• Writers: Elton John and Bernie Taupin
• Producer: Guy Dudgeon
• Recorded: December 1973 at Caribou Ranch in Nederland, Colorado
• Released: Spring 1974
• Players:
  Elton John — vocals, piano
  Davey Johnstone — guitar
  Dee Murray — bass
  Nigel Olsson — drums
  Ray Cooper — percussion
  Lenny Pickett — tenor sax solo
  Tower Of Power — horns
  Dusty Springfield, Clydie King, Sherlie Adams, and Jessie Mae Smith — backing vocals
• Album: Caribou (MCA, 1974)
• Also On:
  Greatest Hits, Vol. II (MCA, 1977)
  To Be Continued… (MCA, 1990)
  VH1 Divas Live 1999 (Arista, 1999)
  One Night Only (Universal, 2000)
  Greatest Hits 1970-2002 (UME, 2002)
• Caribou marked a change of recording venue for Elton Johns and his band. After doing his three previous albums in France, he decided to make one in the U.S. He chose producer James Guercio‘s studio in Colorado, where Chicago made many of their key albums.
• Shortly after Caribou‘s release, John signed what was a record-breaking $8 million, five-album deal.
• Caribou spent four weeks at Number One on the Billboard 200 in 1974 and has sold well over two million copies.
• John’s November 28th, 1974, performance at Madison Square Garden in New York City on the Caribou tour was one of the most historic of his career. That night, John Lennon joined him onstage for three songs — “Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds,” “Whatever Gets You Through The Night,” and “I Saw Her Standing There.” It turned out to be Lennon’s final public performance.

FAST FORWARD:

• Tina Turner covered “The Bitch Is Back” for the 1991 tribute album Two Rooms — Celebrating The Songs Of Elton John And Bernie Taupin.
• Dee Murray, who played bass on “The Bitch Is Back,” died January 14th, 1992, of a stroke.
• John and Turner dueted on “The Bitch Is Back” for VH1’s Divas Live special in 1999.
• John was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994.
• Despite periodic and highly publicized “retirements,” John has continued to record and perform.
• Along with his regular touring, John has also committed to doing his The Red Piano revue at the Caesar’s Palace Colosseum in Las Vegas.
• He’s branched out into film and theater work, including soundtracks and scores for The Lion King, The Road To El Dorado, and Aida.
• John and lyricist Tim Rice won an Oscar in 1995 for best original song for The Lion King‘s “Can You Feel The Love Tonight.”
• Since publicly coming out as gay, John has become increasingly active in promoting AIDS research and relief for AIDS sufferers, including an annual post-Oscar party to raise money for his own foundation.
• His reworked version of his hit “Candle In The Wind,” in memory of the late Princess Diana, was recorded to raise money for the Princess Diana Of Wales Foundation.
• John received the Grammy Legend Award in 2000.

John and his songwriting partner Bernie Taupin released a sequel to Captain Fantastic & the Brown Dirt Cowboy in 2006, titled The Captain & The Kid.