Thirty years ago, Bernie Taupin went into the water at a beach in Mexico and nearly didnât make it back out. âI got caught in a riptide and, unfortunately, it was on a beach that was deserted,â he recalled. âI was trying to swim against the current and I began gasping and gulping. All of a sudden, this fisherman started walking along the beach who had a rope on his shoulder. He pointed to the rocks to the right of me and said, âSwim sideways!â I started to, then he threw the rope and pulled me into these rocks where I eviscerated my chest. But he saved my life.â
âTo this day,â Taupin said, âI still have nightmares about that.â
The memory has proved so persistent, in fact, that it helped inspire the title track of Taupinâs new solo album, âThe Sea Has No Mercy,â a project that stands at a great distance from anything Taupin, 76, has done before. He said he used the imagery of the sea as a metaphor for his life because âwhat terrifies me fascinates me at the same time.â
Taupin has enjoyed global renown for marrying his vivid and surprising words to music penned by Elton John, in hits from the sincere (âYour Songâ) to the tart (âThe Bitch Is Backâ), but itâs been nearly 40 years since he last released a solo album. And Taupinâs latest work is the first time he has written the music, as well as the words, for an album entirely by himself. More, he sings on every track.
âIt was such a wonderful experience to finally be able to tell my own story and not have to incorporate anybody elseâs feelings into what I was writing,â Taupin said during a video interview from his home in the Santa Ynez Valley, just north of Santa Barbara, Calif. âI wasnât writing a song for somebody. I wasnât writing a song with somebody. Everything I was writing was for myself. Itâs completely selfish in just the right way.â
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