Jessie Taylor
Elton John's Candle in the Wind is a song inextricably linked to tragedy. The original version, written in 1973, honoured Marilyn Monroe, who had died 11 years earlier. In 1997, John performed a rewritten version of the song, Candle in the Wind 1997, as a tribute to Princess Diana, who had died that year. John sang the song at Diana's funeral in Westminster Abbey on September 6, 1997, and it was released as a single a week later on September 13. The song became a best-selling single, peaking at No. 1 in the UK and several other countries.
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What You'll Learn
Elton John's rewritten version of Candle in the Wind
"Candle in the Wind" is a threnody-style ballad written by English musician Elton John and songwriter Bernie Taupin. It was originally written in 1973 as a tribute to Marilyn Monroe, who had died 11 years earlier. In 1997, John performed a rewritten version of the song, "Candle in the Wind 1997", as a tribute to Diana, Princess of Wales, who had died that year.
The 1997 version of the song was released on 13 September 1997 and peaked at No. 1 in the United Kingdom, becoming John's fourth No. 1 single. It also peaked at No. 1 in several other countries. The song was produced by Sir George Martin, who added a string quartet and woodwind instrumentation to the recording. John performed the song publicly only once, at Princess Diana's funeral in Westminster Abbey on 6 September 1997.
The lyrical changes between the two versions are not drastic, but they are very direct. The original song opens with: "Goodbye Norma Jean / Though I never knew you at all", which was adapted to "Goodbye England's rose / May you ever grow in our hearts" in the 1997 version. Some lines were changed to be more personal to Princess Diana or because they were too specific to Monroe. For example, the iconic chorus was changed from: "And I would've liked to know you / But I was just a kid / Your candle burned out long before / Your legend ever did" to a version with more personal references to Princess Diana's life and death.
The song has become strongly associated with Princess Diana and is often used at memorials and tribute events. John has not performed this version live since Diana's funeral and it has not appeared on any of his subsequent compilation albums, with the artist choosing to include the original version instead.
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John's performance at Princess Diana's funeral
On 6 September 1997, a week before the single release of "Candle in the Wind 1997", Elton John performed the song for the first and only time at the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales, in Westminster Abbey. The performance was a tribute to the Princess, who was a very good friend of John's.
John's rewritten version of the song, originally released in 1973 in honour of Marilyn Monroe, was specifically created for the funeral. John's songwriting partner, Bernie Taupin, revised the lyrics to honour Princess Diana, adapting them to suit the circumstances of her life and death. The opening lines, "Goodbye Norma Jean / though I never knew you at all", were changed to "Goodbye England's rose / May you ever grow in our hearts".
John's performance at the funeral was described as "exceptional" and "a master of his craft". It was noted that his professionalism and strength were remarkable, given the personal nature of the performance and the grief he was experiencing.
The song "Candle in the Wind 1997" became the fastest-selling record of all time in the UK charts, with over 650,000 copies sold in 24 hours. All artist and composer royalties and record company profits were donated to Diana's charities via the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund. The song has sold over 33 million copies worldwide and is considered one of the best-selling singles of all time.
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The song's release as a single
"Candle in the Wind 1997", also known as "Goodbye England's Rose" and "Candle in the Wind '97", is a song by English singer-songwriter Elton John. It was released on 13 September 1997 as a tribute to Diana, Princess of Wales, who died in a car crash that year. The song is a new version of John's 1973 song "Candle in the Wind", written by John and Bernie Taupin and produced by Sir George Martin.
The original "Candle in the Wind" was a tribute to Marilyn Monroe, who had died in 1962. John and Taupin adapted the lyrics to suit the circumstances of Diana's life and death. For example, the opening line "Goodbye Norma Jean" was changed to "Goodbye England's rose". John performed the rewritten version of the song at Diana's funeral on 6 September 1997, a week before its release as a single.
The single sold a record 600,000 copies on its first day in Britain alone and peaked at No. 1 in the United Kingdom, becoming John's fourth No. 1 single. It also peaked at No. 1 in several other countries. Guinness World Records lists this version as the second-best-selling single in the world, with 33 million copies sold, and as the highest-selling single since charts began in the 1950s.
Despite the song's success, John has not performed this version live since Diana's funeral and it has not appeared on any of his subsequent compilation albums. He continues to sing the original version of the song at his concerts but has repeatedly turned down requests to perform the revised version, even for the memorial Concert for Diana in July 2007.
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The song's commercial success
"Candle in the Wind 1997", also known as "Goodbye England's Rose", is a rewritten version of Elton John's 1973 song "Candle in the Wind". The new version was written by John and Bernie Taupin and produced by George Martin. It was released on 13 September 1997 as a tribute to Diana, Princess of Wales, who died in a car crash on 31 August of that year. John and Taupin adapted the lyrics to suit the circumstances of Diana's life and death.
The song was a commercial success, selling 600,000 copies on its first day in Britain alone and becoming the fastest-selling record of all time in the UK charts. It also peaked at No. 1 in several other countries, including Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Australia. In the US, it was the only single ever certified Diamond at the time and shipped over 11 million copies. Overall, the song sold 33 million copies worldwide, making it the highest-selling single since charts began in the 1950s.
The success of "Candle in the Wind 1997" also highlights some interesting commercial realities of the music industry in the late 1990s. For example, cassette singles were no longer a significant commercial force compared to CD singles, which had better sound quality and were only marginally more expensive than cassette players by 1997.
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The original version of the song
"Candle in the Wind" is a threnody-style ballad written by English musician Elton John and songwriter Bernie Taupin. It was originally written in 1973 as a tribute to Marilyn Monroe, who had died 11 years earlier. The song was released on John's 1973 album "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" and as a single in 1974. The lyrics of the song are a sympathetic portrayal of the life of Marilyn Monroe, with the opening line "Goodbye, Norma Jean" referring to Monroe's real name, Norma Jeane (more commonly spelled Jean) Mortenson.
Taupin was inspired to write the lyrics after hearing the phrase "candle in the wind" used by Clive Davis in tribute to Janis Joplin: "I just kept hearing this phrase 'candle in the wind' after Clive Davis said it at Janis Joplin's memorial... She was just a metaphor for fame and dying young, and people sort of overdoing the indulgence, and those that do die young". On the song itself, Taupin stated: "I think it's one of the best marriages of lyric and melody that Elton and I have ever put together".
In 1997, John performed a rewritten version of the song, "Candle in the Wind 1997", as a tribute to Diana, Princess of Wales, who had died earlier that year. This version of the song, with new lyrics, was released as a single and sold widely around the world, peaking at number one in almost every country where it was sold. John has not performed this version live since Diana's funeral and it has not appeared on any of his subsequent albums, which instead use the original version.
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Frequently asked questions
Elton John sang Candle in the Wind at Princess Diana's funeral on 6 September 1997.
The funeral was held at Westminster Abbey.
No, Elton John wrote the song with his frequent collaborator Bernie Taupin.
No, he has not performed the song after Princess Diana's funeral and has vowed never to perform it again unless asked by Diana's sons.
