The Story Behind the Out-Of-This-World Song That Transformed Elton John Into a Global Superstar

It only takes one song to completely change the life of an artist. One big hit can be the difference between hanging up your hat and spending your life making art. Every legendary artist has this one song. For Elton John, that one song came from an out-of-this-world idea. Learn more about the hit that helped John earn international stardom below.

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[RELATED: 53 Years Ago Today, Elton John Was at No. 1 With a Fan Favorite Song He Thought Would Fail]

The One Hit That Completely Changed Elton John’s Life as an Artist

There are many rock songs about space. Artists in the late 60s and early 70s were obsessed with the notion of space travel, understandably given that the U.S. took a trip to the moon in 1969. John and his writing partner Bernie Taupin threw their hat in the ring with “Rocket Man.”

Many people connect this song to other space-forward records by their peers, including David Bowie’s “Space Oddity.” But, according to Taupin, it was worlds away from that exploration into societal conformity. Instead, this song should be taken at face value.

“The interesting thing about ‘Rocket Man’ is people identify it, unfortunately, with David Bowie’s ‘Space Oddity’,” Taupin once said, “And it actually wasn’t inspired by that at all.”

“It was actually inspired by a story by Ray Bradbury from his book of science fiction short stories called The Illustrated Man, and in that book there was a story called ‘The Rocket Man,’ which was about how astronauts in the future would become sort of an everyday job, so I took that idea and ran with it,” he continued.

But if you’ve ever thought too much about this song, don’t worry, John thought the same thing. “I never knew that,” John reportedly said in response while hearing Taupin explain his lyricism.

“Driving the back roads, I began writing a song in my head about the drudgery of being an astronaut,” Taupin added. “As I thought about how to start the song, the first verse came to me at once: ‘She packed my bags last night pre-flight/Zero hour 9 am/And I’m gonna be high as a kite by then.’”

“Rocket Man” was a part of John’s first No. 1 album in the U.S., Honky Château. Moreover, it became synonymous with the rock icon. Like Ziggy Stardust or The King, Rocketman became John’s nickname to the masses. It was the epitome of what made John and Taupin’s relationship so special: expert, thought-provoking lyricism with instantly catchy melodies.

(Photo by Jack Robinson/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)