45 years since Elton John’s ‘Caribou’ was No. 1 on the Billboard album chart

Elton John’s album “Caribou” was No. 1 on the Billboard 200 album chart 45 years ago today.

John had recorded “Caribou” in a hurry before leaving on tour, and despite the album’s popular appeal, critics were hard on it — perhaps none more so than its own producer, Gus Dudgeon.

According to biographer Elizabeth Rosenthal, Dudgeon said the album’s sound “is the worst, the songs are nowhere, the sleeve came out wrong, the lyrics weren't that good, the singing wasn't all there, the playing wasn't that great, the production is just plain lousy."

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