Reg Strikes Back

Reg Strikes Back
Studio album by Elton John
Released 24 June 1988
Recorded September 1987 – Early 1988
Genre Pop, rock
Length 42:06 (Original)
62:06 (1998 Reissue)
Label MCA (Original Release)
Rocket / Mercury (Reissue)
Producer Chris Thomas
Elton John chronology
Elton John's Greatest Hits Vol. 3
(1987)		 Reg Strikes Back
(1988)		 The Complete Thom Bell Sessions
(1989)
Singles from Reg Strikes Back
  1. "I Don't Wanna Go On with You Like That"
    Released: June 1988
  2. "Town of Plenty"
    Released: September 1988
  3. "A Word in Spanish"
    Released: 1988
  4. "Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters, Part Two"
    Released: 1988
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]
Chicago Tribune(mixed)[2]
Los Angeles Times[3]
The New York Times(not favourable)[4]
Rolling Stone[5]

Reg Strikes Back, released in 1988, is the twenty-first official album release for Elton John. It was his self-proclaimed comeback album, and his own way of fighting back against bad press.[1] The "Reg" in Reg Strikes Back refers to John's birth name, Reginald Kenneth Dwight.

In the US the album was certified gold in August 1988 by the RIAA.

Background

This was the last album that bassist Dee Murray (albeit without bass) appeared on prior to his death in 1992. The tracks "I Don't Wanna Go On with You Like That" and "A Word in Spanish" peaked at No. 2 and No. 19 on the Billboard Hot 100, respectively. John brought back record producer Chris Thomas for the album. This is the first studio album to be recorded and released after John's throat surgery the previous year. The album cover featured costumes from John's collection that he decided to put up for auction.

Production

1998 Reissue

Track listing

All songs written by Elton John and Bernie Taupin, except where noted.

Side one

  1. "Town of Plenty" – 3:40
  2. "A Word in Spanish" – 4:39
  3. "Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters, Part Two" – 4:12
  4. "I Don't Wanna Go On with You Like That" – 4:35
  5. "Japanese Hands" – 4:40

Side two

  1. "Goodbye Marlon Brando" – 3:30
  2. "The Camera Never Lies" – 4:36
  3. "Heavy Traffic" (John, Taupin, Davey Johnstone) – 3:30
  4. "Poor Cow" – 3:50
  5. "Since God Invented Girls" – 4:54

Bonus tracks (1998 PolyGram International reissue)

  1. "Rope Around a Fool" – 3:48
  2. "I Don't Wanna Go On with You Like That" (Shep Pettibone Mix) – 7:16
  3. "I Don't Wanna Go On with You Like That" (Just Elton and His Piano Mix) – 4:37
  4. "Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters, Part Two" (The Renaissance Mix) – 6:19

B-sides

Song Format
"Rope Around a Fool" I Don't Wanna Go On with You Like That 12"/CD (UK) / 7" (US/UK)
"I Don't Wanna Go On with You Like That (Shep Pettibone Mix)" I Don't Wanna Go On with You Like That 12"/CD (US/UK)
"I Don't Wanna Go On with You Like That (The Pub Dub)" I Don't Wanna Go On with You Like That 12"/CD (US)
"I Don't Wanna Go On with You Like That (Just Elton and His Piano Mix)" I Don't Wanna Go On with You Like That 12"/CD (US)
"I Don't Wanna Go On with You Like That (Just for Radio Mix)" I Don't Wanna Go On with You Like That 12" (US)
"Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters, Part Two (The Renaissance Mix)" Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters, Part Two 12" (US)
"Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters, Part Two (The Da Vinci Version)" Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters, Part Two 12" (US)
"Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters, Part Two (Self Portrait Instrumental)" Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters, Part Two 12" (US)

'Rope Around a Fool' was recorded during these sessions, as was an unused track, 'Love Worth Waiting For', which Elton would perform at an AIDS benefit show in Los Angeles during the summer of 1988, but has yet to see official release on any format.

