The One

Elton John’s 23rd album is a showcase of the qualities that made him great in the ’70s: beautiful melodies, pop songcraft perfection, musical virtuosity, and empathy in Bernie Taupin’s narrative-driven lyrics. It’s filled with mature themes too—the blues-y “Runaway Train” (with Eric Clapton), the pop-hypnotic “Simple Life,” and the R&B-fueled “Sleeping With the Past” all tell of Elton’s new-found sobriety and clarity on life. The title song is a sweeping ode to finding one’s own spiritual twin, which sets the tone for the entire album.

Elton John once claimed that he could remember The One among his latter-day albums because it was the first he recorded without drugs or alcohol.