Daniel (Elton John song)

"Daniel" is a song and ballad performed by Elton John. It appeared on the 1973 album Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player. It was written by John and his lyricist Bernie Taupin. In the United Kingdom, the song reached no. 4 in the official chart.[2] In the US the song reached No. 2 on the pop charts (only held from number one by "My Love" by Paul McCartney & Wings) and No. 1 on the adult contemporary charts[3] for two weeks in the spring of 1973.

"Daniel"
Single by Elton John
from the album Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player
B-side"Skyline Pigeon"
ReleasedJanuary 1973 (1973-01)
RecordedJune 1972,
Château d'Hérouville, France
GenreSoft rock[1]
Length3:54
LabelMCA (US)
DJM (UK)
Songwriter(s)Elton John, Bernie Taupin
Producer(s)Gus Dudgeon
Elton John singles chronology
"Crocodile Rock"
(1972)		 "Daniel"
(1973)		 "Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting"
(1973)

In the United States, it was certified gold in September 1995 and platinum in May 2018 by the RIAA. In Canada, it became his second No. 1 single, following "Crocodile Rock" earlier in the year, holding the position for two weeks in the RPM 100 national singles chart.[4] John and Taupin received the 1973 Ivor Novello award for Best Song Musically and Lyrically.[5]

Composition

Bernie Taupin wrote the song's lyrics after reading an article in either Time or Newsweek about a Vietnam War veteran who had been wounded, and wanted to get away from the attention he was receiving when he went back home.[6] The last verse in the original draft was cut from the final version, which has led to some speculation on the contents.[7]

"'Daniel' had been the most misinterpreted song that we'd ever written," explained Taupin, in the Two Rooms tribute project. "The story was about a guy that went back to a small town in Texas, returning from the Vietnam War. They'd lauded him when he came home and treated him like a hero. But he just wanted to go home, go back to the farm, and try to get back to the life that he'd led before. I wanted to write something that was sympathetic to the people that came home."

Personnel

Chart performance

Accolades
Grammy Awards
Year Nominee / work Award Result
1974"Daniel"Best Pop Vocal Performance – Male[23]Nominated

Notable covers

"Daniel" was covered on the 1991 album Two Rooms: Celebrating the Songs of Elton John & Bernie Taupin by Wilson Phillips. It reached number seven on the US and Canadian Adult Contemporary charts as an album cut.[24][25] The song also reached number 26 on the Canadian pop chart.[25]

Sam Smith covered the song for the 2018 tribute album Revamp: Reimagining the Songs of Elton John & Bernie Taupin.

Marie Laforêt adapted and covered the song in French (title: "Daniel") in 1974. It was released as the B-side of the "Cadeau" EP. 125 000 copies were sold in France.[26]

See also

References
  1. Fontenot, Robert. "Oldies Music Encyclopedia: "Soft Rock"". About.com. Retrieved 26 January 2017.
  2. "The Official Charts Company - Elton John - Daniel". Retrieved 28 January 2009.
  3. "allmusic - Elton John - Billboard singles". Retrieved 28 January 2009.
  4. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 20 October 2012. Retrieved 12 February 2012.
  5. Lister, David, Pop ballads bite back in lyrical fashion, The Independent (London), 28 May 1994
  6. Joseph J. Foy (5 February 2015). American Politics Through Popular Culture. University Press of Kentucky. p. 203. ISBN 9780813159980.
  7. "Bernie Taupin Interview". Billboard: 14. 4 October 1997.
  8. RPM Adult Contemporary, June 16, 1973
  9. "De Nederlandse Top 40, week 9, 1973". Archived from the original on 20 February 2008. Retrieved 28 January 2009.
  10. "dutchcharts.nl - Elton John - Daniel". Archived from the original on 12 October 2012. Retrieved 28 January 2009.
  11. "charts-surfer.de search results". Retrieved 28 January 2009.
  12. "irishcharts.ie search results". Archived from the original on 1 February 2010. Retrieved 28 January 2009.
  13. "Flavour of New Zealand - search listener". flavourofnz.co.nz.
  14. "norwegiancharts.com - Elton John - Daniel". Archived from the original on 24 October 2012. Retrieved 28 January 2009.
  15. ""Daniel" on the South African Singles Chart". Springbok Radio. Retrieved 25 September 2010.
  16. "Elton John - Daniel - hitparade.ch". Archived from the original on 10 November 2012. Retrieved 28 January 2009.
  17. "Top 100 1973-06-16". Cashbox Magazine. Retrieved 2016-03-01.
    • Zimbabwe. Kimberley, C. Zimbabwe: singles chart book. Harare: C. Kimberley, 2000
  19. Steffen Hung. "Forum - Top 100 End of Year AMR Charts - 1980s (ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts)". Australian-charts.com. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 2016-10-08.
  20. "Top 100 Singles of '73" (PDF). RPM. 29 December 1973. Retrieved 5 April 2020.
  21. "Top 100 Hits of 1973/Top 100 Songs of 1973". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
  22. "Top 100 Year End Charts: 1973". Cashbox Magazine. Retrieved 2016-06-25.
  23. "Grammy Awards: Best Pop Vocal Performance - Male". rockonthenet.com. Retrieved 13 July 2015.
  24. "allmusic - Wilson Phillips - Billboard singles". Retrieved 28 January 2009.
  25. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. 22 February 1992. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
  26. "Les charts de Marie Laforêt". Pure Charts. Retrieved 1 February 2021.

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