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The man . who writesthe lyrics for EltonBY LISA ROBINSONWhy did Bernie Taupin title his bestselling book of lyrics “The One Who Writes the Words for Elton John”? “Oh, Groucho Marx came up with the idea for that,” said Bernie. “He never remembers people's names, so he always called me ‘the one who writes the words for Elton John.' 1 was going to give him credit for that, but I forgot.” Bernie compiled the book because “I wanted to put something together thatRock Beatwould include everything I’d written that’s been recorded,” said the author. It took over a year to complete, has ail the Bernie-Elton songs from early days through “Caribou” and was edited by artist Alan Aldridge, who designed “The Beatles Illustrated Lyrics” in 1969.“Because I included everything, wanting it to be totally complete, there are some lyrics in there that are really bad,” Taupin laughed. “But I think it’s nice when people see a total evolution of someone’s work from the very naive to simplifying yourself. Actually I’ve got enough lyrics since ‘Caribou’ to do another book.”As for his unconventional song-writing methods (Bernie often mails the lyrics to Elton): “Well, it depends on where he is. If we're both in L.A. I can just hand them to him. People may think it’s unconventional, but for us,it’s very simple. We’re not your normal run-of-the-mill songwriting team with two people at the piano, hammering it out, loosening their ties, cigarettesburning,” he conceded.Kiss guitarist Paul NStanley says, “We could count the special effects of our previous show on the fingers of one hand. But this time around, it’s spectacular — like a movie set. It’s like seeing Kiss in Kissland.”Kiss bassist Gene Simmons (he’s the one with the tongue) is especially pleased about their God of Thunder machine that emits bolts of “lightning” during the show. “It’s about time grownups had some fun, too,” Gene said, presumably referring to the band.“The only thing we could do to top this.” added Paul, “would be to bring elephants onstage.”As for the IB-inch platform boots Gene wears onstage: “we've forgotten what the ground looks like,” he admitted. “We’re thinking of wearing parachutes as a safety precaution during the show.”In Milwaukee, Aerosmith wives Elissa Perry and Lori Whitford were arrested for jaywalking. On the way to the police station Elissa demanded that she be allowed to make. . .one phone call — to husband Joe who was at a sound check for that evening’s concert. When told that she couldn't telephone, Elissa was outraged. “What do you mean I can’t make a phone call? I watch 'Adam-12,’ I know my rights! ”At Patti Smith’s concert in Central Park last week was her proud mother Bev, who said, “How can so much sound come from such a skinny little body?” Patti’s sister Kimberly (from the song of the same name) was also onhand, tuning Patti’s guitar backstage.Even though Queen’s fall shows will be more lavish than ever, they still want it to be “filthy onstage.. .On his current concert tour, Rick Derringer wears ripped “good luck” jeans that expose his entire derriere. . . Grace Slick has a star painted on her right contact lens. . .Lynyrd Skynyrd and Todd Rundgren set to open for the Stones at the Knebworth Fest in England On Aug. 21.From H.K., in Cicero, III. Where can I see those “New York bands” I’ve been hearing about?Bands like The Ramones, Television, Talking Heads, Blondie, Heart-breakers, Shirts and othersperform regularly at CBGB’s on the Bowery and Max’s Kansas City in New York, but-they’re doing their best to book gigs across the country.The New York Dolls are often in Canada and New Orleans, and in August The Ramones go west to California and will be in parts of the South. W^en Television signs their record deal (imminent, and probably with Elektra), they should have a tour to coincide with their first LP.
Newspaper Details
Appleton Post Crescent
Appleton, Wisconsin, US
Thu, Jul 22, 1976
Page 21
Full Page
Clipped by
Olav S.
NO 16 Nov 2021
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