Rock of the Westies: Elton John

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Released: October 4, 1975

Rating: 3.726 (average of 14 ratings)

Genre: pop

Quotable: --

Album Tracks:

Medley (Yell Help, Wednesday Night, Ugly)

Dan Dare (Pilot of the Future)

Island Girl

Grow Some Funk of Your Own

I Feel Like a Bullet in the Gun of Robert Ford

Street Kids

Hard Luck Story

Feed Me

Billy Bones and the White Bird

Sales:

sales in U.S. only 4 million
sales in U.K. only - estimated --
--
sales worldwide - estimated 4 million

Peak:

peak on U.S. Billboard album chart 1 ³
peak on U.K. album chart 3

Singles/Hit Songs:

Island Girl (10/4/75) #1 US, #14 UK, #27 AC. Platinum single.

Grow Some Funk of Your Own (1/24/76) #14 US

I Feel Like a Bullet in the Gun of Robert Ford (1/24/76) #21 AC

Notes: A CD reissue added “Planes” and “Sugar on the Floor.” The latter was a B-side for “Island Girl.”

Rock of the Westies
Elton John

Review:
“Although it was viewed as one of Elton John’s more lightweight efforts upon its 1975 release – possibly because it followed only half a year after the acclaimed Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy (and partially because many thought the album was released to fulfill a contractual obligation) – Rock of the Westies appears in retrospect to be his last great rock album. It certainly does rock consistently harder than any other John album, with guitarist Davey Johnstone even getting cowriting credits (with John and Bernie Taupin) on the opening Medley… and Grow Some Funk of Your Own” (Holdship).

“Lyricist Taupin seems to be going off the deep end here at times with titles like Dan Dare (Pilot of the Future) and Billy Bone & the White Bird, but Island Girl was another huge hit for the pair” (Holdship).

Review Source(s):

Bill Holdship, Amazon.com

Related DMDB Link(s):

Next Album: Blue Moves (1976)

Last updated January 31, 2009.