On This Day in 1970, Elton John Scored His First Big Hit With a “Virginal” Song (That Almost Went to the Hollies Instead)

Whoever coined the songwriting adage to “write what you know” obviously never considered Bernie Taupin and Elton John when coming up with this admittedly arbitrary standard. In fact, the songwriting duo’s first major hit is a perfect antithesis to the idea that a writer does best in familiar territory. Taupin had no real idea of what he was writing about. And John had no real experience being a rock star.

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But by the end of the songwriting process, neither mattered. The second single from John’s second studio album entered the Billboard Hot 100 in mid-December 1970. From there, the rock ‘n’ roll pianist was catapulted to international fame. And with the lyrical help of Taupin, the song remains one of the pair’s best in their catalogue.

Their song, after all, was their gift.

Elton John Wasn’t the First Pick to Record “Your Song”

If the on-the-nose lyrical reference wasn’t clue enough, the song that cemented Elton John and Bernie Taupin’s names in rock ‘n’ roll history was, of course, “Your Song”. John released the track as his second single from his eponymous sophomore release, but he wasn’t the first artist to do so. Three Dog Night was the first group to cut a version of “Your Song” in March 1970, seven months before John’s October release date. British pop-rockers, The Hollies, were also considering recording it, based on a demo John recorded at Trident Studios.

Demo was the operative word. Initially, John planned on re-recording the song with higher quality. But after publisher Dick James heard what John had accomplished in the studio, he decided to release the “demo” as is. Clearly, the nerves John was experiencing at the time didn’t interfere with his performance. “If I f***ed up, the element of fear was great,” John later recalled, via The Independent.

If John was nervous in the studio, then at least he had plenty of time to work on his stage fright afterward. In under two months, “Your Song” had hit the Hot 100, and John was quickly ascending the ranks of stardom in the rock ‘n’ roll world. John earned the respect of critics and peers alike, with ex-Beatle John Lennon claiming the pianist was “the first new thing that’s happened since we happened.”

Bernie Taupin Wasn’t “Writing What He Knew”

While there is some truth to the authenticity that writing about lived experience can lend to someone’s songwriting, to declare it a requirement would be ignoring one of the best parts of songwriting: imaginative storytelling. The then-17-year-old Bernie Taupin hadn’t experienced the kind of love that his song “Your Song” encapsulated. But encapsulate that emotion, it did. Taupin wrote the original lyric over breakfast on a “particularly grubby piece of exercise paper.” He added, “It’s the voice of someone who hasn’t experienced love in any way. It’s a very virginal song.” Virginal or not, it was a hit.

Even today, five decades after it first entered the charts, “Your Song” remains a beloved song. It’s also one of John and Taupin’s favorites. “I think ‘Your Song’ is a gem,” Taupin told The Independent. “Our classic, I’m not sure. I’ll let others decide that. But it’s like an old friend. It means so many things on equally as many levels. It’s certainly proved its worth. I’ve heard it sung a million times. It’s like a good dog. It’s always there.” Elton John believes the song to be “perfect.”

Photo by David Redfern/Redferns