Photographer Ian Digby Ovens captured John (seated to the right in the photo but appearing to the left on the front cover, shown above) and Taupin (standing to the left, on the back cover) in front of the late-nineteenth-century station, to represent the album's rural Americana concept despite the English location. The wraparound cover photo for the album was taken at Sheffield Park railway station in Sussex, approximately 30 miles (50 km) south of London on the Bluebell Railway.

No singles were released from the album in the US by either DJM or John's US distributor, Universal Records, but 'Country Comfort' ( b/w 'Love Song') was released as a single in Australia, New Zealand and Brazil. Hookfoot guitarist Caleb Quaye and drummer Roger Pope had also appeared on John's Empty Sky album. In addition to several studio players who also performed on John's previous self-titled second album, several tracks feature backing musicians from the band Hookfoot, who were also his DJM Records label mates. It is Murray's first appearance on an Elton John album. Olsson had played on one track on Empty Sky for John in 1969. ĭee Murray and Nigel Olsson appear for the first time together on this album as the rhythm section on 'Amoreena'. It was released on several albums and reissues of Tumbleweed Connection, though the track was ultimately re-recorded for the Madman Across the Water album. An early version of 'Madman Across the Water', featuring Mick Ronson on electric guitar, was also recorded during the sessions for the album.

I don't think there's any song on there that doesn't melodically fit the lyric.' īasic tracks for three of the album's titles, 'Come Down in Time', 'Country Comfort' and 'Burn Down the Mission', were recorded at Trident during the sessions for the previous LP, Elton John, with overdubs completed for Tumbleweed Connection. I've always said that ' El Paso' was the song that made me want to write songs, it was the perfect meshing of melody and storyline, and I thought that here was something that married rhythms and the written word completely.' John has remarked, 'Lyrically and melodically, that's probably one of our most perfect albums. I've always loved Americana, and I loved American Westerns. It was totally influenced by The Band's album, ' Music From Big Pink', and Robbie Robertson's songs.

Co-writer Bernie Taupin said of the album, 'Everybody thinks that I was influenced by Americana and by seeing America first hand, but we wrote and recorded the album before we'd even been to the States.

Song burnin it down