Caribou (album)

In the liner notes to the 1995 CD re-release, John described the album as being recorded quickly in January 1974, with only about nine days to get everything recorded, because he and the band "were under enormous pressure" to finish the album and immediately embark on a Japanese tour. Producer Gus Dudgeon added additional backing vocals, horns and other overdubs after John and the band had finished their work. Dudgeon later called the album "a piece of crap ... the sound is the worst, the songs are nowhere, the sleeve came out wrong, the lyrics weren't that good, the singing wasn't all there, the playing wasn't great and the production is just plain lousy".^[6]

The album was named after the Caribou Ranch recording studio in Colorado, where part of the album was recorded.^[7]

"Ticking" tells the story of a man suffering from a repressed childhood who kills 14 people in a mass shooting in a bar in New York City. Despite being described by Rolling Stone critic Tom Nolan as "the centrepiece fiasco" of the album in his 1974 review of Caribou,^[8] in 2015 Rolling Stone readers voted the song their second-favourite "deep cut" of lesser-known Elton John songs.^[9]

In addition to the singles, John has over the years played several other songs from this album in concert, including "Grimsby", "You're So Static", "Ticking" and "Dixie Lily". The 1995 CD reissue contains four songs from the general period in and around the release of Caribou, though only two of them, the B-sides "Sick City" and "Cold Highway", were recorded during the album sessions. "Step into Christmas" was recorded during a previous one-off single session, and "Pinball Wizard" was recorded at the Who's Ramport Studios in England, during the sessions for the movie score and soundtrack album of Tommy.^[10]

In February 2024, it was announced Mercury Records would reissue the album as 2-LP set on April 20 as part of Record Store Day to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the album's original release in summer 1974. Pressed on blue sky colored vinyl, LP 1 contains the original album. The second LP includes the b-sides "Sick City" and "Cold Highway," John's version of "Pinball Wizard," "The Bitch Is Back" (New Radio Mix 2024) and a new extended version of the album track "Stinker," the outtake "Ducktail Jiver," which was recorded during the Caribou sessions, and John's demo version of "Snookeroo," later recorded by Ringo Starr for his album Goodnight Vienna.^[11]

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[12]
Christgau's Record Guide	B+[13]
Tom Hull – on the Web	B[14]

Tom Nolan of Rolling Stone described the album as "dispiriting" and said, "Nearly every song on Caribou suffers from a blithe lack of focus, an almost arrogant disregard of the need to establish context or purpose ... Shifting from sentimental to heavy to mocking, [John and Taupin] not only fail to touch all bases but undercut what credence they might possibly have achieved." Criticising the album's production and the superficiality of the songs, he concluded that Caribou is "a startlingly empty experience".^[8]

Stephen Thomas Erlewine's retrospective review for AllMusic called Caribou "a disappointment" and that aside from the two singles, "the album tracks tend to be ridiculous filler on the order of 'Solar Prestige a Gammon' or competent genre exercises like 'You're So Static'".^[12]

Note

• On the 1995 CD reissue, "You're So Static" is spelled incorrectly as "Your're So Static".

Track numbers refer to CD and digital releases of the album.

• Elton John – lead vocals, acoustic piano, Hammond organ (9)
• David Hentschel – ARP synthesizer (2, 5, 10), mellotron (9)
• Chester D. Thompson – Hammond organ (8)
• Davey Johnstone – acoustic guitar, electric guitar, mandolin, backing vocals
• Dee Murray – bass guitar, backing vocals
• Nigel Olsson – drums, backing vocals
• Ray Cooper – tambourine, congas, whistle, vibraphone, snare, castanets, tubular bells, maracas, water gong
• Lenny Pickett – tenor saxophone solo (1), soprano saxophone solo (4, 5), clarinet (5)
• Tower of Power – horn section (1, 6, 8, 9)
  • Emilio Castillo – tenor saxophone
  • Steve Kupka – baritone saxophone
  • Lenny Pickett – tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone, clarinet
  • Mic Gillette – trombone, trumpet
  • Greg Adams – trumpet, horn arrangements (1, 6, 8)
• Del Newman – horn arrangements (9)
• Clydie King – backing vocals (1, 6)
• Sherlie Matthews – backing vocals (1)
• Jessie Mae Smith – backing vocals (1)
• Dusty Springfield – backing vocals (1)
• Billy Hinsche – backing vocals (9)
• Bruce Johnston – backing vocals (9)
• Toni Tennille – backing vocals (9)
• Carl Wilson – backing vocals (9), vocal arrangements (9)
• Daryl Dragon – vocal arrangements (9)

• Producer – Gus Dudgeon
• Engineer – Clive Franks
• Remixing – David Hentschel
• Assistant Engineer – Peter Kelsey
• Album Coordinator – Steve Brown
• Liner Notes – John Tobler
• Art Direction and Sleeve Design – David Larkham and Michael Ross
• Photography – Ed Caraeff and Chris Denny
• Recorded at Caribou Ranch
• Remixed at Trident Studios (London, UK).

Grammy Awards

• Caribou at Discogs (list of releases)