#sued The Sun for libel and won a considerable settlement (then the largest in British history) over a series of smear articles which

[mariocki]

Infinite list of favourite lyrics: 210/?

Elton John - Made in England (1995)

"If you're made

In England,

You're built to last;

You can still

Say 'homo'

And everybody laughs.

But the joke's

On you,

You never read the song -

They all think they know,

But they all got it wrong."

#favourite lyrics #elton john #made in england #1995 #bernie taupin #the second single from John's album of the same name saw him move away from the romantic ballads and more delicately furnished #love songs that had dominated his style for the last few years and return to the heavier pop rock sound that had first won him acclaim more #than two decades before. in style and execution it couldn't be much further from the album's first single‚ Believe‚ but it's testament to #John's versatility as an artist (and the confidence his fanbase had with that) that both songs performed very well in the charts on both #sides of the atlantic (Believe did a little better in both areas but Made in England was a modest hit in its own right) #released at the very height of britpop‚ the song could easily be confused for a celebratory paean to his home country (and the artifice is #certainly intentional) but all it takes is (as he sings himself) to 'read' the song to see through that #and to catch the very caustic criticism of a land which had variously celebrated and condemned him (and still flip flops tbh) #in particular John had had (and again‚ still does have) a difficult time with the uk paparazzi; a few years earlier he'd successfully #sued The Sun for libel and won a considerable settlement (then the largest in British history) over a series of smear articles which #published outright lies about the singer (The Sun has always been and will always be a shameless rag). having more or less #concentrated his professional efforts in the US at this point it's perhaps unsurprising that John would find his thoughts drifting homeward #and yet tinged with bitterness at the ill treatment he'd received there‚ as well as the homophobia he'd experienced (90s britain wasn't so #very enlightened as it considers itself now (har har): section 28 was in full force‚ the age of consent for gay sex was still higher than #that for heterosexual sex‚ Jersey and the Isle of Man were only just decriminalising homosexuality‚ Justin Fashanu committed suicide and #Elton's friends‚ contemporaries‚ fellow artists and fans were dying of AIDS. is it any wonder he was angry? I'm sure he still is and with #good reason. while the whole pop music scene was falling over itself to prop up 'cool britannia'‚ Elton raised one eyebrow and said #really? #and I'll always love him for that