – alto saxophone (6)
* Nick Pentelow – tenor saxophone (9)
* Pete Thomas – tenor saxophone (9)
* Rick Taylor – trombone (1, 3, 6, 9), horn arrangements (9)
* Chris Pyne – trombone (9)
* Raul D'Oliveira – trumpet (1, 3, 6, 9)
* Paul Spong – trumpet (1, 3, 6, 9)
* Sister Sledge – backing vocals (1)
* Alan Carvell – backing vocals (3, 5, 7–9)
* Kiki Dee – backing vocals (3, 5, 6, 8, 9)
* Katie Kissoon – backing vocals (3, 5, 6, 8, 9)
* Pete Wingfield – backing vocals (3, 5, 6–9)
* George Michael – backing vocals (4), featured vocals (6)
* Millie Jackson – lead and backing vocals (11)

Production

* Produced by Gus Dudgeon
* All lyrics by Bernie Taupin
* Recorded by Stuart Epps
* Mixed and edited by Graham Dickson and Gus Dudgeon
* Additional mixing and editing by Tom Pearce
* Mastered by Gordon Vicary at The Townhouse (London, UK)
* Design – David Larkham
* Photography – Terry O'Neill

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ice on Fire
Elton John albums
1985 albums
Albums produced by Gus Dudgeon
Geffen Records albums
The Rocket Record Company albums