"Friends" Original Soundtrack Recording, released in 1971, is the fourth official album release by Elton John. It was a project John and Bernie Taupin took on before their breakout success in the US, and served as the soundtrack album for the Friends film released in the same year. It was certified Gold in April 1971 by the RIAA. It became John's third gold record in as many months in that market (following the albums Elton John in February and Tumbleweed Connection in March).[2] The title track was a minor hit in the US (#34 on the pop chart) despite the film's mediocre performance. The album also received a 1972 Grammy nomination for Best Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or Television Special at the 14th Annual Grammy Awards.[3]
| "Friends" Original Soundtrack Recording | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Soundtrack album by | ||||
| Released | 5 March 1971 | |||
| Recorded | September 1970 | |||
| Studio | Trident Studios, London | |||
| Genre | Film music, soft rock | |||
| Length | 37:51 | |||
| Label | Paramount | |||
| Producer | Gus Dudgeon | |||
| Elton John chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Friends | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music |   [1] |
The rights to the soundtrack are now with Universal Music Group, which shares ownership of John's music with him, and which also owns the Paramount Records catalogue.
Apart from the original vinyl release in 1971, it has yet to be issued as a standalone CD, but the Friends soundtrack is available on the Rare Masters (1992) 2-CD set, tracks 10–19 on Disc One, albeit with the tracks in a different order to the original LP. The difference is that "Michelle's Song" changes places with "Honey Roll" and "Variations on Friends".
In the early 1970s, John performed the title track and "Can I Put You On" in concert, with the latter appearing on the next release, the live recording 17-11-70 (retitled 11-17-70 in North America). "Seasons Reprise" was heard on the The Wonder Years season 3 episode "Night Out" where Kevin Arnold (Fred Savage) and Winnie Cooper (Danica McKellar) have their first kiss. The most recent performance of "Friends" was during the An Evening with Elton John tour in 1999.
Track listing
editAll tracks written by Elton John and Bernie Taupin, except where noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Friends" | 2:20 | |
| 2. | "Honey Roll" | 3:00 | |
| 3. | "Variations on Friends Theme (The First Kiss)" (instrumental) | John, Paul Buckmaster | 1:45 |
| 4. | "Seasons" | 3:52 | |
| 5. | "Variation on Michelle's Song (A Day in the Country)" (instrumental) | John, Buckmaster | 2:44 |
| 6. | "Can I Put You On" | 5:52 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Michelle's Song" | 4:16 | |
| 2. | "I Meant to Do My Work Today (A Day in the Country)" | John, Buckmaster, lyrics: Richard Le Gallienne | 1:33 |
| 3. | "Four Moods" (instrumental) | Buckmaster | 10:56 |
| 4. | "Seasons Reprise" | 1:33 |
Personnel
editInformation taken from the original LP's liner notes.[4]
- Elton John – piano, vocals
- Caleb Quaye – guitar ("Can I Put You On", "Honey Roll")
- Barry Morgan—drums ("Friends", "Michelle's Song")
- Dee Murray – bass guitar ("Can I Put You On", "Honey Roll")
- Nigel Olsson – drums ("Can I Put You On", "Honey Roll")
- Paul Buckmaster – orchestral arrangement
- Rex Morris – saxophone ("Honey Roll")
- Madeline Bell – backing vocals
- Lesley Duncan – backing vocals
- Liza Strike – backing vocals
Production
edit- Gus Dudgeon – producer
- John Gilbert – executive producer
- Robin Geoffrey Cable – engineer
Charts
edit
Weekly chartsedit
|
Year-end chartsedit
|
Certifications
edit| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (BPI)[10] | Gold | 100,000^ |
| United States (RIAA)[11] | Gold | 500,000^ |
|
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
References
edit- ^ 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.
- ^ "Elton John's Gold & Platinum Albums". Neosoul.com. 28 August 2000. Retrieved 16 February 2012.
- ^ "Discography". Archived from the original on 11 May 2018. Retrieved 18 April 2017.
- ^ "LP's liner notes". albumlinernotes.com. Retrieved 7 December 2020.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 5382". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
- ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Soundtrack / Elton John – Friends" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
- ^ "Elton John Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
- ^ "Jaaroverzichten – Album 1971" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 July 2023.
- ^ "great britain's million sellers, 1971-72" (PDF). Cash Box. 6 July 1974. p. 8, Part II. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
- ^ "American album certifications – Elton John – Friends". Recording Industry Association of America.
