Empty Sky

The title track of Elton John's debut album is about a prisoner lamenting the loss of his freedom. Written by the fledgling partnership of Elton John and Bernie Taupin, the song is quite long, at 8 minutes 28 seconds. Like the rest of the album it was recorded at the Dick James Music Studios in London and was produced by Steve Brown.

Bernie Taupin talked about this song in a 1989 interview with Music Connection. Said Taupin: "The title track was quite interesting. I actually wouldn't mind re-recording that song because it was done in a two-track studio. We were basically trying to do 'Sympathy For The Devil' with that introduction. So that one track really stands out for me, and, in fact, Elton used to do that song onstage until sometime in the mid-Seventies. I think it would be really interesting to do that song again."

This was recorded at Dick James Music Studios, which was a small studio in London. They got a natural echo by recording Elton's vocal and guitarist Caleb Quayle's solo in the stairwell.