John was raised in the Pinner suburb of London and learned to play piano at an early age, forming the blues band Bluesology in 1962. After leaving Bluesology in 1967 to embark on a solo career, John met Taupin after they both answered an advert for songwriters. For two years, they wrote songs for other artists, and John worked as a session musician for artists. John released his debut album Empty Sky in 1969, and a year later formed the Elton John Band and released his first hit single, "Your Song".
John's critical success was at its peak in the 1970s when he released a streak of chart-topping albums in the US and UK, which began with Honky Château (1972) and culminated with Rock of the Westies (1975). John continued his success in the 1980s and 1990s, having several hit singles and albums in both decades, and has continued to record new music since then. He has also had success in musical films and theatre, composing music for The Lion King, Aida, and Billy Elliot the Musical. In 2018, John began his ongoing farewell tour Farewell Yellow Brick Road, which is scheduled to conclude in 2023. The 2019 biopic Rocketman dramatized his life and career.
Outside of music, John is an HIV/AIDS charity fundraiser and has been involved in the fight against AIDS since the late 1980s. He established the Elton John AIDS Foundation in 1992, which has raised over £300 million since its inception, and a year later he began hosting his annual Foundation Academy Awards Party, which has since become one of the biggest high-profile Oscar parties in the Hollywood film industry. John was the chairman and director of Watford F.C, from 1976 to 1987, and again from 1997 to 2002, and is an honorary life president of the club. From the late 1970s to the late 1980s, John developed a severe addiction problem to drugs and alcohol but has been sober since 1990. He entered into a civil partnership with Canadian filmmaker David Furnish in 2005; they married after same-sex marriage became legal in England and Wales in 2014.
John has sold over 300 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling artists of all time. He has more than fifty Top 40 hits on the UK Singles Chart and US Billboard Hot 100, including nine number-ones in the UK and US, as well as seven consecutive number-one albums in the US. His tribute single "Candle in the Wind 1997", a rewritten version of his 1974 single in dedication to Princess Diana, sold over 33 million copies worldwide and is the best-selling chart single of all time. In 2021, John became the first solo artist with UK Top 10 singles across six decades.
John has received numerous awards, including five Grammy Awards, five Brit Awards; including for Outstanding Contribution to Music; two Academy Awards, two Golden Globes, a Tony Award, a Laurence Olivier Award, a Disney Legend Award, and the Kennedy Center Honor. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1992 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994 and is a fellow of The Ivors Academy. He was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II for services to music and charitable services in 1998 and was appointed a member of the Order of the Companions of Honour by King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) in 2020.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elton_John
Solo studio albums
Empty Sky (1969)
Elton John (1970)
Tumbleweed Connection (1970)
Madman Across the Water (1971)
Honky Château (1972)
Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player (1973)
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (1973)
Caribou (1974)
Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy (1975)
Rock of the Westies (1975)
Blue Moves (1976)
A Single Man (1978)
Victim of Love (1979)
21 at 33 (1980)
The Fox (1981)
Jump Up! (1982)
Too Low for Zero (1983)
Breaking Hearts (1984)
Ice on Fire (1985)
Leather Jackets (1986)
Reg Strikes Back (1988)
Sleeping with the Past (1989)
The One (1992)
Made in England (1995)
The Big Picture (1997)
Songs from the West Coast (2001)
Peachtree Road (2004)
The Captain & the Kid (2006)
The Diving Board (2013)
Wonderful Crazy Night (2016)
Regimental Sgt. Zippo (2021)
White Man Danger
Elton John Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
He's come to stay
Red man, it's all over
You're in the way
White man danger
Time on his side
Red man, you don't know it
Let's hear it for the white man
He feels no pain
Let's hear it for the white man
He feels no shame
White man danger
His day has come
Red man got two chances
Slim chance and none
White man danger
He's come to stay
Red man, it's all over
The song "White Man Danger" by Elton John is a commentary on the painful history of colonization and displacement of indigenous people by European colonizers in North America. The lyrics take the form of a confrontational message from the white colonizer to the native inhabitants, asserting their superiority and claiming their right to take over and destroy the native way of life. The first verse is particularly harsh, with the white man telling the red man that he is in the way, and that the world he knows is dead. The chorus emphasizes the white man's perceived invincibility, noting that he feels no pain or shame, and that his time has come to rule.
In the second verse, the white man is portrayed as having all the advantages, including time on his side, while the red man is given almost no chance of survival. The final verse reiterates that the white man is here to stay, and that the native way of life is "all over." The song ends with a bleak warning about the dangers of colonialism and the cruel legacy it leaves behind.
Overall, "White Man Danger" is a bleak and powerful commentary on the devastation wrought by colonization, and a reminder of the need to acknowledge and address this painful history.
Line by Line Meaning
White man danger
White colonizers pose a threat to indigenous people and their land
He's come to stay
White colonizers plan to remain in the colonized land permanently
Red man, it's all over
The Native American people and their way of life are being eliminated by the colonizers
You're in the way
The Native American people are seen as obstacles to the colonizers' plans for the land
Time on his side
The colonizers have an advantage in terms of time, allowing them to slowly take over and displace the Native American people
Red man, you don't know it
The Native American people are unaware of the danger they are facing from the colonizers
But your world just died
The colonizers' arrival signaled the end of the Native American people's way of life and culture
Let's hear it for the white man
Sarcasm towards the colonizers and their belief in their own superiority
He feels no pain
The colonizers are not affected by the harm they cause to the Native American people
He feels no shame
The colonizers are not ashamed of their actions towards the Native American people
His day has come
The colonizers are seizing the opportunity to take over the Native American people's land
Red man got two chances
The Native American people have little chance of survival
Slim chance and none
The Native American people have very little hope of surviving the colonizers' takeover of their land
Contributed by Isaac F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Peter Harthen
on Sacrifice
not like todays crap
Peter Harthen
on Sacrifice
Even at 56 years old, this music still sounds so good to me, how music should sound.....