What Rocketman Star Taron Egerton Is Listening to Right Now
Taron Egerton can’t seem to shake “Your Song.” The 1970 Elton John ballad has followed the 29-year-old Welsh actor throughout his career, starting at 17 when he chose to sing it for his audition to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. He took on the tune again about a decade later, as a soulful gorilla named Johnny in the 2016 animated musical Sing. And now it really becomes his song: In the Elton John biopic Rocketman, out May 31, Egerton sings it right then and there as the man himself—no overdubbing required.
Egerton credits his vocal abilities to Wales’ rich choral tradition and his long-held appreciation for music. He’s clearly an Elton fan, but when he calls from L.A. one recent afternoon, he’s keen to talk about his musical past from the days before “Your Song” ruled his world: his mom giving him her vinyl and turning him onto David Bowie, his dad introducing him to soul greats like the Four Tops and Otis Redding. Through a bit of a cold, Egerton chats enthusiastically about his cherished old favorites and new finds.
Anderson .Paak: Oxnard
I met Anderson .Paak the other night at the Met Gala. I’m a huge fan of his. I’ve been listening to Oxnard a lot lately. There’s two songs that come together in the album called “6 Summers” and “Saviers Road,” and they’re my two favorites. Something I like about him is that there’s a sense of humor in his music. I went to see him perform [in London] with some friends not long ago, and he has this incredibly authentic voice and a really distinctive personality. Also, I don’t know how you sing and play the drums at the same time—it blows my mind. I love singing along to things when I listen. I would not do it in public to hip-hop, being a white Welshman, but I do love it.
Nick Drake: Pink Moon
At some point in my teens, I picked up Nick Drake on my own, realized that he was a genius, and have been obsessed with him since. My mother was playing him for a long time before that. When I was a kid, I found it to be heavy and dark. But as you get a little bit older, you find a catharsis in those things. You begin to understand the complexity of the human experience a little more. My favorite is Pink Moon, the one he wrote just before he killed himself. It’s very odd and it’s not terribly well produced. But I really hear something extraordinary in it—a sort of lost soul. He’s been slightly fetishized as a tragic figure, I don’t want to be a part of that. But his music makes me feel a great deal.
David Bowie: “Kooks”
I was given Hunky Dory by my mother when I was very young. I’ve always found that record to be very enchanting. There’s a song called “Kooks” that Bowie wrote shortly after the birth of his son Duncan Jones. He’s talking about his fears as a father and whether he’ll be any good at it. One of the lyrics is, “Don’t pick fights with the bullies or the cads, because I'm not much cop at punching other people's dads.” That really made me laugh. Then he also said, “And if the homework brings you down, then we’ll throw it on the fire and take the car downtown.” I always found that to be a really warming lyric, but it’s also got a sense of humor. My mother and I really bonded over it. It was just the two of us living together for the most part, until my teens when she met my stepfather. And I love that record to this day.
David Bowie’s always been one of my heroes. I have quite a lot of Bowie memorabilia. I have a signed Diamond Dogs [print] by Terry O'Neill. I also found this wicked thing in an old antique shop, a London Evening Standard poster from the late ’60s that says, “Inside The Secret Life of David Bowie.” It’s the coolest thing. I spent about £350 on it, and it sits above my bed. I always feel a bit like he’s watching over me. I never knew him and it’s a silly thing to think, but I find something very comforting about his presence in my home.
Originally Appeared on Pitchfork
