REVIEW: Elton John and Bernie Taupin’s music comes back to life with new collaborative album: ‘Revamp’
Singer-songwriter Elton John has been a fan-favorite artist throughout past and current generations. Throughout his music career, he has written many songs alongside Bernie Taupin, some of which include “Your Song” and “Crocodile Rock.”
Last Friday, “Revamp: The Songs Of Elton John & Bernie Taupin,” a compilation album of covers of Elton John and Bernie Taupin music was released to accompany John’s final tour before his retirement. With many talented artists contributing to this album, justice to the original counterparts is mostly guaranteed.
Exceptional performances can be heard from artists such as Alessia Cara and Coldplay. Cara’s rendition of the hit 1983 classic “I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues” is a great cover and is a must-listen for fans of both Cara and John/Taupin.
Coldplay’s cover of “We All Fall In Love Sometimes” takes a more melancholic approach. With an emphasis on sadness and vulnerability embedded in the lyrics, Coldplay’s cover of the song is simply beautiful.
Amazing vocals are also showcased in the album. This is most apparent in Florence + The Machine’s cover of “Tiny Dancer” and Lady Gaga’s cover of “Your Song.” Florence Welch manages to belt out these simplistic yet memorable lyrics and does so flawlessly. Lady Gaga, however, executes the song with more raw vocals, as she has been doing in her recent music, and still capturing the romantic and hopeful moods of the song.
“And you can tell everybody this is your song/It may be quite simple, but now that it’s done/I hope you don’t mind, I hope you don’t mind that I put down in words/How wonderful life is while you’re in the world,” Lady Gaga sings in “Your Song.”
Some of John and Taupin’s other ballads are also covered. One that especially stands out is Ed Sheeran’s rendition of “Candle In The Wind.” A slight upbeat spin was added in Sheeran’s cover and it becomes reminiscent of Sheeran’s other music. The slight change does not take away from the meaning of the original, and that is what makes these songs well-executed.
Overall, “Revamp: The Songs Of Elton John & Bernie Taupin” is a great listen for fans of both modern-day pop and Elton John/Bernie Taupin’s music. This album is perfect to those who want to listen to emotionally-driven music with hints of pop.