Streaming numbers for the Elton John classic “Rocket Man” are as high as a kite. On Friday (January 5), John took to social media to announce that the 1972 song has amassed 1 billion streams on Spotify, and continues to gain listens.
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John took to Instagram to share a video showcasing the song’s history and its evergrowing number of streams. He also shared a short caption that showed his excitement about the milestone. “‘Rocket Man’ has hit 1 billion streams on Spotify,” he wrote. “Thank you to all of you who keep listening and streaming. It brings me so much joy that this song continues to mean so much to you all after all of these years.”
“Rocket Man” Was Milestone Single
John is celebrating the recent streaming success of “Rocket Man.” However, this is not the first time the song has brought the legendary musician a career highlight. He released the song in 1972 as the lead single from his fifth studio album, Honky Château. The song peaked at No. 2 on the UK Singles Chart. It also went to No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100.
According to Songfacts, “Rocket Man” was John’s highest-charting single at the time. It outranked his previous Top 10 entry “Your Song.” More importantly, it gave John the confidence to carry on with his musical career. The song’s success proved that his popularity was sustainable. Now, more than five decades later, the song remains one of his best-loved hits.
More About “Rocket Man”
John co-wrote “Rocket Man” with his longtime collaborator Bernie Taupin. While many have opined that the song’s lyrics are about how fame can isolate a rock star, that wasn’t the case initially.
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Taupin drew inspiration for the song’s lyrics from a short story titled The Rocket Man by science fiction author Ray Bradbury. The story first appeared in the 1951 anthology of short tales called The Illustrated Man.
Two years before John and Taupin wrote the song, the folk group Pearls Before Swine released a song called “Rocket Man.” Taupin also drew inspiration from this song. “It’s common knowledge that songwriters are great thieves, and this is a perfect example,” he said.
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