don't go breaking my heart

I was ten/eleven when 'Don't Go Breaking My Heart' came out in 1976 and of course found it very enjoyable indeed, and I still really like it. It came into my head that I wanted to see that weird film clip one more time so I watched it on youtube this morning. The chemistry between Elton John and Kiki Dee is - not off, at all, but nor is EJ in any way connecting to KD on any level other than a 'come on, luv, we've got a job to do we've blocked out 45 minutes this morning to make this video and then I'm off to Paris' kind of vibe. For her part, KD seems even less into the whole schemozzle. 

I'm not saying they should work on their craft at all and I never needed to believe that they were in love or anything, but even as an 11 year old I could very clearly see that they were not trying to project that in any way, and that was interesting. You can watch it yourself any time. They are just miming in a recording studio (or a mock up of one) with a single microphone. They do a few goofy, surely entirely unrehearsed actings out of bits of the song, very inexpertly for professionals, almost awkwardly really but it's fine. The very weird bit is when EJ grabs hold of a strange little pocket? pouch? on KD's overalls and kisses it. That really is when we get into Mork from Ork/ ALF/ Uncle Martin kind of territory, and I'm not saying that as a gay man EJ doesn't understand how to caress a lady's overalls augmentation, but I am saying that it's so odd that everybody thought this was an adequate visual and fine to include in the clip even though it's just so perversely unlike the acts of humans. The attempts of KD to follow Elton's cheesy dancing at the end is even more crazy, you're like, all their inadequacies are laid bare for the world to see!!!

That said, it's a great few minutes, apart from anything else, what an incredible pop song and so buoyant. EJ wrote it with Bernie Taupin under a pseudonym (for some reason) and everybody involved has a right to be proud. It is a really strange clip though. 

Also I note with interest that EJ mimes the backing vocals some of the time, but KD never does, I wonder whether this means she didn't do the backing and she's just being literal, or whether, once again, the whole thing was so unrehearsed they just didn't even think about/talk about this. 

I think this song popped into my head because I am in a fb group called I grew up in Australia 60s 70s and 80s, and someone posted this: 

Lot of Elton in there. Well, I had to get out my The Book: Top 40 Research and check up on some of this shizzle because I just knew it was a US list. At least four of these songs didn't even chart in Australia, let alone make number one (Staple Singers; Hamilton, Joe Frank and Reynolds; Doobie Brothers; Ohio Players). Additionally, there are at least three Australian releases that did make number one (Skyhooks, Bill and Boyd who by the way had two hits in Australia that year!!!) and Bob Hudson with the very unlikely chart-topper 'Newcastle Song'), obviously not on this list. 

So, another travesty of justice thwarted. The balance is restored to the world and we are safe. God bless me.