This is a terrific album. Quite simply, it is the first Elton album since Captain Fantastic in 1975 to have any sort of unifying theme, and the idea (let's do a set of new songs inspired by pop, rock and soul classics of yesteryear) was really good, even if , as Elton explained in a 1989 radio interview I have in my collection, it had been borrowed from Billy Joel and his An Innocent Man album (1983).
Elton had just started emerging from a horrendous sequence of personal traumas (unjustified press vilification, divorce, drug abuse, slumping record sales, and vocal cord surgery) during the 3 years 1986-88 when he went into the studios in Denmark to record this 10-song set in 1989. With each lyric, he and Bernie thought of a style of music that might be appropriate, then Elton would whip up the new tunes.
In August 1989, the first single Healing Hands was released . An uplifting, soulful song about the redemptive power of love, this missed overseas, but was a #14 hit here in Australia. A great song, it re-ignited my interest in Elton John's music, which had wavered during the late 80's - I remember spinning my new copy of the 7' vinyl single heaps of times in October 1989!! From then on I was keenly interested in the chart fortunes of Elton's new album and its subsequent singles.
The album cover showed a monochrome photo of a hatless Elton(!!!) sleeping in shadows, with wispy, now platinum-white dyed hair!!
Opening track Durban Deep is jaunty , but not actually that memorable, although it seems to be about miners in South Africa. Despite the potential for thus causing political trouble (this was still the 80's and the odious National Party government still ran that country), this innocuous track made few waves. Healing Hands came next and really sparked the album into life. It was followed by the sublime Whispers. I really like this song - it showed Elton was really back in form after treading water for several years creatively. This had lovely music, especially the tinkling piano flourishes in the coda, and subtle vocals from Elton, whose voice was also approaching its best again after his health scare.
Track 4 was the very enjoyable Club At The End Of The Street, which I recall Elton saying in an interview was "after the style of the Drifters" - i.e. soulful harmony pop complete with vocal "doo-wops" etc. This was accompanied by a really fun animated video, which is one Elton John collectible I hace never been able to track down, but which I remeber from pop TV back in 1990. Club... became a pop hit in July 1990 as the 3rd single from the album. "Me and you rendezvous / In the club at the end of the street..." The album's title track Sleeping With The Past has a conventional guitar hook and is not bad overall, just not the best song here.
Side 2 of the original LP began with Elton producing an unusual soft falsetto vocal on the catchy tune Stone's Throw From Hurtin'; this worked well in concert, I recall. Then comes Sacrifice, which is remembered as the key song of this album for several reasons. Firstly, it is a well-crafted, mature song about relationship difficulties and disappointments that avoids the obvious and over-used cliches inherent in this genre of songwriting (Bernie is too clever to fall into this trap). Secondly, it seemed to be one of those occasions where Elton was singing about something personal to his own life, and put lots of soul into his performance. Thirdly, it was a smash hit at a time when Elton was pushing 43 and could perhaps have been expecting to start a slow fade from popularity after 19 years already as an established pop star. Sacrifice missed in the UK on initial release in 1989, but hit #7 here in Australia in March 1990. Then in June, it was re-released as a double-A 7" single with Healing Hands and topped the UK chart for 5 weeks !!
An amazing comeback for Elton, who celebrated again soon after when Sleeping... hit Australia #2 and UK #1 (his first album chart-topper there in 15 years). This resurgence happily co-incided with Elton's success in reforming his obsessive lifestyle, and promised an optimistic decade ahead. The Sacrifice had been worth it.
The last three songs are slow to medium paced and really good too. I Never Knew Her Name revisits the bride and groom territory of Kiss the Bride (from Too Low For Zero), while Amazes Me is a slow track that's drenched in soul. Last track Blue Avenue occupies a similar place to Too Low For Zero's One More Arrow - it is a great piano-based song with a wonderful melody that deserves to be better known than it is. It stands up well against classic tuneful Elton ballads of any past era.
Like Too Low For Zero six years before, this album enjoyed a year-and-a-half run on the charts, and spawned several hit singles, while bringing Elton's music right to the forefront of popular acclaim once again after aeveral fallow years. It is a very enjoyable set that still sounds good today.
The bonus tracks are the 1989 B-sides Dancing In The End Zone and Love Is A Cannibal, neither of which is a stand-out track, but which are OK rockers.
This album is 5-stars for sheer entertainment value and for its pivotal role in restoring Elton to his rightful place at the top of the pop music world.
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