This is one of those songs that's special to me because I heard it on the radio as a kid during its heyday.  I also remember seeing the music video during the early days of MTV....back when they actually played music videos LOL.  

This tune was part of Elton John's 1983 album "Too Low for Zero" which was a comeback of sorts for him.  It sold well, not insanely well, but it outperformed the releases he'd put out for about 5 or 6 years to that point.  It was also the first album since 1976 where all the lyrics were exclusively written by his long time writing partner, Bernie Taupin.  They had taken a break from working together full time for a few years after the phenomenal success of their compositions from the early 1970s, but had always intended to work together again after taking some down time and collaborating with other people.  And finally, it was a reunion of the original Elton John Touring and Recording band of Nigel Olsson on drums, Dee Murray on bass, and Davey Johnston on guitar...and all three on amazing and unique backing vocals.

After one of the most successful runs in the history of the music industry together, Elton replaced this band with a new lineup after completing the recording of his 1975 smash album, "Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy".  It was a shock to industry insiders as this core band had helped him literally take over the radio and record stores all over the world.  At one point in the mid 1970s, Elton John albums and singles represented 2% of ALL records sold worldwide.  So, disbanding the team of collaborators that helped achieve that success wasn't on anyone's bingo card.  They reunited to make "Too Low for Zero" and one more album in 1984, and did a couple of big tours together....then he hired new players once again.  Sadly, Dee Murray passed away after a long battle with skin cancer in 1992, but Elton continued to use Davey Johnston the remainder of his career, and brought Nigel Olsson back into the band permanently in the late 1990s.

The album produced 5 singles, 3 of which hit the top 30 in the US, and "I Guess That's Why They Call It the Blues" was the highest charting of all, peaking at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100, and #5 on the British chart.  It's also a fun and unique tune because it is in a time signature of 12/8....which is essentially 4/4, except the eighth notes are subdivided into triplets rather than duplets.  But it gives the song a boogie style blues underpinning.

When I think about this song, what I think of most is the reunion of the classic EJ band.  It makes me wonder what led to the decision to make a change back in 1975.  It makes me wonder if he had kept them in place if they would have continued his success at the same breakneck pace.  It makes me sad they didn't stay together longer when they reunited and that Dee Murray didn't survive long enough to make it back into the band to help finish out Elton's touring years.  

But....it also makes me think about the people in my life...professionally and personally...and how some are evergreen and some have a season.  Some people are such a perfect fit in your life in some capacity or other that you grow and evolve together, and you never stop enjoying the bounty you get from the relationship.  Others are a great match for a time, but time and circumstances cause you to move in different directions...you may still hold great fondness and appreciation for them, but the season in which they played that role in your life simply passes, often for both of you.  And occasionally, you have a season with someone, and then life creates a space to have another season with them later.  You just never know.

One thing I have learned though, is that trying to make someone fit in your life after their season with you has passed is a difficult and ultimately unsatisfying endeavor.  You just can't capture what you once got from the interactions again, and if they are to remain in that place, something new must be built, and often, that is more work than it's worth for either of you.  It almost feels like betrayal to let them go if they were important to you....but there are always new faces waiting in the wings who are the right fit for right now.  This probably sounds like I'm encouraging everyone to be disloyal to people they love....not at all.  I just think it's worth it to pay attention the natural flow of life and let people move on without guilt when your season of fitting together fades.  It doesn't mean you stop valuing them....it means you're no longer asking them to be something for you they can't be.  And who knows...maybe circumstances will cycle them back to you at another time when you will be a perfect match again...for a project, a friendship during a new phase of life, or even romance at a time that fits better for both of you.

I don't know why Elton didn't continue to use that same quartet for as long as they were all alive, but I trust that he had his reasons.  And he made some amazing and beautiful music in the late 1980s and all through the 1990s and early 2000s without them.  But it's also gratifying to know that when he "got the band back together"....they did some amazing work once again...such as, "I Guess That's Why They Call It the Blues".

Enjoy my cover of this song from a livestream show I did on July 8, 2020 during the COVID-19 Pandemic, and then check out one of my favorite performances by Elton himself from a concert in Miami, FL at the now demolished Miami Arena in 1998.

If you'd like to explore my piano method more deeply, my best students use my video courses and join me for conversation and twice monthly Q&A Livestreams in my private community...you can find it all HERE. Thanks.

 

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If the video doesn't show above, use THIS LINK to see it on YouTube