https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/ Copyright (c) 2006-2013 Web Wiz Forums - All Rights Reserved. Sat, 02 May 2026 01:56:44 +0000 Mon, 08 Sep 2025 08:20:56 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Web Wiz Forums 12.07 360 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/RSS_post_feed.asp?TID=10284 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum//images/Top-40-Music-on-CD-Forum-Logo.png https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/ https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10284&PID=67247&title=o-t-elton-john-harmony#67247 Author: Paul Haney
Subject: 10284
Posted: 08 September 2025 at 8:20am

I prefer "Bennie" over "Harmony." Elton was so red-hot at that time that there was an embarrassment of riches to pick as singles, with several worthy songs not making the cut for one reason or another.

"Pinball Wizard" is always the example I use, because it actually hit #1 in several different markets.]]> Mon, 08 Sep 2025 08:20:56 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10284&PID=67247&title=o-t-elton-john-harmony#67247 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10284&PID=67230&title=o-t-elton-john-harmony#67230 Author: eriejwg
Subject: 10284
Posted: 04 September 2025 at 12:13pm

I think Rosalie Trombley, the music director at CKLW in the Windsor/Detroit market, was also a big reason Bennie & The Jets was such a big song in the black community since CKLW was so huge not only in Detroit but as far east as Cleveland and here in Erie, PA. They, at one point in 1974 or so, had Elton on the air as a guest DJ one day.]]> Thu, 04 Sep 2025 12:13:59 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10284&PID=67230&title=o-t-elton-john-harmony#67230 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10284&PID=67229&title=o-t-elton-john-harmony#67229 Author: Santi Paradoa
Subject: 10284
Posted: 04 September 2025 at 8:23am

Good info Andy. In May of 1975 Elton appeared on Soul Train and performed "Bennie And The Jets" plus "Philadelphia Freedom."

Checking Billboard's Hot Soul Singles chart where "Bennie And The Jets" peaked at #15. Not too shabby for a kid from Pinner, Middlesex in London.

Looks like Elton was so popular at this point that his crossover with the R&B radio listeners was a big plus for sales. ]]> Thu, 04 Sep 2025 08:23:12 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10284&PID=67229&title=o-t-elton-john-harmony#67229 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10284&PID=67228&title=o-t-elton-john-harmony#67228 Author: AndrewChouffi
Subject: 10284
Posted: 04 September 2025 at 6:27am

EdisonLite wrote: I agree, too. Never understood why "Harmony" wasn't a single

I recall reading both "Candle In the Wind" and "Harmony" were potentially slated to be the follow up single to the hit song "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road". DJM Records in England generally made the decisions about single releases with Elton contributing a non-LP B-side to give more value to the 45 (Elton was admittedly a chart fan like all of us here).

Elton heard from USA MCA Records that "Bennie & The Jets" was getting unsolicited R&B/Soul airplay in select large markets. I suspect part of the charm was the spacey keyboards reminiscent of Bernie Worrell's work in Parliament/Funkadelic. I even recall a story from an ex-boss of mine who worked in a Philadelphia record store recalling he couldn't figure out why so many Black people were buying the double LP 'Goodbye Yellow Brick Road' album when the only two singles out were "Saturday Night's Alright For Fighting" & the title track (both cuts with limited appeal to Black audiences).

MCA asked Elton if they could release "Bennie" as a single to capitalize on the unsolicited R&B/Soul airplay and Elton authorized it because he was a big fan of R&B and he was impressed that the Black audience was digging one of his cuts.

That helps explain why "Bennie" did not have a non-LP B-side. Possibly MCA chose "Harmony" for the B-side to hedge against Pop radio not embracing the weird (& wonderful) "Bennie".

By the time "Bennie" was the next USA single, DJM England chose "Candle In The Wind", so MCA's plan was to issue "Candle In The Wind" as the set's 4th single, but MCA received word that a brand-new track ("Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me") was almost ready to be pressed so that's why "Candle" wasn't worked in the USA.

