Elton John - Diamonds (2017)

Reason for Listening:
#39 on the Billboard 200 (Week of 20191019). Weeks on Chart greater than 100.
Last Week: 35 | Peak: 7 | Weeks on Chart: 100.

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Released 20171110.
17 & 17 songs. 78:13 & 73:59. Diamonds (2-CD) (2017)
17 & 17 & 17 songs. 78:13 & 73:59 & 76:02. Diamonds (Deluxe) (2017)
5/5 & 6/5. 22:50/24:06 & 26:16/24:10. Diamonds (2-LP Vinyl) (2017)
17 songs. 75:08. Diamonds (1-CD) (2017)
Wikipedia

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Notes:
--20191021 2AM--
First listen. Deluxe
~Disc 1~
Note: Resume listening with track 8.
--20191021 6PM--

4: "Don't Go Breaking My Heart";
3: "Your Song"; "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road";
2: "Tiny Dancer"; "Candle In The Wind"; "Bennie And The Jets";
1: "Rocket Man (I Think It's Going To Be A Long Long Time)"; "The Bitch Is Back";
0: "Honky Cat"; "Crocodile Rock"; "Daniel"; "Saturday Night's Alright (For Fighting)"; "Philadelphia Freedom"; "Island Girl"; "Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word"; "Little Jeannie";
-1: "Someone Saved My Life Tonight";

~Disc 2~
What is the mumbling on "Song For Guy"? [He's singing "Life" and "Isn't everything"]
Oh, I didn't know this song, "I'm Still Standing," was by Elton John. I've danced to it in the video game Just Dance Now.
Elton John comes in a little halfway in this song, "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me." I guess it's a live recording.

4: "I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues";* "Can You Feel The Love Tonight";*
3: "Something About The Way You Look Tonight";*
2: "I'm Still Standing"; "Are You Ready For Love?";
1: "Sad Songs (Say So Much)"; "Nikita"; "Looking Up"; "Circle Of Life";
0: "Blue Eyes"; "I Don't Wanna Go On With You Like That"; "Electricity";
-1: "Song For Guy"; "Sacrifice"; "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me" (with George Michael); "I Want Love"; "Home Again";

~Disc 3~

4: "That's What Friends Are For" (with Dionne Warwick, Gladys Knight, and Stevie Wonder)
3: None
2: "Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds" (The Beatles cover); "Mama Can't Buy You Love"; "This Train Don't Stop There Anymore";
1: "Pinball Wizard"; "Part-Time Love"; "The One"; "Written In The Stars" (with LeAnn Rimes); "Good Morning To The Night" (with PNAU);
0: "Skyline Pigeon"; "Victim Of Love"; "Empty Garden (Hey Hey Johnny)"; "Kiss The Bride"; "True Love" (with Kiki Dee); "Believe"; "Live Like Horses" (with Luciano Pavarotti); "Step Into Christmas";

Summary:
The third disc contains many duets and seems like a purchase which a fan would appreciate. Meanwhile, those who are less familiar with Elton John - such as myself - would do well with the 2-CD or even the 1-CD releases.** In fact, the 1-CD release is a reasonable collection of songs. Overall, while there were some songs I don't like across the deluxe album, there were also plenty of songs which I love. However, when rating albums, I look for consistency across the album. I desire the ability to listen to the album as a whole. As such, I would give the Deluxe a 2.8 because it doesn't gain much relative to the extra length, the 2-CD version a 3.0 because there were four songs I marked as "-1" on the second disc, and the 1-CD version a 3.4 because it's efficient. Note that while I focused on the tracks relative to each other and my taste in music, fans might be interested in this album because the tracks have been remastered.

For my favorite song, I looked to choose from among the top three songs on the first disc, the top three songs on the second disc, and the top song on the third disc. After skimming the seven candidates, I was left with "Don't Go Breaking My Heart," "Can You Feel The Love Tonight," "I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues," and "That's What Friends Are For." Although I'm a fan of The Lion King, I was actually never big on "Can You Feel The Love Tonight" - especially compared to other Disney love songs such as "A Whole New World" (Aladdin) and "Beauty and the Beast" (Beauty and the Beast). As such, I ruled that song out. Then, out of the three remaining songs, I ended up picking the most upbeat one: "Don't Go Breaking My Heart."

Overall Rating (Deluxe): 2.8/5
Overall Rating (2-CD): 3.0/5
Overall Rating (1-CD): 3.4/5
Favorite Song: "Don't Go Breaking My Heart"
Second Favorite Song: "That's What Friends Are For" (with Dionne Warwick, Gladys Knight, and Stevie Wonder)
Honorable Mentions: "Can You Feel The Love Tonight" and "I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues"

*While trying to determine my favorite song on the album, "I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues" from a 3 to a 4, I moved "Can You Feel The Love Tonight" from a 5 to a 4, "Something About The Way You Look Tonight" from a 4 to a 3, and "That's What Friends Are For" from a 3 to a 4.
**I got a feel for what it would be like to listen to the 1-CD tracks by compiling my ratings for them below. However, the experience and ratings may slightly differ if I had listened to the tracks as if I was listening to the album. In any case, I think it's a reasonable approximation.

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I used the song ratings above and took the subset belonging to the 1-CD version:

4: "Don't Go Breaking My Heart"; "I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues"; "Can You Feel The Love Tonight";
3: "Your Song"; "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road";
2: "Tiny Dancer"; "Candle In The Wind"; "Bennie And The Jets"; "I'm Still Standing"; "Mama Can't Buy You Love";
1: "Rocket Man (I Think It's Going To Be A Long Long Time)";
0: "Crocodile Rock"; "Daniel"; "Saturday Night's Alright (For Fighting)"; "Philadelphia Freedom"; "Island Girl";
-1: "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me" (with George Michael)