MCA 2116
Producer: Gus Dudgeon
Track listing: The Bitch Is Back / Pinky / Grimsby / Dixie Lily / Solar Prestige a Gammon / You’re So Static / I’ve Seen the Saucers / Stinker / Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me / Ticking
July 13, 1974
4 weeks
The week that Caribou went to Number One, MCA Records announced that it had signed Elton John to an $8 million, five album contract. It made the singer-pianist the highest-paid performer in pop music and few could contend that John’s talent and commercial out weren’t worth the money. Caribou was John’s fourth consecutive Number One album in a mere two years. Certainly there was no other artist hotter than Elton John.
The success of Caribou leaves no hints that the sessions were riddled with problems, but that was the case, says producer Gus Dudgeon. The album was recorded and named for James Guercio’s Caribou Ranch studio, which was frequented by Chicago and the Beach Boys. “The reason why we went to Caribou was that we heard ‘Rocky Mountain Way’ by Joe Walsh. We found out it was recorded there and we all agreed that it was a brilliantly recorded record,” says Dudgeon. While the serene mountainous setting of the Caribou Ranch may have provided a nice atmosphere, the high elevation created difficulties for Dudgeon.
“I checked it out and it seemed fine, but when we got there I was using a desk I had never used before and I was having a major problem with the monitors, because we were 8,500 feet up in the Rockies. The pressure the speakers had to work against was not ground level, so they didn’t work the same way.” The recording was also rushed. John had only 10 days to record in mid- February 1974 before he departed on a tour of Australia, and New Zealand.
Dudgeon is the first to admit that “technically, Caribou is not a great album. However, by some sort of miracle, some of the songs, like ‘Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me,’ turned out extremely well.” The majestic ballad featured some well-known backing vocalists, including Beach Boys Carl Wilson and Bruce Johnston, and Toni Tennille. “Every time I hear it I get such a buzz off it,” says Dudgeon. “I can still remember the session. There’s something about that record that is really special. Everybody did a great job on that one, everything is right on the money.” Released as a single in advance of the album, “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me” peaked at number two.
Aside from “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me,” Dudgeon doesn’t have much good to say about the rest of Caribou, including lyricist Bernie Taupin’s tongue-in-cheek ode to his writing partner’s occasional foul moods, “The Bitch Is Back.” Says Dudgeon, “It’s an okay track. It was a hit, but not one that I would call a favorite,” he says. “This is the first time that we had a couple of weak or shit songs on an album. ‘Grimsby’ is the worst thing. It was supposed to be a joke, but it’s neither funny enough, nor good enough.” Dudgeon also singles out “Solar Prestige a Gammon” as one of John’s weakest moments. “I suppose there is an element of stupidity and probably blase-ness coming in.”
Even with the weak material, John was more popular than ever, as Caribou became his fastest chart-topper to date, reaching Number One in a mere two weeks.
THE TOP FIVE
Week of July 13, 1974
1. Caribou, Elton John
2. Back Home Again, John Denver
3. Sundown, Gordon Lightfoot
4. Band on the Run, Paul McCartney & Wings
5. The Sting, Soundtrack