Personnel

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1988–89) Peak position
Australian Kent Music Report Albums Chart[6] 12
Austrian Albums Chart[7] 13
Canadian RPM Albums Chart[8] 6
Danish Album Charts[9] 13
French SNEP Albums Chart[10] 30
Italian Albums Chart[11] 3
New Zealand Albums Chart[12] 26
Norwegian VG-lista Albums Chart[13] 8
Swedish Albums Chart[14] 18
Swiss Albums Chart[15] 5
UK Albums Chart[16] 18
US Billboard 200[17] 16
West German Media Control Albums Chart[18] 18

Year-end charts

Chart (1988) Position
Australian Albums Chart[6] 60
US Billboard 200 65
Chart (1989) Position
Italian Albums Chart[11] 18
French Albums Chart[19] 93

Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/Sales
Australia (ARIA)[20] Gold 35,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[21] 2× Platinum 200,000^
France (SNEP)[22] Gold 100,000*
Italy (FIMI)[23] 3× Platinum 300,000*
United Kingdom (BPI)[24] Silver 60,000^
United States (RIAA)[25] Gold 500,000^

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

References

  1. 1 2 Stephen Thomas Erlewine. "Reg Strikes Back". Allmusic. Retrieved 11 January 2012.
  2. ↑ Heim, Chris (12 August 1988). "Elton John Is Back With Fan-pleasing 'Reg Strikes Back'". chicagotribune.com. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 29 January 2012.
  3. ↑ Grein, Paul (3 July 1988). "Elton: Second Wind". articles.latimes.com. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 29 January 2012.
  4. ↑ Holden, Stephen (17 July 1988). "RECORDINGS; Three Veteran Rock-and-Rollers Spin New Disks". nytimes.com. The New York Times. Retrieved 29 January 2012.
  5. ↑ Harold Goldberg (6 October 1988). "Reg Strikes Back | Album Reviews". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 11 January 2012.
  6. 1 2 Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  7. ↑ "austriancharts.at Elton John – Reg Strikes Back" (ASP). Hung Medien (in German). Retrieved 29 January 2012.
  8. ↑ Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 29 January 2012
  9. ↑ http://danskehitlister.dk/?song_id=6567
  10. ↑ "InfoDisc : Tous les Albums classés par Artiste > Choisir Un Artiste Dans la Liste" (PHP) (in French). infodisc.fr. Retrieved 29 January 2012.
  11. 1 2 "Hit Parade Italia – Gli album più venduti del 1989" (in Italian). hitparadeitalia.it. Retrieved 29 January 2012.
  12. ↑ "charts.org.nz Elton John – Reg Strikes Back" (ASP). Hung Medien. Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Retrieved 29 January 2012.
  13. ↑ "norwegiancharts.com Elton John – Reg Strikes Back" (ASP). Hung Medien. VG-lista. Retrieved 29 January 2012.
  14. ↑ "swedishcharts.com Elton John – Reg Strikes Back" (ASP) (in Swedish). Retrieved 29 January 2012.
  15. ↑ "Elton John – Reg Strikes Back – hitparade.ch" (ASP). Hung Medien (in German). Swiss Music Charts. Retrieved 29 October 2011.
  16. ↑ "Chart Stats – Elton John – Reg Strikes Back" (PHP). UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 29 January 2012.
  17. ↑ "allmusic ((( Reg Strikes Back > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums )))". allmusic.com. Retrieved 29 January 2012.
  18. ↑ "Album Search: Elton John – Reg Strikes Back" (in German). Media Control. Retrieved 29 January 2012.
  19. ↑ "Les Albums (CD) de 1989 par InfoDisc" (PHP) (in French). infodisc.fr. Retrieved 29 January 2012.
  20. ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1990 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association.
  21. ↑ "Canadian album certifications – Elton John – Reg Strikes Back". Music Canada.
  22. ↑ "French album certifications – John E. – Reg Strikes Back" (in French). InfoDisc. Select JOHN E. and click OK
  23. ↑ "Italian album certifications – Elton John – Reg Strikes Back" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Select Album e Compilation in the field Sezione. Enter Elton John in the field Filtra. The certification will load automatically
  24. ↑ "British album certifications – Elton John – Reg Strikes Back". British Phonographic Industry. Enter Reg Strikes Back in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Select Silver in the field By Award. Click Search
  25. ↑ "American album certifications – Elton John – Reg Strikes Back". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH
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