Elton John criticises modern chart hits: 'They’re not real songs'

28 August 2020, 14:02

Sir Elton John has criticised the way that charts are run today, noting that “proper songs” never make the charts.

The 73-year-old musician is not a fan of the top 40 chart and says that good songs are now “too sophisticated” for the mainstream.

However, Elton also revealed he no longer listened to his own records.

The ‘Your Song’ singer told the BBC he is a fan of Father John Misty, as his songwriting style reminds him of his own.

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Elton said: “[Father John Misty] reminds me a little bit of me the way he writes songs.”

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He added that he is also a fan of 21-year-old Conan Gray, a rising singer-songwriter who crafts his own music.

Elton continued: “He’s from America and he’s the only person in the American Spotify Top 50 to actually write the song without anybody else.

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“Everybody else there’s four or five writers on [a track] and [Conan is] going to be huge. You look at most of the records in the charts – they’re not real songs.

“They’re bits and pieces and it’s nice to hear someone write a proper song. I like people who write songs.

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“And there’s plenty of people that do but a lot of them don’t get played on the radio because they’re too sophisticated and we get songs made by a computer all the time and I’m not interested in that.”

Elton then told listeners that he’s only interested in listening to his future music, saying: “I don’t listen to any of my records any more. I just don’t do it.

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“I’m not one of these artists that sits there compiling stuff from all the vaults and stuff like that. I’m more interested in what’s coming next than what went by.”