Just Like Strange Rain
Encyclopedia
"Just Like Strange Rain" is a song by Elton John
with lyrics by Bernie Taupin
. It was originally released as the B-side to his third single, "It's Me That You Need
". It appeared as the last bonus track on the 1995 reissue of his first album Empty Sky
.
and piano
. The song ends with the title being shouted several times over a psychedelic
guitar solo. However, there is a certain "hymn
"-feel over the song as with many of John's earliest.
It was not performed anywhere at anytime and is not a popular pick among fans.
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
with lyrics by Bernie Taupin
Bernie Taupin
Bernard John "Bernie" Taupin is an English lyricist, poet, and singer, best known for his long-term collaboration with Elton John, writing the lyrics for the majority of the star's songs, making his lyrics some of the best known in pop-rock's history.In 1967, Taupin answered an advertisement in...
. It was originally released as the B-side to his third single, "It's Me That You Need
It's Me That You Need
"It's Me That You Need" is a song by Elton John with lyrics by Bernie Taupin. It was his third single, released five months after "Lady Samantha". As with his two previous singles, it failed to chart in the U.S. and the UK. However, the song became hit in Japan two years later, peaking at the #13...
". It appeared as the last bonus track on the 1995 reissue of his first album Empty Sky
Empty Sky
Empty Sky is the debut album of British singer/songwriter Elton John, released on June 3, 1969. It was finally released in the United States in January 1975, with a different cover photograph, well after John's fame had been established internationally...
.
Musical structure
The song opens with a loud electric guitar before segueing into the main verse. It is a steady R&B-beat accompanied by both hammond organHammond organ
The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond in 1934 and manufactured by the Hammond Organ Company. While the Hammond organ was originally sold to churches as a lower-cost alternative to the wind-driven pipe organ, in the 1960s and 1970s it became a standard keyboard...
and piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
. The song ends with the title being shouted several times over a psychedelic
Psychedelic music
Psychedelic music covers a range of popular music styles and genres, which are inspired by or influenced by psychedelic culture and which attempt to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among folk rock and blues-rock bands in the...
guitar solo. However, there is a certain "hymn
Hymn
A hymn is a type of song, usually religious, specifically written for the purpose of praise, adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification...
"-feel over the song as with many of John's earliest.
Lyrical meaning
Mentioning various colours and being about love it is one of the very few Taupin lyrics that's considered psychedelic. The use of words is very diverse. Words such as "Comic book" and "Embroidered" are very rare to find in the same lyric elsewhere.It was not performed anywhere at anytime and is not a popular pick among fans.
Personnel
- Elton John - electric pianoElectric pianoAn electric piano is an electric musical instrument.Electric pianos produce sounds mechanically and the sounds are turned into electrical signals by pickups. Unlike a synthesizer, the electric piano is not an electronic instrument, but electro-mechanical. The earliest electric pianos were invented...
, pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, vocals - Caleb QuayeCaleb QuayeCaleb Quaye , is an English Afro-European rock guitarist and studio musician best known for his work in the 1960s and 1970s with Elton John, Mick Jagger, Pete Townshend, Paul McCartney and Hall & Oates...
- guitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker... - Tony Murray - bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Roger Pope - drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....