Before the platform boots, the oversized glasses, and the sold-out stadiums, there was just a 22-year-old kid named Reg. Honestly, most people forget that Empty Sky exists. They think Your Song was the start of it all, but that came later. In June 1969, while the rest of the world was looking at the moon or getting ready for Woodstock, Elton John was in a cramped 8-track studio in London, trying to figure out who he was supposed to be.
It’s a weird record.
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You’ve got harpsichords, long-winded psychedelic flute solos, and lyrics about Vikings and "the scaffold." It doesn’t sound like the "Rocketman." It sounds like two young guys—Elton and Bernie Taupin—throwing everything at the wall to see what would stick. They were basically kids. Bernie was only 19, writing these dense, poetic lines that Elton had to somehow turn into melodies.
What Really Happened With Empty Sky
The album didn’t even come out in the U.S. until 1975. By then, Elton was already the biggest star on the planet. Imagine being a fan in the mid-70s, buying a "new" Elton John record, and hearing this raw, trippy, 8-minute title track instead of a polished pop hit. It must have been a total head-trip.
In the UK, the 1969 release was basically a ghost. It didn't chart. Not even a little bit.
Steve Brown, who produced the album, wasn't some legendary hitmaker. He was a guy from the DJM Records office who believed in Elton and Bernie. They recorded the whole thing between late 1968 and early 1969. Elton has since called the album "naïve," but he also talks about how he’d walk home at 4:00 a.m. after those sessions feeling like he’d actually made something real.
He stayed at the Salvation Army headquarters on Oxford Street back then. Just a working musician. No limos. No glitter.
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The Songs You Actually Need to Hear
If you’re going to dive into the Empty Sky tracklist, don't expect Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. It’s much more experimental.
- Skyline Pigeon: This is the undisputed crown jewel. It’s the first song where Elton and Bernie realized they had "it." On the original album, it’s played on a harpsichord, which gives it this medieval, fragile vibe. Elton loved it so much he re-recorded it with a full piano and orchestra a few years later.
- Val-Hala: This is where Bernie’s early obsession with mythology shows up. It’s definitely a "product of its time."
- Lady What's Tomorrow: A glimpse of the melodic genius that was about to take over the world. It’s simple, pretty, and lacks the pretension of some of the other tracks.
- Gulliver / Hay Chewed: This is the weirdest part. It ends with a jazz instrumental called "Hay Chewed"—a pun on "Hey Jude"—and then a literal mashup of every other song on the album played at once. It’s chaotic.
Why Nobody Talks About the Production
Most of Elton’s "classic" sound was built by producer Gus Dudgeon and arranger Paul Buckmaster. But they aren't on this record.
Because of that, the piano sounds different. It’s more aggressive in places, more "pub rock." Caleb Quaye, who played guitar on the sessions, brought a psychedelic edge that Elton mostly abandoned by the time he hit the 70s.
Wait. Let’s be honest.
The album is a bit of a mess. But it’s a fascinating mess. You can hear the hunger. You can hear a singer who hasn't quite found his "voice" yet, occasionally sounding a bit like he’s trying to be Leonard Cohen or a folk singer.
The 1975 U.S. Release Confusion
When MCA finally put this out in America in 1975, they gave it new cover art. The original UK cover was a colorful, psychedelic illustration. The US version was a moody photo of Elton. It was a blatant cash grab to capitalize on his superstardom, but it actually worked—the album hit number 6 on the Billboard 200.
People were hungry for anything Elton. Even the old stuff.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Collectors
If you're looking to actually explore this era of Elton John, here is how you should do it:
- Skip the standard versions. Look for the 1995 reissue. It includes "Lady Samantha" and "It's Me That You Need." Those two songs are arguably better than half the tracks on the actual album and show the transition into his 1970 self-titled sound.
- Compare the Pigeons. Listen to the Empty Sky version of Skyline Pigeon (harpsichord) and then immediately play the 1973 version (piano). It’s the best way to understand how Elton’s musical identity evolved in just four years.
- Check the Vinyl Dead Wax. If you find an old copy at a record store, check the matrix numbers. The original DJM pressings from the UK are notorious for being "noisy" because of the vinyl quality back then, but they have a "tubey magic" (as audiophiles call it) that the digital remasters sometimes flatten out.
- Listen for the "Hay Chewed" Pun. It's a silly piece of Beatles-era trivia, but it proves that even as a "serious" artist, Elton never took himself too seriously.
Empty Sky isn't a masterpiece. But it is the foundation. Without this weird, flute-heavy, psychedelic experiment, we never would have gotten the Elton John that changed music forever. It’s the sound of a legend learning how to fly.
Next Steps for Your Collection:
To truly understand the "early" Elton, your next step is to track down the Jewel Box rarities collection. It features the demos recorded right before the Empty Sky sessions, giving you the full picture of how Reg Dwight became Elton John. After that, listen to the 1970 self-titled album to see exactly how much he grew in just twelve months.