He was born Reginald Kenneth Dwight, he changed his name in 1972 and he’s Elton John now, he turned 63 today and he’s still standing. One of the most interesting moments in his career was the re-writing of his 1973 “Candle in the Wind” for Diana’s funeral in 1997.
I’d like to share a classroom activity with you that I do regularly with both students and teachers spotting the differences between that original “Candle in the Wind” text that he collaborated on with Bernie Taupin and the version written after Diana’s death and performed at her funeral in Westminster Abbey in 1997. It has great potential for the development of (critical) reading skills and, I think, shows how concentrating on the little words, like the pronouns, is one of the key tools in developing reading skills.
This is the original text and accompanying video on youtube.
Goodbye Norma Jean
Though I never knew you at all
You had the grace to hold yourself
While those around you crawled
They crawled out of the woodwork
And they whispered into your brain
They set you on the treadmill
And they made you change your name
And it seems to me you lived your life
Like a candle in the wind
Never knowing who to cling to
When the rain set in
And I would have liked to have known you
But I was just a kid
Your candle burned out long before
Your legend ever did
Loneliness was tough
The toughest role you ever played
Hollywood created a superstar
And pain was the price you paid
Even when you died
Oh the press still hounded you
All the papers had to say
Was that Marilyn was found in the nude
Goodbye Norma Jean
From the young man in the 22nd row
Who sees you as something as more than sexual
More than just our Marilyn Monroe
Elton John and Bernie Taupin 1973
And this is the changed text and the song on youtube performed in Westminster Abbey:
Goodbye England’s rose
May you ever grow in our hearts.
You were the grace that placed itself
Where lives were torn apart.
You called out to our country,
And you whispered to those in pain.
Now you belong to heaven,
And the stars spell out your name.
And it seems to me you lived your life
Like a candle in the wind:
Never fading with the sunset
When the rain set in.
And your footsteps will always fall here,
Among England’s greenest hills;
Your candle’s burned out long before
Your legend ever will.
Loveliness we’ve lost;
These empty days without your smile.
This torch we’ll always carry
For our nation’s golden child.
And even though we try,
The truth brings us to tears;
All our words cannot express
The joy you brought us through the years
Goodbye England’s rose,
From a country lost without your soul,
Who’ll miss the wings of your compassion
More than you’ll ever know
Elton John and Bernie Taupin 1997
Echoes of Blake’s Jerusalem
This is Billy Bragg’s version with a video with contemporary references to Englishness and an English parliament.
And did those feet in ancient time
Walk upon England’s mountains green?
And was the holy Lamb of God
On England’s pleasant pastures seen?
And did the countenance divine
Shine forth upon our clouded hills?
And was Jerusalem builded here
Among those dark satanic mills?
Bring me my bow of burning gold!
Bring me my arrows of desire!
Bring me my spear!
O clouds, unfold!
Bring me my chariot of fire!
I will not cease from mental fight.
Nor shall my sword sleep in my hand,
Till we have built Jerusalem
In England’s green and pleasant land.
Practical classroom activities
TASK 1 Cut up bits of the two songs and separate them into the two songs. How many bits might depend on the level of your students. Play one of the songs afterwards to check how students have managed to do the task.
TASK 2: Write down all the pronouns in both songs and identify who they refer to.
TASK 3: Write down all the words in the two songs that can be related to any particular lexical field. Religion and Nation are two important lexical chains which can be traced through the 1997 version
TASK 4: Which of the words of the original song would have been appropriate in the 1997 version but were left out for some curious reason?
TASK 5: Compare the 1997 version with Jerusalem. What similarities can you find?
TASK 6: What might the function of the 1997 version have been?
With teachers I have discussed how these tasks develop students’ reading skills. Comparison of similar texts but not the same in reading activities in ELT is potentially rich source of discussion. Much can be got out of comparing these two songs on many levels. If any one tries anything out please let me know. And Happy Birthday Elton, you are one of our pop icons and you’ve written some fabulous songs but Candle in the Wind 1973 says a lot more about Marilyn than Candle in the Wind 1997 says about Diana, doesn’t it?