Consumer Guide Album

Elton John: Elton John's Greatest Hits, Volume III, 1979-1987 [Geffen, 1987]
The bitch is gone, presumably forever. Never an artist you looked to for aesthetic principle, John provided a nice ersatz hard rock before punk and metal split that alternative down the middle. So he sunk to the depths and then resurfaced as an '80s pop singer. No point comparing him to Springsteen or Costello when he's competing with Barry Manilow, to whom he's infinitely preferable, and Billy Joel, who gets the decision on aesthetic principle. His only classic of the period is "Sad Songs (Say So Much)," which is much faster than most of these hits. It's not especially sad, either--and "I Guess That's Why They Call It the Blues" isn't a blues. B