Elton John's Tip Sheet - Abstract

THE ROCKET MAN SAYS WHAT'S ROCKETING

INTERVIEW: Let's talk about summer music. It seems like all that anybody is interested in is Eminem. What do you think about his record, The Marshall Mathers LP (Aftermath/Interscope)?

ELTON JOHN: It feels like the nuclear bomb just hit. I put the album on in the car the other day and just could not believe how brilliant it was. On the surface it seems so un-politically correct. I mean, I don't think he's racist, and I don't think he's antigay; he's just putting these things out in the open for people to make up their own minds. It's a bit like Natural Born Killers [1994]. Rap records are often full of shit, and this is really hardcore stuff, but it's intelligent hardcore stuff--it's funny, it's clever, it's poetry, and it's also musically interesting, too. We need people willing to put their necks on the line and take the artistic plunge.

I: Speaking of taking the plunge. Sin[acute{e}]ad O'Connor is back.

EJ: There's never a dull moment when she's around, but she does possess one of God's greatest voices. Her new album Faith and Courage (Atlantic) is a real tour-de-force, a real resurgence. It's strong musically and lyrically and has a lot of her beliefs in it. She's an incredible talent. She's a bit of a loose cannon sometimes, but that makes her work interesting. k.d. lang is another person who's taken risks. She possesses probably the best voice in pop music. Her new Invincible Summer (Warner Bros.) is absolutely gorgeous. It reminds me of Dusty Springfield. She sounds happy on this album and her voice is gorgeous and the songs are great and I really think it's also a huge return to form for her. People like k.d. and Sin[acute{e}]ad are vital artists, and I'm so delighted these two women have had these resurgences, along with Aimee Mann. Her album Bachelor No. 2 (Superego Records) is a really, really great album. And there's another album I've been listening to by Cindy Bullens, who used to be my backup sin ger. Her album Somewhere Between Heaven and Earth (Blue Lobster/Artemis Records) has been out about six months but hasn't really been discovered yet. It's about the death of her eleven-year-old daughter and how she dealt with it, and it's just absolutely stunning. There is also a British singer, Amanda Ghost, whose album Ghost Stories (out this month on Warner Bros.) is another fantastic debut. These are the five albums I've been playing this summer. They're all really great. The women are far ahead of the men at the moment. By a mile.

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