1981 Elton John – The Fox
The Fox is the fifteenth studio album by British singer/songwriter Elton John, released in 1981. The track “Elton’s Song” was banned from radio play in some countries due to its content, which included references to homosexuality. The album was produced by John, Clive Franks and for the first time, Chris Thomas, who would produce many more albums with John through most of the 1980s and ’90s.
Five of the songs (noted below) were recorded during the sessions for his previous album 21 at 33. All B-sides released around this time were also from those sessions.
Click here for an interview with Jeffrey Porcaro about the Linn drums and the song Nobody Wins
Tracks
1 Breaking Down Barriers (Elton John, Gary Osborne) 4:42
2 Heart In The Right Place (Elton John, Gary Osborne) 5:12
3 Just Like Belgium (Elton John, Bernie Taupin) 4:10
4 Nobody Wins (Gary Osborne, Jean Paul Dreau) 3:43
5 Fascist Faces (Elton John, Bernie Taupin) 5:12
6 Carla/Etude (Elton John) 4:44
7 Fanfare (Elton John, James Newton Howard) 1:25
8 Heels Of The Wind (Elton John, Bernie Taupin) 3:33
9 Chloe (Elton John, Gary Osborne) 4:44
10 Elton’s Song (Elton John, Tom Robinson) 3:02
11 The Fox (Elton John, Bernie Taupin) 5:12
Biography
Musicians
1 Breaking Down Barriers
| Bass | Dee Murray |
| Drums | Nigel Olsson |
| Guitar | Richie Zito |
| Piano | Elton John |
| Percussion | Stephanie Spruill |
| Synthesizer | James Newton Howard |
| Background Vocals | Stephanie Spruill |
| Background Vocals | Venette Gloud |
| Background Vocals | Tamara Champlin |
| Background Vocals | Bill Champlin |
| Vocals | Elton John |
2 Heart In The Right Place
| Bass | Reggie McBride |
| Drums | Alvin Taylor |
| Guitar | Steve Lukather |
| Piano | Elton John |
| Synthesizer | James Newton Howard |
| Vocals | Elton John |
3 Just Like Belgium
| Bass | Dee Murray |
| Guitar | Richie Zito |
| Piano | Elton John |
| Synthesizer | James Newton Howard |
| Sax | Jim Horn |
| Vocals | Elton John |
4 Nobody Wins
| Drums (programming) | Jeffrey Porcaro |
| Drums (synthesizer) | Roger Linn |
| Keyboards | David Paich |
| Synthesizer | Steve Porcaro |
| Synthesizer | James Newton Howard |
| Piano | Elton John |
| Vocals | Elton John |
5 Fascist Faces
| Bass | Dee Murray |
| Guitar | Richie Zito |
| Piano | Elton John |
| Vocals | Elton John |
6 Carla, Etude
| Piano | Elton John |
| Synthesizer | James Newton Howard |
| Percussion | Victor Feldman |
7 Fanfare
| Piano | Elton John |
| Synthesizer | James Newton Howard |
| Percussion | Victor Feldman |
8 Heels Of The Wind
| Bass | Dee Murray |
| Drums | Nigel Olsson |
| Guitar | Richie Zito |
| Piano | Elton John |
| Synthesizer | James Newton Howard |
| Percussion | Stephanie Spruill |
| Background Vocals | Elton John |
| Background Vocals | Stephanie Spruill |
| Background Vocals | Venette Gloud |
| Background Vocals | Tamara Champlin |
| Background Vocals | Bill Champlin |
| Vocals | Elton John |
9 Chloe
| Bass | Reggie McBride |
| Drums | Alvin Taylor |
| Guitar | Steve Lukather |
| Piano | Elton John |
| Fender Rhodes | James Newton Howard |
| Percussion | Victor Feldman |
| Background Vocals | Dee Murray |
| Background Vocals | Bill Champlin |
| Background Vocals | Gary Osborn |
| Background Vocals | Max Gronenthal |
| Vocals | Elton John |
10 Elton’s Song
| Piano | Elton John |
| Synthesizer | James Newton Howard |
| Vocals | Elton John |
11 The Fox
| Bass | Dee Murray |
| Drums | Nigel Olsson |
| Piano | Elton John |
| Organ | James Newton Howard |
| Harmonica | Michael Raphael |
| Background Vocals | Jim Gilstrap |
| Background Vocals | John Lehman |
| Background Vocals | Roy Galloway |
| Background Vocals | Oren Waters |
| Background Vocals | Ronald Baker |
| Background Vocals | Chuck Cissel |
| Background Vocals | Clarence Ford |
| Vocals | Elton John |
Other Musicians
Choir – Rev. James Cleveland & Cornerstone Baptist Church Choir (Track 5)
Orchestra – The London Symphony Orchestra (Track 6)
Liner Notes
Producer – Chris Thomas (Tracks 1, 3, 4, 5, 8, 10)
Producer – Clive Franks, Elton John (Tracks 2, 6, 7, 9, 10)
Arranged By – James Newton Howard (Tracks 6, 7)
Arranged By (Strings) – James Newton Howard (Track 9)
Arranged By (Strings) – Marty Paich (Track 9)
Conductor – James Newton Howard (Tracks 6, 7)
Recorded By – Bill Price
Art Direction – Richard Seireeni
Photography – Eric Blum, Terry O’Neil
Recorded At Super Bear Studios
Recorded At Sunset Sound
Recorded At The Village Recorder
Recorded At Devlon Studios, Los Angeles
Recorded At Abbey Road Studios
Phonographic Copyright Sackville Productions Ltd
Copyright Sackville Productions Ltd