Rock of the Westies

Rock of the Westies
Studio album by Elton John
Released	24 October 1975
Studio	Caribou Ranch (Nederland) Trident (London, UK) (mixing)
Genre	Rock [1]
Length	43:39
Label	DJM (UK) MCA (US)
Producer	Gus Dudgeon
Elton John chronology
Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy (1975) Rock of the Westies (1975) Here and There (1976)
Singles from Rock of the Westies
"Island Girl" Released: 29 September 1975 "Grow Some Funk of Your Own" / "I Feel Like a Bullet (in the Gun of Robert Ford)" Released: 12 January 1976

Rock of the Westies is the tenth studio album by British musician Elton John. It was released on 24 October 1975, through DJM Records in the UK and MCA Records in the US. Produced by Gus Dudgeon, the record was recorded in mid-1975 at Caribou Ranch in Nederland, Colorado, and contained a new lineup of the Elton John Band.

Released less than five months after Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy, Rock of the Westies repeated that album's then-unprecedented feat of entering the US Billboard 200 chart at number one. It was also successful in the UK, where it reached number 5. The album's lead single, "Island Girl", topped the Billboard Hot 100 and reached the top 20 in multiple other territories. However, sales of the album tapered quickly, and both contemporary and retrospective reviews have been mixed.

Background

For the recording of Rock of the Westies, John dismissed drummer Nigel Olsson and bassist Dee Murray from his band, reportedly desiring a change in sound from his previous album, Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy . ^[2] Guitarist Davey Johnstone and percussionist Ray Cooper remained from the previous lineup, with the addition of drummer Roger Pope (a session musician on Empty Sky ) and bassist Kenny Passarelli. ^[3] John also added his friend Caleb Quaye as a guitarist and James Newton Howard on synthesizers. ^[3] The album was produced by Gus Dudgeon.

The title is a play on the phrase "West of the Rockies", a nod to the Caribou Ranch studio in Nederland, Colorado. ^[4] Upon its release, Rock of the Westies became the second consecutive Elton John album to debut at the top of the Billboard 200, following Captain Fantastic (the first ever album to debut at #1). ^{[4] [5]} It was the last in a string of six straight US #1 studio albums, starting in 1972 with Honky Chateau . Amongst other guests, funk-rock group Labelle ^[4] and pop singer Kiki Dee provide backing vocals.

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Christgau's Record Guide	A− [6]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[7]

In a review for Rolling Stone , Stephen Holden stated the songs "barely accomplish their objective of providing the latest in synthetic boogie", while opining that the new lineup resulted in only "superficial" changes to John's sound. Holden also criticized the lyrics of "Island Girl" as being both sexist and racist, while declaring "Feed Me" to be the album's only lyrics to be "more than a glib, slapdash effort". ^[8]

Conversely, Robert Christgau praised the album, finding it to have Taupin's best lyrics, while stating that the arrangements of "Island Girl" and "Grow Some Funk of Your Own" "elaborate the songs' racial ironies" and praising the band's "fiery temper" on "Street Kids" and "Hard Luck Story". ^[6]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Elton John and Bernie Taupin, except where noted. "Ann Orson/Carte Blanche" is a pseudonym used by John and Taupin^{[ citation needed ]}.

Side one

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Medley (Yell Help – Wednesday Night – Ugly)"	John Taupin Davey Johnstone	6:15
2.	"Dan Dare (Pilot of the Future)"		3:29
3.	"Island Girl"		3:42
4.	"Grow Some Funk of Your Own"	John Taupin Johnstone	4:47
5.	"I Feel Like a Bullet (in the Gun of Robert Ford)"		5:27

Side two

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Street Kids"		6:25
2.	"Hard Luck Story"	Ann Orson/Carte Blanche	5:16
3.	"Feed Me"		4:00
4.	"Billy Bones and the White Bird"		4:25
Total length:			43:39

Bonus tracks (1995 Mercury reissue)

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
10.	"Don't Go Breaking My Heart" (featuring Kiki Dee)	Ann Orson/Carte Blanche	4:30
Total length:			49:00

Bonus tracks (1996 Rocket reissue)

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
10.	"Planes"		4:31
11.	"Sugar on the Floor"	Kiki Dee	4:31
Total length:			52:41

Personnel

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

Musicians

• Elton John – lead vocals, acoustic piano (all except 8), backing vocals (1, 2, 3, 6, 8, 9; as Ann Orson)
• James Newton Howard – harpsichord (1), Elka Rhapsody string synthesizer (1), ARP synthesizer (1, 3), Hohner clavinet (1, 2), mellotron (3), electric piano (4, 5, 7, 8, 9), synthesizers (4, 5, 9)
• Davey Johnstone – electric guitar (1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9), backing vocals (2, 3, 4, 6, 8), rhythm guitar (2, 6), voice bag (2), Ovation guitar (3), banjo (3), slide guitar (3, 6), acoustic guitar (4, 5), guitar solo (5)
• Caleb Quaye – electric guitar (1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9), backing vocals (2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8), acoustic guitar (3, 4, 5), rhythm guitar (6), lead guitar solo (6)
• Kenny Passarelli – bass guitar, backing vocals (2, 3, 4, 6, 7)
• Roger Pope – drums (1–5, 7–9)
• Ray Cooper – tambourine (1, 3, 5, 6, 9), cowbell (1, 9), congas (1, 3, 6, 7, 8), jawbone (1), marimba (3), castanets (4), bell tree (4), vibraphone (4, 5, 8), shaker (8), wind chimes (8), maracas (9), kettle drums (9)
• Labelle – backing vocals (1)
• Kiki Dee – backing vocals (2, 3, 4, 6–9)
• Clive Franks – backing vocals (8)

