In Damnation of....."Levon" by Elton John

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Part three in my hate screed against classic rock radio station Q104 here in NYC (see also my attacks on "Captain Jack" by Billy Joel and "Born to Run" by Bruce Springsteen). The station in question seems unable play another track by the otherwise estimable Reggie Dwight, and I'm damned if I know why. While the track rubs shoulders with many of Elton's finest moments on many a compilation of his, under closer scrutiny, it's a pretty pathetic little piece. Swelling strings and epic choruses suggest something poignant and profound is being said, but the narrative is pretty thin, and some of the couplets could make a deaf man wince ("Well Jesus he wants to go to Venus!", etc.) This is Bernie Taupin's fault, I guess, but I'm still holding Elton accountable.

Is "Levon" the next in line for ancient Elton tracks being exhumed (after, of course, "Candle in the Wind" and "Tiny Dancer")? It's a piss poor choice if so, and I damn well would live a happy and fulfilling life if I never heard it again.

You may beg to differ, however.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Wednesday, 19 January 2005 14:53 (twenty-one years ago)

Well, I've never heared it.

― mark grout (mark grout), Wednesday, 19 January 2005 14:55 (twenty-one years ago)

It's a terrible song and it makes no sense. Still he sings it with conviction as if it did. He was born a pauper to a pawn on a Christmas Day when the New York Times said God is dead and the war's begun. Huh?

― The Mad Puffin (The Mad Puffin), Wednesday, 19 January 2005 15:01 (twenty-one years ago)

Well, I think I like it a lot, but haven't heard it in ages and don't have it handy, so can't comment much. I don't pay a lot of attention to lyrics until people point them out. Thanks.. I'll probably not like it next time I listen to it.

I'm enjoying the increased airplay of good Elton songs rather than him continuing to release poor new stuff. Are you ready for love is great.

― KeithW (kmw), Wednesday, 19 January 2005 15:02 (twenty-one years ago)

Thing is, I consider myself a fan of Elton John, and he has SO MANY superior songs to this one. Yet in five days, I seem to have heard "Levon" sixteen times. WHY, GOD, WHY?

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Wednesday, 19 January 2005 15:05 (twenty-one years ago)

Thanks.. I'll probably not like it next time I listen to it.

No charge.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Wednesday, 19 January 2005 15:08 (twenty-one years ago)

The only Elton song I unabashedly like is "Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters."

I can hear "Tiny Dancer" every now and then without apoplexy, but it got dangerously overplayed in my youth so I have a low threshold for it. The descending marimba line in "Daniel" sometimes makes me smile.

The rest of his pompous and overblown work could disappear tomorrow and I would be a happier man.

Sadly, my wife likes him--he is an anomalous outlier in her otherwise fantastic taste--so I occasionally have to endure "Crocodile Rock" and other crimes.

― The Mad Puffin (The Mad Puffin), Wednesday, 19 January 2005 15:09 (twenty-one years ago)

multi-xpost:
Surely this song was on a movie soundtrack in recent years, or am I confusing it with Tiny Dancer? I don't think it's a bad song, but if I had to hear it that often, Alex, I might have the same reaction as you.

Any discussion of bad lyrics in Elton John songs should see this post from fact checking cuz.

― Ken L (Ken L), Wednesday, 19 January 2005 15:12 (twenty-one years ago)

(x-post, and i believe about to save y'all the trouble of following ken's link)

the narrative is pretty thin, and some of the couplets could make a deaf man wince

and this is different from other elton john songs how exactly? i'm a fan, too, but part of the majesty and the mystery of elton is the way he makes beautiful pop songs out of bernie's clunky, impossible-to-parse lyrics -- and how elton can't seem to write anything worth hearing twice for any other lyricist.

― fact checking cuz (fcc), Wednesday, 19 January 2005 15:20 (twenty-one years ago)

Tiny Dancer was on Almost Famous. I also can't stand it because Ive been told "hey, you look like that kid from Almost Famous" 8 billion times.

