Candle in the Wind 1997

"Candle in the Wind 1997"
Single by Elton John
A-side	"Something About the Way You Look Tonight" "Candle in the Wind 1997"
B-side	"You Can Make History (Young Again)"
Released	13 September 1997 (1997-09-13) (UK) 23 September 1997 (1997-09-23) (U.S.)
Format	CD, 7"
Recorded	September 1997
Genre	Pop
Length	3:59 ("Something About the Way You Look Tonight") 4:11 ("Candle in the Wind 1997")
Label	Rocket Records (UK) A&M (US/Canada)
Writer(s)	Elton John, Bernie Taupin (re-written)
Producer	George Martin
Elton John singles chronology
"Live Like Horses" (1996) "Something About the Way You Look Tonight" / "Candle in the Wind 1997" (1997) "Recover Your Soul" (1998)

"Candle in the Wind 1997" is a remake of "Candle in the Wind" by Sir Elton John that was released as a tribute single to Diana, Princess of Wales: with over 37 million copies sold, it is the best-selling single of all time.^[1] On release in September 1997, the song peaked at number one in the UK, becoming Elton John's fourth number one single, and in most other countries worldwide, also becoming the first song in history to reach the top in each of the four major countries in the music industry: United States, Japan, United Kingdom, and Germany.

The 1997 version of "Candle in the Wind" is based on the 1973 version of "Candle in the Wind," released by Elton John. The lyrics of that earlier version, written by Bernie Taupin, were a tribute to Marilyn Monroe. The opening lines of the 1973 version, "Goodbye Norma Jean, though I never knew you at all," were adapted to "Goodbye England's rose, may you ever grow in our hearts." In fact, most of the lyrics were adapted to suit the circumstances of Diana's life and death, but a notable and poignantly ironic omission was the line, "Even when you died, the press still hounded you..."

Song information

On 31 August 1997, Diana, Princess of Wales was killed in a car crash in Paris, France. The news immediately shocked Elton John, as he and the Princess had been very good friends: he had also lost another good friend, the fashion designer Gianni Versace, earlier in the summer, and had attended his funeral with Diana.

As a result of these deaths, John sank into a deep depression, and considered not going to the funeral due to the emotional trauma.^{[citation needed]} In the end, he decided to attend after receiving support from other friends. Following the recovery, John decided he wanted to pay a tribute to Diana: with that in mind, he contacted his veteran writing partner, Bernie Taupin. Due to the confusion created by a message John left on Taupin's answering machine in which he asked Taupin to write a lyric similar to "Candle in the Wind", Taupin rewrote that song.^{[citation needed]} George Martin was contacted to help produce the song, and added a string quartet, (Peter Manning, Keith Pascoe, Levine Andrade and Andrew Shulman), and woodwind (Pippa Davies, flute) to help balance the recording.

John sang "Candle in the Wind 1997" in public, for the only time, at the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales, in Westminster Abbey on 6 September 1997. Though he continues to perform the original 1973 version of the song at his concerts, John has repeatedly turned down requests to perform the 1997 version. He refused even when asked to do so for the memorial Concert for Diana in July 2007, having vowed never to perform it again unless asked by Diana's sons.^{[citation needed]} The song has never been released (or re-released) on any of his other albums or compilations, not even on the 1997 Diana Princess of Wales: Tribute album (an official 2-CD release sanctioned by Princess Diana's family that included other artists such as Celine Dion and Rod Stewart).

Chart performance

Candle in the Wind was expected to debut high on the charts, partly due to its tribute to the death of Diana, Princess of Wales; but its actual results were record breaking. Released on 13 September 1997, it became the fastest-selling single in the UK, selling 658,000 copies in its first day of release, and over 1.5 million copies in its first week.^[2] The single would remain at number one for 5 weeks. All in all, it eventually sold 4.86 million copies in the UK, overtaking the 13-year-old record held by Band Aid's "Do They Know It's Christmas?". It has been certified as the best-selling single of all time in the UK.^[3]

The chart success in the United States was quite similar. Release on 22 September 1997, Candle in the Wind debuted at number one, with first week sales at a staggering 3.5 million copies.^[2] As a result, the album/single stayed at the top of the charts for 14 consecutive weeks, a record for a male solo artist. The single was later certified diamond for shipments of over 11 million copies in the United States^[4], and became the best-selling single worldwide, with estimated worldwide sales totaling over 35 million copies.^[2] Candle in the Wind is also the only single in the United States to be certified diamond.^[2]

The single's success was also seen in most countries around the world.^{[citation needed]} In Canada, the single spent three years in the top 20, with 45 non-consecutive weeks at the top spot.^[2] However, the song's unusual chart performance in Canada has also been explained as a structural factor; due to the relative lack of CD singles available for sale in Canadian stores. In some weeks the song was able to chart on sales of less than 100 copies across the entire country.^{[citation needed]}

As a testament to the single's success, it is estimated that at the peak of sales, almost six copies of the single were sold across the world per second.^[2] All artist and composer royalties and record company profits were donated to the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund.^[2]

Comprehensive charts

¹ "Candle in the Wind"

Sales certifications

Trivia

Lists of miscellaneous information should be avoided. Please relocate any relevant information into appropriate sections or articles. (April 2009)

• This song is parodied in The Simpsons episode "Funeral for a Fiend" (a parody of "Funeral for a Friend", another Elton John song) with Krusty the Clown singing altered lyrics while playing piano at Sideshow Bob's funeral.

• The song was parodied by Australian comedy team The Chaser in 2007 with Andrew Hansen's altered lyrics lamenting the departure of host Naomi Robson from the current affairs program Today Tonight.

• The song is listed at #41 on Billboard's All Time Top 100.^[6]

See also

• Candle in the Wind

References