The Fox (album)

## ***The Fox***

### **Studio**

Super Bear (Nice, France); Sunset Sound Recorders, The Village Recorder and Davlen Sound Studios (Los Angeles, California); EMI Studios Abbey Road (Abbey Road, London, UK)

### **Genre**

* Rock
* soft rock
* pop rock
* new wave

### **Label**

* Geffen (US)
* Rocket (UK)

### **Producer(s)**

* Chris Thomas
* Clive Franks
* Elton John

## **Singles from *The Fox***

1. "Nobody Wins"
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2. "Just Like Belgium"
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3. "Chloe"
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***The Fox*** is the fifteenth studio album by Elton John, released in 1981.

## Critical reception

AllMusic wrote, "*The Fox* (1981) is a reflection of the tentative regrouping that began on his previous effort, *21 at 33* (1979). In fact, a third of the material was left over from the same August 1979 sessions. This results in dithering musical styles and ultimately yields an uneven and at times somewhat dated sound." They added, "Although The Fox isn't a grand slam, it isn't exactly a bunt either." Stephen Holden of *Rolling Stone* wrote in their review, "With its brilliant artificiality and jerkily mechanical propulsion, this is high-gloss popular music squarely in the mold of “Bette Davis Eyes” and Blondie’s hits."

*PopMatters*' Rich Wilhelm wrote in a retrospective piece, "a few Elton John albums appear to have been largely forgotten, such as *The Fox*, which came out 40 years ago this week. It’s nothing less than a lost gem among the 30-plus studio sequences he’s released. [...] The tracks [...] cover an array of genres."

## Track listing

* Gary Osborne
* Osborne
* Bernie Taupin
* Osborne
* Taupin

**Notes**
* *Heart in the Right Place*, *Carla/Etude*, *Fanfare*, *Chloe*, and *Elton's Song* were recorded in August 1979 to March 1980 and produced by John and Clive Franks. Chris Thomas produced the other tracks.
* In 2003, Mercury/Universal and The Rocket Record Company reissued the album on CD, remastered by Gary Moore. The line-up contained no bonus tracks. On the 2003 reissue and remaster (and European) CD, *Carla/Etude*, *Fanfare*, and *Chloe* are combined into one track, making it a nine-track album.
* French and Quebec releases of the album included "J'Veux de la Tendresse" in place of "Nobody Wins". "Tendresse" was the original French version of the song which Osborne wrote English lyrics for, thus transforming the song into "Nobody Wins".
* On the 1990 box set, *To Be Continued...*, "Fanfare" and "Chloe" are combined into one track.

## Personnel

Track numbering refers to CD and digital releases of the album.

* Elton John – lead vocals, vocal solo (1), backing vocals (1, 2, 4, 5, 9), pianos (1, 3, 5), acoustic piano (2, 6–11)
* James Newton Howard – synthesizers (1-4, 7, 9, 10), vocoder (2), synthesizer programming (4, 10), string arrangements and conductor (6, 7, 8), Fender Rhodes (8), Hammond organ (11)
* Steve Porcaro – synthesizers (5)
* Richie Zito – guitars (1, 3, 5, 9, 11)
* Steve Lukather – guitar solo (9)
* Dee Murray – bass (1, 3, 5, 9, 11), backing vocals (8)
* Reggie McBride – bass (2, 8)
* Nigel Olsson – drums (1, 3, 5, 9, 11)
* Alvin Taylor – drums (2, 8)
* Roger Linn – drum synthesizer programming (4)
* Jeff Porcaro – drum programming (5)
* Stephanie Spruill – tambourine (1, 9), backing vocals (9)
* Victor Feldman – percussion (7, 8)
* Jim Horn – alto saxophone (3)
* Mickey Raphael – harmonica (11)
* Marty Paich – string arrangements (8)
* London Symphony Orchestra – strings (6, 7, 8)
* Bill Champlin – backing vocals (1, 8, 9)
* Venette Gloud – backing vocals (1, 9)
* Tamara Matoesian, now Tamara Champlin – backing vocals (1, 9)
* Colette Bertrand – French girl (3)
* James Cleveland – spoken voice and choir director (5)
* Cornerstone Baptist Church Choir – choir (5)
* Max Carl – backing vocals (8)
* Gary Osborne – backing vocals (8)
* Ronald Baker – backing vocals (11)
* Carl Carwell – backing vocals (11)
* Chuck Cissel – backing vocals (11)
* Clarence Ford – backing vocals (11)
* Roy Galloway – backing vocals (11)
* Jim Gilstrap – backing vocals (11)
* John Lehman – backing vocals (11)
* Oren Waters – backing vocals (11)

## Production

* Producers – Chris Thomas (Tracks #1, 3–5, 9, 11); Clive Franks and Elton John (Tracks #2, 6–8, 10).
* Recorded by Bill Price
* Assistant Engineers – Jeremy Green, Patrick Janeaud, John Kurlander, Steve McManus, Peggy McCreary and Karen Siegel.
* Mastered by Tim Young
* Art Direction – Richard Seireeni
* Photography – Eric Blum
* Elton John Photo – Terry O'Neill
* Furniture provided by Fat Chance
* Mixed at Sunset Sound (Hollywood, California) and Wessex Sound Studios (London, UK).

## References

1. ↑ "The Fox Review by Lindsay Planer". *AllMusic*.
2. ↑ Holden, Stephen (6 August 1981). "*The Fox* review". *Rolling Stone*.
3. ↑ Wilhelm, Rich (20 May 2021). "A Fascinating Cross: Elton John's 'The Fox' at 40". *PopMatters*.

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