"Friends" is a project Elton John and Bernie Taupin took on before their breakout success in the United States
Two songs are above standard Elton fare: the two full-band numbers. "Honey Roll" and "Can I Put You On" are the only two times that it sounds like Elton bothered to try. I mean, it is a film soundtrack, it's not like he wasn't saving his best stuff for his own albums, so with that in mind it's kind of nice we even got anything good at all. As far as the other selections go, they're all piano + orchestral backing and not terribly interesting. "Seasons" is like if "Burn Down the Mission" lost all its energy and had no rocking ending, and "Michelle's Song" is a drab ballad that would feel right at home on the album "Elton John". The title track was a minor hit but it's as boring and tossed-off as anything Elton wrote in this period, and having the string "Variations" on "Friends" two songs later is totally pointless (but not uncommon when dealing with a film soundtrack). There are a few nice bits happening in "Four Moods".
Tracklist
01. Friends (John, Taupin) - 2:20
02. Honey Roll (John, Taupin) - 3:00
03. Variations on 'Friends' - 1:44
04. Seasons (John, Taupin) - 3:57
05. Variation on Michelle's Song(A Day in the Country) (John, Taupin) - 2:44
06. Can I Put You On (John, Taupin) - 5:52
07. Michelle's Song (John, Taupin) - 4:16
08. I Meant to Do My Work Today (A Day in the Country) (John, Taupin) - 1:33
09. Four Moods (Buckmaster) - 10:56
10. Seasons Reprise (John, Taupin) - 1:33
Personnel
Elton John - piano, vocals
Caleb Quaye - guitars
Dee Murray - bass guitar, vocals
Nigel Olsson - drums, vocals
Paul Buckmaster - orchestral arrangement
Rex Morris - saxophone
Madeline Bell, Lesley Duncan, Kay Garner - backing vocals
Notes
Notes
Released: April 1971
Genre: Pop, Soundtrack
Label: Paramount
Length: 38:35
Producer: Gus Dudgeon
I have a disc jockey copy of this album. The label has no writing on it whatsoever. Is it worth something?
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