― David Allen (David Allen), Wednesday, 19 January 2005 15:21 (twenty-one years ago)

Get your hair out of your eyes, David.

http://www.wwlp.com/news/segments/sybersy/almostfamous.jpg

Who's the chick you're with, though?

― The Mad Puffin (The Mad Puffin), Wednesday, 19 January 2005 15:24 (twenty-one years ago)

What has Chris Robinson contributed to music?

― Ken L (Ken L), Wednesday, 19 January 2005 15:30 (twenty-one years ago)

One crit's interpretation:

Levon is in a dire world (no money, no God, war's afoot) that he's trying to create meaning out of by building a business, being industrious, raising a family, etc. His son invalidates Levon's every life decision by existentially floating away, suggesting that Levon's efforts to forge meaning in this ephemeral world are Sisyphean and doomed to fail.

I actually find it quite profound.

― Joseph McCombs (Joseph McCombs), Wednesday, 19 January 2005 15:33 (twenty-one years ago)

Eloquently worded, I'll admit. Unlike the song.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Wednesday, 19 January 2005 15:59 (twenty-one years ago)

Before 30 seconds ago, I had no clue what "Levon" might have been about, but I always liked the melodies and the instrumentation, etc.

Q104 plays way too much solo McCartney.

― billstevejim, Wednesday, 19 January 2005 16:24 (twenty-one years ago)

I had no clue about the lyrics until recently. The hook that always got me, and why I liked it, was the low, ascending string part at the beginning of the chorus, which anticipates and continues during, 'He was born a pauper to a pawn.' Never get tired of that.

― 57 7th (calstars), Wednesday, 19 January 2005 16:29 (twenty-one years ago)

Levon is horrible for sure - but nowhere near as horrible as a lot of those synthesized bells Disney things he did in the 90's, which I have successfully managed to expunge from my memory and have no intention of looking up for the sake of ILM, so you're going to have to take my word for it or research on your own time. The only one that comes to mind is "that's What Firends Are For", and that wasn't even the worst of 'em.

So yeah, Levon sucks. But it could be so much worse.

― dave225 (Dave225), Wednesday, 19 January 2005 16:47 (twenty-one years ago)

a song about a '70s burnout, portentous crap about the death of God, it's a bunch of shit. Just like "Tiny Dancer," a good melody and stupid words, like so many of Elton's songs. I intensely dislike it, I guess the only Elton songs I can stomach any more are "Rocket Man," which is a fucked-up record owing to the dumb synths, "Honky Cat" is nice, "Island Girl" I like, and of course his masterpiece "Philadelphia Freedom." I actively despise "Crocodile Rock," "Your Song" and most of them. "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" is a funny title and not a bad song, pretty soulful in its way.

― eddie hurt (ddduncan), Wednesday, 19 January 2005 17:41 (twenty-one years ago)

since reading this thread i've now heard this song about 3 times this week on various radio stations. there apparently is a mass conspiracy to put old Elton singles back into rotation.

― jonviachicago, Friday, 21 January 2005 17:44 (twenty-one years ago)

benny and da jets, bitches.

― hstencil (hstencil), Friday, 21 January 2005 18:09 (twenty-one years ago)

since reading this thread i've now heard this song about 3 times this week on various radio stations. there apparently is a mass conspiracy to put old Elton singles back into rotation.

SEE? I'M NOT MAKING IT UP!!!!

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 21 January 2005 19:18 (twenty-one years ago)

As with many (most?) of Elt's classics, I barely know even half of the words, and don't want or need to. I don't listen to hear Bernie Taupin's lyrics; the HOOKS are everything, and to my ears, "Levon" is one of the few that ain't got 'em. Never liked "Candle In The Wind" either, but "Tiny Dancer"'s fine. If any Elton John ballad is due for a revival, I'd much rather that ballad be "Your Song" or "Daniel" or "Someone Saved My Life Tonight" or even "Friends", his very first hit I believe, and one that I'm not sure I've ever heard (tho I probably have.) Bottom line: Esp. in the '70s, the guy was a genius within his specific niche, and a song like "Levon", which does nothing for me, is far more exception than rule. I'll happily hum along to most any other Elton ballad. (Can't SING along because, you know, those lyrics...)