Production

• Gus Dudgeon – producer
• Jeff Guercio – engineer
• Mark Guercio – assistant engineer
• Gus Dudgeon, Phil Dunne, Nick Bradford - mixing
• Arun Chakraverty – mastering
• John Tobler – liner notes
• Terry O'Neill – album cover photograph
• David Larkham – art direction and design

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1975–1976) Peak position Australian Albums (Kent Music Report) [9] 4 Canada Top Albums/CDs ( RPM ) [10] 1 Danish Albums (Hitlisten) [11] 3 Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts) [12] 25 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [13] 33 Italian Albums ( Musica e Dischi ) [14] 16 Japanese Albums (Oricon) [15] 47 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ) [16] 4 Norwegian Albums (VG-lista) [17] 6 Spanish Albums (AFYVE) [18] 8 Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [19] 6 UK Albums (OCC) [20] 5 US Billboard 200 [21] 1

Year-end charts Chart (1975) Position Australian Albums (Kent Music Report [9] 37 Canada Top Albums/CDs ( RPM ) [22] 11 Chart (1976) Position Australian Albums (Kent Music Report [9] 52 Canada Top Albums/CDs ( RPM ) [23] 31 US Billboard Year-End [24] 37

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA) [25]	Platinum	50,000^
Canada (Music Canada) [26]	Platinum	100,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ) [27]	Gold	7,500‡
United Kingdom (BPI) [28]	Gold	100,000^
United States (RIAA) [29]	Platinum	1,000,000^
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

Citations

1. "Rock of the Westies – Elton John | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic.
2. Gilles, Fran (30 May 2023). "Nigel Olsson talks exclusively to George Matlock from California, 13 November 1999". Elton John World. Retrieved 27 September 2025.
3. Parkinson 2003, p. 87.
4. "10 Fun Facts About 'Rock of the Westies' and 'The Big Picture'". EltonJohn.com. 25 August 2017. Retrieved 27 September 2025.
5. "Elton Expands 'Captain Fantastic' With Live Tracks". Billboard. 4 August 2005. Retrieved 27 September 2025.
6. Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: J". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies . Ticknor & Fields. ISBN   089919026X . Retrieved 27 February 2019– via robertchristgau.com.
7. Larkin, Colin (2011). "John, Elton". The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). London: Omnibus Press. p. 2,003. ISBN   978-0-85712-595-8.
8. Holden, Stephen (18 December 1975). "Rock of the Westies". Rolling Stone . Retrieved 27 September 2025.
9. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN   0-646-11917-6.
10. "Top RPM Albums: Issue 4050a". RPM . Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
11. "danskehitlister.dk". Archived from the original on 8 April 2016.
12. Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. ISBN   978-951-1-21053-5.
13. "Offiziellecharts.de – Elton John – Rock of the Westies" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
14. "Classifiche". Musica e Dischi (in Italian). Retrieved 25 March 2024. Set "Tipo" on "Album". Then, in the "Artista" field, search "Elton John".
15. Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005 (in Japanese). Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN   4-87131-077-9.
16. "Charts.nz – Elton John – Rock of the Westies". Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
17. "Norwegiancharts.com – Elton John – Rock of the Westies". Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
18. Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN   84-8048-639-2.
19. "Swedishcharts.com – Elton John – Rock of the Westies". Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
20. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
21. "Elton John Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
22. "Top RPM Albums: Issue 6489a". RPM . Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
23. "Top RPM Albums: Issue 5175". RPM . Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
24. "Top Pop Albums of 1976". Billboard. Archived from the original on 31 December 2012. Retrieved 24 February 2012.
25. "Elton John Australian Award". 20 February 2023.
26. "Canadian album certifications – Elton John – Rock of the Westies". Music Canada.
27. "New Zealand album certifications – Elton John – Rock of the Westies". Radioscope. Retrieved 12 January 2025.Type Rock of the Westies in the "Search:" field.
28. "British album certifications – Elton John – Rock of the Westies". British Phonographic Industry.
29. "American album certifications – Elton John – Rock of the Westies". Recording Industry Association of America.

Sources

• Buckley, David (2013). Elton: The Biography. Chicago Review Press. ISBN   978-1-780-12074-4.
• Parkinson, Judy (2003). Elton: Made in England. Michael O'Mara Books Limited. ISBN   1-85479-314-4.
• Rosenthal, Elizabeth (2001). His Song: The Musical Journey of Elton John. Billboard Books. ISBN   0-8230-8893-6.

External links

• Rock of the Westies at Discogs (list of releases)