Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me


"Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" is a song written by English singer Elton John and his lyricist Bernie Taupin. It was originally recorded in 1974 by Elton John for his studio album Caribou and was released as a single that peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and reached number 16 on the UK Singles Chart. The song found further success in 1991 in a live cover version recorded as a duet between John and George Michael – who performed the song together for the first time at Live Aid in Wembley Stadium in July 1985 – which reached number one in the UK and US.

Elton John version

Background

"Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" was co-written by Elton John and Bernie Taupin during a ten-day period in January 1974 along with the other songs for John's Caribou album. The song was released as the first single from the album in May 1974 in the United Kingdom, and on 10 June 1974 in the United States.
The chorus of the song is supported with a horn arrangement by Del Newman, and features backing vocals by Carl Wilson and Bruce Johnston of the Beach Boys and Toni Tennille. The original backing vocalists were Cat Stevens, Danny Hutton, Gerry Beckley, Dusty Springfield and Brian Wilson but according to Bruce "everyone was afraid of one another and I couldn't get a performance out of anyone". Also on the song are percussion accents provided by Ray Cooper and a mellotron played by Dave Hentschel.

Reception

"Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" charted on 1 June 1974 in the UK, reaching number 16 on the UK Singles Chart. The song reached the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart after four weeks, peaking at number two for two weeks from 27 July behind John Denver's "Annie's Song". In the US, the single was certified Gold on 6 September 1974 by the RIAA. In Canada, it reached number one, becoming his fifth chart topper in that country.

Track listings

  1. "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me"
  2. "Sick City"
  1. "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me"
  2. "Song for Guy"
  1. "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me"
  2. "Song for Guy"
  3. "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word"

    Personnel

Grammy Awards

Chart performance and certifications

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

1986–87 live version

Elton John recorded a live version on 14 December 1986 that appears on the Live in Australia with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra album. In his 2019 autobiography, ‘Me’, Elton claims that this performance is special because he thought it was the last time he was ever going to sing. The singer was going in to dangerous throat surgery a few days later. An edited version of this same recording was released as a single in 1987 and also appears in the To Be Continued... box set.

1990 MTV Unplugged

On May 17, 1990, Elton John recorded a performance on MTV Unplugged at the Chelsea Studios in New York City. An acoustic version of the song was included as a track on The Unplugged Collection, Volume One.

George Michael and Elton John version

Background

In 1991, "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" was covered in a live version as a duet by George Michael and Elton John. This version of the song had its greatest success. The pair first performed the song at the Live Aid concert in 1985. Six years later, George Michael's Cover to Cover tour regularly included the song, and for the final show at Wembley Arena, London on 23 March 1991, Michael brought out John as a surprise guest to sing it with him.

Reception

The live recording of this song, released as a single later that year, became a massive hit on both sides of the Atlantic. It reached number one on the UK Singles Chart for two weeks in December 1991 and for one week on the Billboard Hot 100 in February 1992. The duet also spent two weeks at number one on the Adult Contemporary chart.
This version of the song was also nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.
It appears on John's Love Songs and Greatest Hits 1970–2002 compilations, as well as his 1993 Duets album. The proceeds from the single were divided among 10 different charities for children, AIDS and education.

Music video

The footage used for the single's music video was taken from a "live" concert in Chicago with 70,000 fans. "The video was actually shot over several days," confirms Michael Pagnotta, George's publicist. "It was shot in an airline hangar in Burbank, California where George had been rehearsing; Elton came in for a night and they ran through the song a couple of times. Then the song was filmed in its entirety live in Chicago in the middle of October as part of that Cover to Cover tour, and when Elton came out from the wings, that place went crazy."

Track listings

  1. "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me"
  2. "I Believe "
  1. "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me"
  2. "I Believe "
  3. "Last Christmas"
  1. "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me"
  2. "I Believe "
  3. "If You Were My Woman"
  4. "Fantasy"
  1. "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me"
  2. "I Believe "
  3. "Freedom"
  4. "If You Were My Woman"
All b-sides and additional tracks were performed solo by George Michael, except Last Christmas which is performed by Michael's duo Wham!
The live version of "I Believe " had previously been issued as the lead track on a free promotional cassette given away at Michael's Wembley Arena gigs in March 1991. Therefore, it is likely to have been recorded at a venue earlier in the tour.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Chart Position
Australia 57
Austria 7
Belgium 4
Canada Top Singles 12
Canada Adult Contemporary 21
Europe 2
Germany 29
Netherlands 5
New Zealand 35
Switzerland 7
US Billboard Hot 10026

Certifications

Other versions