Review Summary: Elton's best album of the 1980s, and one of his best ever.
First off, let me say that the 2.8 rating for this album is utterly ridiculous.
The 1980s' were a roller coaster decade for Elton John. He began the decade as a relic of the 1970s' pop scene, then slowly revitalized himself by reuniting with Bernie Taupin and his old backing band, leading to a commercial renaissance with the "Too Low for Zero" album and several hit singles in 1983-85. By 1986, the quality of Elton's work had faltered again with the abysmal "Leather Jackets," and he was dealt a devastating derailment when he nearly lost his voice due to years of poor technique and drug abuse resulting in cancerous nodules. He rebounded fairly well, and slowly began climbing out of the personal hell he had dug himself into through years of addiction. He finished the decade with "Sleeping with the Past," one of the best albums of his career.
Though he had still years to go before he was fully clean and sober, "Sleeping with the Past" is in many ways a thematic precursor to the musings of maturity and personal redemption that would come to light on "The One." Both Elton and Bernie had faced tumultuous periods throughout the decade, and the songs of "Sleeping with the Past" reflect both their suffering and healing.
Sonically, the record's sounds harken back to the R&B / soul sounds of the 1960s', recalling records by the Drifters, Marvin Gaye, and other well known names Elton had long admired. The minor hit single "Club at the End of the Street," for example, could easily have been a hit for any major 1960s' soul outfit if you stripped away the glossy synths and replaced them with gospel piano flourishes and real horns. "I Never Knew Her a Name" and "Amazes Me" both recall the deep south, honey glazed sound of Ray Charles, while "Healing Hands" draws its power from such life affirming rave-ups as The Four Tops' "Reach Out (I'll Be There)." Elton pays proper homage to these musical giants while maintaining his own signature sound and touch, and Bernie serves up his strongest 'start to finish' batch of lyrics since "Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy."
"Sleeping with the Past" is at its best on its ballads; namely, "Sacrifice" is a latter day Elton classic that deals with infidelity and the general passing away of a once-strong relationship with grace and tastefulness, buoyed by one of Taupin's strongest lyrical accomplishments:
"And it's no sacrifice
Just a simple word
It's two hearts living
In two separate worlds."
There's also the haunting "Whispers," a more modern sounding ballad about a relationship torn apart in every aspect except physical intimacy, and the pain drenched closer "Blue Avenue," whose lyrics double as a metaphor for a romance that can't go no further as well as a realization that Elton needed to get himself clean, which he started to do shortly after.
While it doesn't get viewed in the same light as his more commercially successful records, "Sleeping with the Past" easily ranks among Elton's finest works; it's a mature, elegant effort that signals what would be a new phase in Elton's career, one that would not only ensure his commercial viability for years to come, but would firmly establish himself as one of music's most enduring survivors.
