Elton Chooses Trident Article: 1971

Elton's Trident Studio Love Letter

Published in the UK on January 16, 1971, Melody Maker’s article “Elton Chooses Trident” featured Elton John discussing his recording preferences, with a focus on why he insisted on London's Trident Studios for his second and third albums (Tumbleweed Connection and the upcoming one in March).

Elton John’s second album, released in the middle of last year, possessed a quality of sound with few parallels in the history of pop records.

It was clean, natural, and pure, with the slightest nuance coming over loud and clear. The tone of the strings was particularly devastating, and Al Kooper, for one, raved about Gus Dudgeon's production as well as the songs of Elton and sidekick Bernie Taupin.

So it's not surprising that Elton himself has fairly pronounced views about recording studios, and is quite specific on what he requires from them.

His first album, "Empty Sky," was recorded at Dick James Music's studios, but the second and the third, "Tumbleweed Connection," were cut at London's Trident Studios, where the next one will also be recorded, in March.

At the moment, Trident is the only place he'll use, despite an offer from The Band to use their own studio at Woodstock in upstate New York.

"Trident is very central, which is extremely important," says Elton. "It's quite small—just about the right size, in fact—and it's got a bloody good sound.

"We have the choice of several very good engineers, but we always use Robin Cable because he's completely into our music. That's very important, to have an engineer who's very sympathetic to what you're trying to do; it's why some bands simply won't record without people of the calibre of Glyn and Andy Johns. When you know the engineer, you can be sure beforehand that you're going to get a good sound.

"Getting back to the size of the studio, I'd hate to have to record in a very big one—they're like being in a hospital, terribly clinical, with no atmosphere at all.

For me, a studio has to be cosy and a bit moody, and Trident's like that. Another advantage there is that the drums are contained in a little booth of their own, completely shut off from everything, so there's almost perfect separation and no leakage of sound to speak of.

"They can also get a marvellous string sound there, but it's a bit of a mystery why. Most studios that are good for strings have high ceilings, but Trident has a low one and it's still great. We use about 21 strings usually."

Elton dropped in on a session at Atlantic's studios in New York while he was in America, and was amazed at the speed and efficiency of the Americans.

"They seem to get things done very quickly, and while I was there they got one number down completely in 25 minutes. It took the engineer precisely 15 seconds to get a really rich, meaty bass sound!"

Legacy

This article captures Elton John’s early recording philosophy and his deep loyalty to Trident Studios, the home of his breakthrough sound. It’s a charming snapshot of the 23-year-old artist on the cusp of superstardom.

Do you have this Melody Maker article in your archive? Ready for the Trident magic? Share in the comments!