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In 2004, he began working with community radio in the UK and Poland, and later launched Radio Orla, a bilingual Anglo-Polish radio station serving listeners across the UK, Ireland, and Poland. Building on this experience, he created Radio Elton John, the official podcast channel of EltonJohn.World. There, he hosts the acclaimed interview series Saturday Night’s Alright (for Podcasting), where he speaks with musicians, producers, artists, and fans who have helped shape Elton John’s world — from early collaborators like Ray Williams to modern contributors and collectors.
Beyond broadcasting, Matlock is also the founder of London Scottie Club (2016) recently renamed Scottie Club UK and Scottie Radio UK, showcasing his versatility and creative curiosity. Through his work on Radio Elton John, he continues to connect fans and insiders alike, preserving stories and voices that celebrate Elton John’s remarkable career and legacy.
Hi George, Welcome to the Week Of...
Like a good bottle of red wine. Rose, sadly doesn’t mature well! Captain Fantastic is indeed a landmark album. Before Philip Norman’s “Elton” in 1991 or Elton himself with “Me” in 2019, there was this album in 1975.
The orchestration and guitars are definitely a product of their time. But that is also down to the recording modes of the era. Today, we have sequencers, and even artificial intelligence is being used by some artists who officially claim they are against it!
It is not a long album. About 46 and a half minutes. Quite brief when you think about how much the duo of Elton and lyricist Bernie Taupin had achieved in their eight years of writing partnership by then.
But some songs remain fresh, such as the title track itself, plus the hit Someone Saved My Life Tonight. Unfortunately, music “values” have moved on, so aggressive songs like Bitter Fingers, Tower of Babel, Better Off Dead, Meal Ticket, and then the eerie Curtains have rather dated now. Curtains it was not, as Elton had another 4 decades of creative music ahead of him! All great songs but we are talking about songs that belong to the sounds of the 1970s
If you had to pick one production element that shows Elton and Bernie’s most daring experimentation, which would it be and why?
The song Better Off Dead is very heavy on percussion. It has a lot of things going on. The drums are aggressive and what is unusual is that there is a military march, rather than a death march. This seems incongruous for a song titled “Better Off Dead” This was daring and puzzling. Side A ends with the longest track Someone Saved Me Life, but Side B ends with a nearly as long Curtains. The latter song is eerie as I said and haunting. It is slow but it has moments of silence. It was brave to record a song that builds up almost in the way as repetitive Bolero by Maurice Ravel, only without a triumphant rhythm.
Totally true! How do you think the album artwork and visual imagery complement the music and the overall message of the record?
The artwork is genius. It is perhaps THE most creative artwork for any Elton album, even if Goodbye Yellow Brick Road and Who Believes in Angels does well too!
We had the pleasure of interviewing on Radio Elton John this year the album’s art director David Larkham as well as Miles Aldridge, the photographer and artist son of Alan Aldridge who penned the artwork in 1975. As we discovered, Alan was inspired by earlier work for Dick James Music, on the Groovin’ with Mr Bloe album to create this very intense artwork. It rather reminds me of the artwork of Dutch graphic artist Maurits Escher – I seem to be obsessed with people called Maurice, I apologise! – not because of the symmetrical way the artwork spreads but for the intensity. Alan crammed so much into every millimetre of the canvas. You can view the album artwork for hours and still discover something new!
Absolutely! How do you think Captain Fantastic speaks to people who didn’t know Elton and Bernie’s life story? Is it an album only for fans, or does it have a universal language?
Music is all about connecting. To a concert crowd, a radio audience, the buying public. My English teacher used to tell us to write stories from personal experience as these are the only ones we can write with conviction and those reading them can see it is a personal account. This is also true of music or other arts.
Elton and Bernie tell a lot in 46 minutes and the main thing is to explain that, despite being at the pinnacle of their careers in 1975, they had to struggle just like any other musician to make the big time. Only in Elton and Bernie’s case, it was the really big time!
So you don’t have to be a fan to appreciate it. But by the time you have listened to the album…you will be a fan. For sure
Do you think an album like this could find a place in today’s music scene? And how might a new audience, who has never listened to Elton John, respond to it?