I cannot recall where I received much of this information, but I suspect some of it came from reading Cashbox & Record World magazines at a record store (Apex Music Korner) when I was a kid.

Andy]]> Thu, 04 Sep 2025 06:27:43 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10284&PID=67228&title=o-t-elton-john-harmony#67228 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10284&PID=67226&title=o-t-elton-john-harmony#67226 Author: EdisonLite
Subject: 10284
Posted: 04 September 2025 at 12:29am

Hykker wrote: Agree. Way better song than "Bennie" IMHO.

I agree, too. Never understood why "Harmony" wasn't a single]]> Thu, 04 Sep 2025 00:29:13 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10284&PID=67226&title=o-t-elton-john-harmony#67226 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10284&PID=67216&title=o-t-elton-john-harmony#67216 Author: AndrewChouffi
Subject: 10284
Posted: 29 August 2025 at 12:00pm

Interestingly from the first published issue of Radio & Records dated October 5, 1973 through early March, 1974 "Harmony" was consistently listed as one of the most played consensus cuts off the 'Yellow Brick Road' LP on their 'Rock Albums' page.

This was a precursor to their AOR chart loosely documenting the then-called "Progressive" FM format but I'm pretty sure it received some input from the top-40 stations that got a little progressive at night with select album cuts. (I recall that being a "thing" in some markets from about 1971-1974.)

Andy]]> Fri, 29 Aug 2025 12:00:06 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10284&PID=67216&title=o-t-elton-john-harmony#67216 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10284&PID=67214&title=o-t-elton-john-harmony#67214 Author: Bellenger1981
Subject: 10284
Posted: 28 August 2025 at 9:07pm

I checked my Gavin book, and "Harmony" never charted there. ]]> Thu, 28 Aug 2025 21:07:01 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10284&PID=67214&title=o-t-elton-john-harmony#67214 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10284&PID=67213&title=o-t-elton-john-harmony#67213 Author: Scanner
Subject: 10284
Posted: 28 August 2025 at 8:26pm

I only first heard both "Bennie" and "Harmony" a few years after they were released. So, I know them as oldies and heard them both about the same amount on the radio. When I bought my first chart book, Casey Kasem's one and ultimately only American Top 40 book, I was surprised "Harmony" was not among Elton's Top 40 hits. ("Bennie" was.) Years later, when I discovered Joel Whitburn's books, "Harmony" was still missing. How could such a pervasive hit not chart, I wondered, until seeing how many other big radio hits like the Bee Gees' "More Than A Woman" were also never "officially" singles.

Since R&R was a radio chart, I'm surprised "Harmony" never charted there. "Pinball Wizard" did and I rarely recall hearing that on the radio. Did "Harmony" ever chart in Gavin?]]> Thu, 28 Aug 2025 20:26:13 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10284&PID=67213&title=o-t-elton-john-harmony#67213 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10284&PID=67212&title=o-t-elton-john-harmony#67212 Author: Hykker
Subject: 10284
Posted: 28 August 2025 at 7:36am

EdisonLite wrote: I was going to say I heard it all the time on WBZ-FM but John beat me to it.

Pretty sure WVBF played it too, but they didn't publish a survey in 1974 (at least that I know of). WRKO was still king of the top 40 hill, and they did not play it.

Santi Paradoa wrote: Always thought the song should have been an a-side release.

Agree. Way better song than "Bennie" IMHO.]]> Thu, 28 Aug 2025 07:36:14 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10284&PID=67212&title=o-t-elton-john-harmony#67212 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10284&PID=67210&title=o-t-elton-john-harmony#67210 Author: eriejwg
Subject: 10284
Posted: 27 August 2025 at 11:35pm

I'm a member of the ARSA radio survey site. Until recently, you could browse the entire website but lately they are requiring a registration, which is free, to browse the entire website.

I did a search for Harmony from Elton John and came up with those statistics on how many radio stations played the song and how it charted on their stations. Unfortunately pasting it into this discussion messed up the text that I was pasting.]]> Wed, 27 Aug 2025 23:35:49 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10284&PID=67210&title=o-t-elton-john-harmony#67210