I've NEVER let bad lyrics, no matter how awful, ruin with my enjoyment of a good tune. Unless it was all sincerely offensive nazi/white power bullshit (which I wouldn't listen to in the first place anyways.)

― Myonga Von Bontee (Myonga Von Bontee), Friday, 21 January 2005 21:31 (twenty-one years ago)

you're missing out on some kickass Skrewdriver records, Myonga.

Anyway, I really like "Levon" and am generally a casual Elton fan (Disney stuff excepted, natch)

― Overbite, Friday, 21 January 2005 22:29 (twenty-one years ago)

this is proabably the single from madman I hear the *most* on radio, second to Tiny Dancer, but IMHO, you aint seen nothin', til you been, in a motel babay, like a Holiday Inn...

― miss chevious grin (miss chevious grin), Friday, 21 January 2005 22:37 (twenty-one years ago)

seven years pass...

Old ILM

― Listen to this, dad (President Keyes), Wednesday, 15 August 2012 01:00 (thirteen years ago)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v707/sorts/elton.jpg

― svend, Wednesday, 15 August 2012 02:36 (thirteen years ago)

levon is a good song, what is wrong with these ppl

― one dis leads to another (ian), Wednesday, 15 August 2012 02:41 (thirteen years ago)

love this tune

― some dude, Wednesday, 15 August 2012 02:42 (thirteen years ago)

yeah

― ticagrelor rotini (k3vin k.), Wednesday, 15 August 2012 02:44 (thirteen years ago)

feel like I cried to it coming down from a meth jag once circa '85

― steven fucking tyler (underrated aerosmith bootlegs I have owned), Wednesday, 15 August 2012 03:23 (thirteen years ago)

it is a good song, but it's no daniel

― contenderizer, Wednesday, 15 August 2012 03:48 (thirteen years ago)

i am a big fan of this song also, even if i angrily skip most of the other tracks from this album on shuffle

― teledyldonix, Wednesday, 15 August 2012 04:52 (thirteen years ago)

even Razor Face?

― billstevejim, Wednesday, 15 August 2012 05:28 (thirteen years ago)

no, i actually listen to razor face

― teledyldonix, Wednesday, 15 August 2012 08:27 (thirteen years ago)

razor face is best track on madman imo, levon #2.

― one dis leads to another (ian), Wednesday, 15 August 2012 14:59 (thirteen years ago)

"Levon" is great but yah its no "Daniel". "Elderberry Wine" will always be my fave EJ jam. I used to hate this guy so much, one of the weirdest turnarounds in my music fandom! I just love his first 5 LPs

― Stormy Davis, Sunday, 19 August 2012 22:27 (thirteen years ago)

me : levon :: levon : $

― mookieproof, Sunday, 19 August 2012 22:51 (thirteen years ago)

Levon is pretty fucking awesome. I've heard it too many times, for sure, but I have to mentally put myself back in the headspace of late-90s Casino, listening to classic rock radio and hearing this, like, once every six months and going "Woah - wait. Wait. What was that? Levar? Like Levar Burton? holy shit, this Jesus part is awesome."

I also spent a year or so madly in love with a girl who had a whole little performance/MST routine worked out with her best friend that involved little call-and-responses with each one of Elton's lines. I just can't separate all that stuff out. Definitely the best thing on Madman, but I also really dig on "Holiday Inn" (as a former employee of that venerable hotel chain) and, despite its slightly labored quality, "Rotten Peaches."

Yeahhhh, I mean, people rag on Taupin's lyrics in this more than anywhere else maybe but I think this basically paints a compelling picture. I've always seen it as set in this kind of crummy gray run-down future, with everybody kind of coughing and starving in the streets while the "war" drags on, Levon, who was expected to be a good man, is just a cranky old bastard, holed up in his low-rent digs despite his wealth, and totally losing touch with his son who dreams of a less miserable world...ehhh, it works for me. "Levon sells cartoon balloons in town" is great.

― Doctor Casino, Monday, 20 August 2012 01:16 (thirteen years ago)

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