Bernie Taupin can't 'remember a word' of 'Candle in the Wind'“ ”song he rewrote for Princess Diana
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
"Candle in the Wind 1997" is one of the best-selling songs of all time, but its lyricist can hardly remember the words.
In an interview with Andy Cohen on SiriusXM's Andy Cohen Live Mondays, Elton John's songwriting partner Bernie Taupin reflected on his musical tribute to the late Princess Diana — and how little of the song he actually remembers.
"It's interesting because I very much did that remake in about, literally in about five or 10 minutes," Taupin said. "It took no time at all. And if you asked me to this day to recite the lyrics, I wouldn't be able to remember a word of it."
Helen Atkinson/NBCU Photo Bank Elton John
The lyricist explained that he reworked John's 1973 song, which originally featured lyrics about Marilyn Monroe, "as a favor to Elton, because he was very close with Diana." Taupin himself had no relationship with her: "I didn't know her," he said. "I wasn't a particular, you know, I paid very little interest to her day-to-day life, like so many other people did."
"Candle in the Wind 1997" was released on Sept. 13, 1997, just two weeks after Diana's death. It became the biggest song in Billboard's history, spending 14 weeks atop the American chart. It remains the second most popular physical single in history after only Bing Crosby's "White Christmas," and won John a Grammy in 1998 for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. John only performed the 1997 version of the song live once, at Diana's funeral.
Sign up for Entertainment Weekly's free daily newsletter to get breaking TV news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more.
Related content
