Elton John Album: “The Complete Thom Bell Sessions”

This should be one of the best-known and most beloved moments in Elton John's career - but it isn't. Two iconic sounds of the 70's combine and the result is rich, buttery ear candy - but it gets consistently glossed-over when people run down the handful of enduring pop music from the disco era. Elton makes his bid to be one of the great blue-eyed-soul singers of his time - and few even notice. Elton would quickly move on from here, but echoes of this benchmark can be heard in all that follows. A true forgotten classic in every sense.

Jimmy Wade's review was right on - this one is a hidden gem from Elton. Of the tracks on the EP, only "Mama Can't Buy You Love" went in the Top 40 at the time, though recently the reissued "Are You Ready For Love?" topped the charts in the US and England. What's most interesting about the disc is the range of material. As Jimmy notes, it's not really a "disco" album - just pure, good Philly Soul, most of the tracks done w/ the Spinners (I think they play on all the tracks, though they don't sing on all of them) and all produced by Thom Bell. The mixes of the songs originally included on the vinyl 3 song EP in 1979 are (as Jimmy points out) NOT the Elton John/Clive Franks mixes, but the original Bell mixes. The complete EJ/Clive Franks mixes can, however, be found as addl. tracks on the CD single for "The Last Song", and "Are You Ready For Love?" and "Three Way Love Affair" are on the recent single edition of "Are You Ready...?" Pick it up and give it a spin - it's a lot of fun and very well done. Check out "Country Love Song" and "Nice and Slow" - these would have been great singles at the time as well! Enjoy!

An oddity in the Elton John discography (although not as odd as the awful "Victim of Love" disco album)as its one of the few projects that Elton didn't play any instruments on, "The Complete Thom Bell Sessions" finds Elton going for the Philly Soul sound for a complete release (although to be honest most of it was recorded in Seattle), Elton evidently wasn't completely happy at the time with these sessions as he only originally released three tracks with "Mama Can't Buy You Love" becoming a hit single for him.

This CD reissue features ALL the tracks completed at the sessions (although at least two tracks have alternate mixes to the original versions on the vinyl EP if I recall correctly)and will be essential for Elton John fans. The only complaint I have with this set is that it would have been nice to see the original mixes for the tracks not included on the CD added as bonus tracks here. Also, it would have been nice to have a complete booklet discussing the making of the original EP. The mix of Elton with the Philly Soul Sound isn't unusual or a surprise; remember that he used elements of that "sound" on "Philadelphia Freedom" and "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" (his duet with Kiki Dee which he and Bernie wrote under pseudonyms).

These are minor flaws though for a fun set. "Nice and Slow" (not on the original release) receives a nice, extended, rearranged work out from Bell (who earns a songwriting credit with his rearrangement/additions). "Shine on Through" which would also show up on "A Single Man" sounds quite different from the stark arrangement on the other album. "Country Love Song" is a nice previously unreleased song. "Are You Ready for Love" (in a slightly different mix) and "Three Way Love Affair" appeared on the original EP along with "Mama Can't Buy You Love" and feature the MFSB horns backing Elton and there's a cameo appearance on "Are You Ready for Love" by the Spinners.

The mastering here is fine as it's pre "Loudness Wars". The production compliments John and allows him to blossom as a singer. This is a fine edition that expands on the original EP running over double the time of the original vinyl EP at nearly 35 minutes (almost a full album by 70's standards). Recommended.

Thom Bell scores big with this Elton (backed by the Spinners) concept. The chord changes are pure Philly, and the only reason I can figure why this wasn't released is that Elton may have felt marginalized due to his dearth of songwriting here and restrained vocals(Bell's decision)? . It's interesting to note that Thom Bell played the keyboards, with Elton receiving nary a black key's worth of recognition. Now, maybe that's to be factored in with the above. "Are You Ready For Love" is the best example of the slow burn of the excellent musicianship. This is a lost and found masterpiece...

Not high on my priority of EJ albums to have. I liked the version of "Shine on through" but in general I thought that too many 3-4 minute songs were needlessly dragged out, with the addition of synthesizers and percussions, to undesirable lengths. Elton explores an interestingly variable voice range in bellowing out certain selections. Some may like this better than me...but caveat emptor.