Music and musicianship, and music and production techniques, need to be separated. They are not the same thing. If you are asking whether the guitar interpretations or the recording suite would cut it today, the answer is that a new audience might resist. But if you are asking if the songs could stand the test of time, sure they could. They would need cover versions with new production values. Just as Elton took his Kiki Dee duet to a new level with Ru Paul in 1993. What was smart about that was that the re-release was lapped up by new audiences who loved the new production values, but also by the fans who remembered it from nearly thirty years earlier!
On Radio Elton John, I once asked another Elton duet artist, Neil Sedaka, about whether he would consider re-recording his 1975 hit The Immigrant for a new audience. It might prove relevant to the trends in the USA today. But Neil said never dabble with a hit. It belongs where it was.
And in a sense, that’s what happened with The Captain and the Kid. It is provocatively titled similarly. But is it really a sequel? I don’t hear it. For me it is a reminisce for an album that Elton and Bernie (and the fans) love enormously. But I cannot compare it to 1975. Firstly, Postcards from Richard Nixon exudes the political statement that was missing in the innocence of Elton and Bernie’s first decade.
“Wind” is in a title in both albums, and the intro and outro to Captain and the Kid is indeed that of Captain Fantastic.
It is a nice album, and self-indulgent, but it is no sequel to Captain Fantastic. Elton and Bernie were having fun and indeed reminiscing, as I said. But it is a very different direction and the final track has a style more in keeping with album The Big Picture.
Why do you think The Captain and the Kid didn’t achieve the same recognition or impact as the original? Are there aspects of the album that deserve to be rediscovered today?Albums, by their nature, are supposed to be timeless, to sit on your shelf and hopefully get played often, suiting your taste and mood. Unlike a single which is a fashion statement of the moment. You bought one song plus a questionable filler on the other side, because it was the fashion. With an album you hope to treasure it more, it is a timeless capsule.
Therefore it is not about rediscovering it. Fans I think bought into the marketing of the release because they hoped it would be Captain Fantastic II. That is the wrong approach. Elton’s voice is 30 years older in the second album. Production values have moved on.
Finding it was a different album, I think the fans may have been disappointed. But that is the wrong reaction. Treasure it for what it is from an artist you admire. Don’t compare or contrast as you set yourselves up for disappointment.
Remember how people used to accuse ABBA of “the same songs over and over” on their albums and singles? It didn’t damage their career but it was not meant as a compliment either!
Certainly! Is there an anecdote or fan reaction over the years that you find particularly revealing about the cultural impact of the original album?
Captain Fantastic has so many stories lurking between each song. But sure, Someone Saved My Life Tonight must be the most heart-wrenching. Here was a young man, being influenced by marriage when he was still finding himself, and moreover risking the final curtain to what would prove to be a promising musical career which we would later describe as “phenomenal”.
It is personal, but it could also be cultural. How many mid-life crises are the result of ageing men or women who discovered that they ended up in a loveless marriage, in debt and never followed their dreams to be musical icons? There is creative carnage out there. I actually cry for these men and women.
How has your own perception of the album changed over the years? Are there moments or songs you’ve rediscovered?
For me this album has remained a timeless capsule, as I describe albums. It contains the right air quality inside, remains comfortable and travel-worthy. I have not changed my mind. It remains as fresh and evocative as when I first heard it. The world has changed, not the vinyl.
If you had to recommend Captain Fantastic to someone who has never listened to Elton John, without mentioning chart positions, autobiography, or commercial success, what would you say, and what feeling would you want them to take away?
What I might struggle with is explaining why this album, released in May 1975 is marking its 50th birthday release on the same day as the successor album, Rock of the Westies turns 50 years.
If I could recommend it convincingly, I would be director of marketing at Universal Music in London! But seriously, I would tell them that this album is by an artist you may have heard of, and yes he’s quite special and quite famous too. He’s produced a lot of music, more than 500 songs, but here are just 10 songs, just 2 percent of his catalogue, and they tell a themed story, just like Billy Joel’s themed An Innocent Man in 1983, and offer a little insight into the artist’s early life. It is about him and his lyricist, not the imagination of others. Be inspired. Enjoy.
Fifty years later, Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy still stands tall — a bold, honest chronicle of two artists finding their voice. Through George Matlock’s words, we’re reminded that great music never really ages. It simply waits to be rediscovered. Thank you very much, George!!!
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