Date: Oct 11, 1997
Weeks: 14
This is arguably the biggest single of all time. According to what I can find, it's sold more copies than any other single in both the US and the UK. Worldwide and all-time, it's second only to Bing Crosby's "White Christmas." And it's in a 6-way tie to be the second longest-reigning No. 1 hit on the US charts. Put all that together and you have what I think is the biggest single ever. And boy do I ever not get why.
Princess Diana was a nice woman who did good things and died too young. I don't dispute that she deserved a loving tribute song. Neither do I dispute that Elton John's original "Candle in the Wind" was a pretty good song. I liked that one quite a bit.
But something happens when you re-write the lyrics of an existing song to have a different meaning. No matter how serious your intent, it winds up being kind of funny anyway. So today we see parody after parody of people re-writing this same song for new dead celebrities, fictional characters, and so on.
It wouldn't be so bad if Elton John had just tied the new version thematically to the original song by re-using the melody. But he out-and-out reuses half the lyrics, and that's why it feels like a musical mad lib. "Goodbye [Nickname]. You [positive verb], when the rain set in." It detaches the song from its meaning and makes it less special, especially because it makes it seem easy to re-write for anyone. And thus all the parodies.
All that would be fine if this were just a song that was written and performed as a tribute on one occasion, but it was all over the radio and sat at No. 1 for 14 weeks in the US. And went on to be the No. 1 song of the year 1997, and the best-selling single of all time in both the US and UK. I understand that people liked the song, but I don't understand why they liked it so much that it had to be plastered across the radio for months on end.
The music is pretty good. Elton John is a great musician. His voice is sincere and meaningful. The music is a nice little voice-and-piano piece, with very subtle but well-used string and flute accents. Just like the original "Candle in the Wind," and I've always liked the original song. At least the music in this version hasn't changed in a way that diminishes it.
My verdict: Don't like it. I'd rather just listen to the original "Candle in the Wind."
Well, here we're going to have a big disagreement. I can see how you may not like the song -- though I disagree with that -- but I don't see how you can't "get" how and why this song was so popular. It's about Princess Diana, who was not only very popular but died suddenly and shockingly. It's also a reuse of the original song which was, in itself, popular.
ReplyDeleteI think you're doing Elton John a disservice. Diana died suddenly. It's not like she lingered with a disease, and he was a personal friend. He didn't have time to get a whole new song to sing at her funeral written. He sung the song at her funeral and for the recording and has refused to sing it since. It's personal for him.
And honestly, I think Diana is more deserving of the song than Marilyn Monroe. Not that there's anything wrong with Marilyn Monroe, but what did she do besides be a movie star and sex icon? I have not particular preferences about Princess Diana (although her husband cheated on her and she divorced him, so good for her!), but she overcame her status as "just a princess" and was highly involved with charities and helping those less fortunate than herself. Sure, she was also an icon, but she did more for the world than Monroe did, and, as such, is more deserving of a memoriam song than Monroe. That might also add to why it's so popular.
I'm also leaving out the allusions to literary predecessors being made in this version of the song which make the song more poetic, and class it with occasional poems (poems written for an occasion). Just because The Simpsons did a parody doesn't make the song a joke.
So, yeah. I disagree with you. Especially with how you don't get why it was so popular.