I know that many people find "Your Song" schmaltzy and overly familiar from being a staple on easy listening radio, but I hope you give it another listen; it's been a favorite of mine since childhood, from one of my all-time musical icons. Recently I've gained even more appreciation for it, since I tried to learn how to play it (as a calming distraction the day after the 2016 presidential election). The lyrics say it's "quite simple," but that's a lie: the chord progression is a surprisingly complicated, meandering sequence, full of complex fills and flourishes, that somehow makes sense and SOUNDS simple when you put it all together. In a way, it's a metaphor for all the boring, reliable things we take for granted until we see all the hard work that goes on under the hood. Much like society.
There are many recorded performances of "Your Song" online, but this is one of the best, performed by Elton in front of a small audience at "Inside the Actors Studio" -- more deliberate, stripped-down, intimate, and deeply felt, and sung by an artist whose age-mellowed voice knows all the song's spaces and nuances like a familiar old glove. Hope you enjoy it.
BONUS: If you have a little more time and want to see Elton fully unleash his legendary piano skills, watch this amazing extended performance of "Take Me to the Pilot" (or just have it on in the background as you do other things). When you're Elton John, you don't need a band to blow the roof off a stadium. (But you do need a piano, which Elton delightfully plants an affectionate kiss on, right at the end.)
Finally, if you have access to Spotify, you can check out a playlist here called Songs for Sheltering, which will keep growing as I add each Song of the Day.
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