Many thanks to the countless Elton fans who reached out to thank us for the interview with vocalist Billy Trudel, published at the end of September.
You have remarked at how much you enjoyed hearing from Billy many years since he last worked with the Elton John band, and how enthused he continued to be with new projects but also sheer respect for Sir Elton.
Such reactions mean a lot to the team at Radio Elton John and judging by the downloads and streams it is clear many fans are united in enjoying the show – and the series.
The show Saturday Night’s Alright (for podcasting) is unique. And here we lift the muffler to explain why.
Radio Elton John had its lift off in August 2022 and stopped for a major refuel in June this year.
But what inspired the station? You may be surprised to learn it actually goes back to where the first fans discovered Elton John – from the sleeve of their vinyl records.
Presenter and executive producer George Matlock and executive producer Hezi Kor Kadouri were born at the tail end of the 1960s, when Elton John was just starting out in the music business. They grew up hearing songs like Rocket Man and Crocodile Rock. And when they were old enough to to be called consumers and had their own wallets, they could spend them on records.
Not a piano deck but a radio receiver. Another way Hezi and George picked up on Elton John’s music, less so his news.
Back in the 1970s and 1980s, being an Elton fan was different to now. New fans can find a lot of information online, and if they try really hard to surf the web, discover whether Elton’s band likes breakfast cereal sugar-coated or not.
But beyond trivial questions and invasions of privacy that the internet empowers, the really important questions are to be answered elsewhere.
This is where Radio Elton John comes in. We have the questions that invoke the answers.
But even before the internet arrived, it was not always like that.
As Hezi explains: “As a kid growing up in Israel, we had a black and white television set and vinyl records. All we could really glean about Elton was on the sleeve of the records I could buy. So like a lot of fans of my generation, we would pore over the small print. Who contributed to the songs, who was the sound engineer, all from the credits to each song.”
George adds: “I’m from London, UK. And while we had tabloid newspapers espousing trivia and gossip, and the more serious news was in New Musical Express or Melody Maker magazines, my experience was otherwise identical to that of Hezi. The albums were our best friend. All we really knew was what we found on the credits.”
With Radio Elton John, Hezi and George feel that we have come full circle. The monthly show Saturday Night’s Alright (for podcasting) involves looking passed the gossip and trivia, and inviting guests who were on those credits. People who worked with Elton John and who helped shape and define him. Elton is an undoubted world champion of talent. But he also acknowledges his huge debt to the hundreds of professionals he was fortunate to work with who together populate his world.
Radio Elton John is bringing these voices out of the credits and onto the airwaves. This is content you will not find anywhere else.
For more about Radio Elton John click here.
